To ask everyone to watch the World Cup Final at 11 on Sunday?

[YetiTeri]

It doesn't matter if you don't like football, or if you don't like sport this tournament and this game is about so much more than that.

• it's about showing women's sport is worthy of investment.

• it's about giving different role models to young and particularly teenage girls.

• it's about showing rivalry in performance but not through violence.

• it's about showing our daughters they matter as much as our sons.

• it's about showing women they can be coaches and compete with men on an equal footing.

• it's about highlighting the battles women from many countries have undergone to get to this tournament.

• it's about showing homophobia has no place in team sports.

And it's about giving women a voice in their sport.

The Spanish team are there in spite of their coach and have some really disturbing stories about how players have been treated. Without any eyes on women's sport these sorts of issues are allowed to take root.

No thanks, football bores me to sleep.

I can’t wait. We’ll all be watching in our house. So many people here being miserable about it. Our women’s team are incredible & deserve all our support.

Agree

They were in the final last year did you watch them then?

I was all behind your original post until you wrote about rugby. Don't watch don't care. But you expect people like me to support the lionesses even though I find football boring etc surely you should support all female sport if you care so much about equality of opportunity.

Football bores the crap out of me - but I do wonder why there is such a stereotypical female football player - the vast majority have long ponytails and seem to be a bit of a clone

Can't wait! I have watched all of the games. Sunday will be so exciting.

I've also got tickets to see The Lionesses play Scotland, in September - daren't even think that they may be worked cup winners! https://safc.com/news/club-news/2023/july/lionesses-tickets-on-sale

Because the players are women and not ladies?

Well I have long hair, and I’m 48. Most of the young women I know have long hair. My daughter who plays a lot of football has longish hair and wears a haiirband and ponytail when playing so she can see well.

But football bores me! I don't watch the men's either

I’ll be watching 100% - with both my sporty daughter for inspo and my teenage football fan son who, due to misogyny in the media, particularly online, had a perception that all women’s football is shit. His perception has changed since I’ve made him sit and watch it and he does acknowledge that they’re actually getting quite good! Considering the women playing now had limited opportunities to play, weren’t taken at all seriously and received minimal funding compared to the boys they are incredible and the progress in the last 5yrs has been immense. Now being a professional footballer can be a realistic career goal for young girls, just wait to see the trajectory in the game in the next 10 years, I can’t wait to see the stars of the future!

How's that going to help? Itnwill be on iplayer or whatever anyway

YABU to ask. I’d sooner watch love island and that’s saying something

Yes, we’ll be watching it. Love that DS is growing up in a time where women playing physical team sports with such determination, common and skill is becoming mainstream. He thinks they’re brilliant.

Not an England fan, but will def tune in now, for all the women who fought hard to take part.

No chance. What a waste of time.

I’m looking forward to it

No thanks. I am not interested in any sports, and I certainly wont be tuning in just because it is women playing.
This thread reminds me of the one where OP told people it was their duty to watch the Coronation, and that being away was no excuse as they could "watch it on their smartphones".

If you're not interested enough to watch it love then you're not going to bother watching a recording, especially if the reason is that it's sunny outside.

Live not love :)

I’d rather watch paint dry.

Yep me and other half will be watching and shouting at the TV.

It's clearly up to every individual as to whether they do or don't watch the game.

But if you don't choose to eat then please do not take the view or complain that is unfair that women football players get paid a fraction of what male players do.

Nah.

The women’s game is not the same as the men’s game but that doesn’t automatically imho = “shit”

For a start they have had a hard time getting sponsorship until recently so have had to literally pull themselves up by the boot straps. They have worked so very hard and overcome so many barriers and have achieved magnificent things with very few and scarce resources.

Once sponsorship is established and more money and more facilities start pouring in to the women’s game, the standard will get better and better from the grass roots up.

Instead of comparing them to the men’s
game which has had so many more years to grow, establish itself and and develop, why not judge them from where they are at right now - they are in the final fhs - and applaud them for their current achievements?

I think there is much snobbery and internalised misogyny on this thread tbh. There must be for everyone to be so negative about such a good news story in women’s sport. Even if you don’t like football, what’s stopping people being happy for them and hoping that they win?

Well I have not read every single post on the thread but I haven't seen anyone say that they hope they lose or that they haven't worked hard for their success. But you can wish them well without being particularly interested or feeling you have some kind of duty to watch just because it's a women's match.
I don't think the Lionesses are any less worthy of praise than any other sportswomen but I don't think that they are any more worthy either. The England women had a cracking victory in the Eurohockey Championships today but nobody is berating people for not watching that are they? Just as well really, as unless you were willing to pay to stream it you couldn't watch anyway. Can't say I'm seeing any real evidence of a knock on boost for women's sport in general. In fact I think some of the "at last we've got good role models for girls" and "finally girls can get involved in exciting team sports" type comments are pretty misogynistic and dismissive of women involved in other sports, particularly those that are traditionally seen as primarily women's sports.
I'm just back from volunteering at the World Paracycling Championships so admittedly that's probably coloured my view on exactly what constitutes overcoming adversity in sport too. And the fact that I heard that it's not unusual for those World Champions to sell their prizes to help fund the next year's racing gave me a different perspective on funding inequalities, so I can't get too excited about the fact that the Lionesses personal bonus for reaching the final is "only" £129 000 each. (I'd happily see the men's frankly obscene wages reduced mind you.)
So yes, I do wish the football team well, in the same way as I do our national teams in the other sports I have no interest in. They've worked hard and it would be nice if they won. But I don't buy into the idea that they are uniquely disadvantaged or are radically changing the world and I don't feel obligated to do anything to actively support them just because we happen to share the same number of X chromosomes.