Lionesses inspiring young girls to play football on the Yorkshire Coast

England take on Germany at Wembley in the final on Sunday

Author: Karen LiuPublished 29th Jul 2022

Young girls playing football on the Yorkshire coast say they have been inspired by England's success at the Euros ahead of this weekend's final.

The Lionesses will take on Germany at Wembley with Beth Mead, who is from Hinderwell near Whitby, looking to secure the Golden Boot at the tournament.

Ella Wilson plays for Scarborough Athletic Women's and said: "Seeing these girls actually taking it all the way to the final has been really inspiring as a young player. As someone who's actually grown up looking up to women's football and seeing them get that popularity, get out there and seeing it promoted more is really great and it's amazing to see that.

"It's been a real inspiration to a lot of young girls. My younger sister is only eight years old but she's started to get more involved in football. They're doing all these academies for young girls and she's wanting to get more involved so I feel like that's been a big inspiration."

Owen Willis, Chairman of Scarborough Ladies, said: "They've come along from four and five years old, they've made friends, learn new skills and they're playing competitively. There's no difference in girls wishing to be competitive compared to boys, the game is just the same for them. They want to play, they want to win and at the same time they just want to have fun as well.

"There's been so many girls playing football at the moment. There's been so many enquiries over the last six months or so I think in the build up to it people have been excited about the Euros. I think what we'll see if that the success they've had over the last week or so, in the quarter-final and semi-final and if they go on to win, I think that will be a massive catalyst for an increase."

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