Tournament feature
Defending the Crown
She Kicks, issue 90, July 2025 pp.16–17
England begin EURO 2025 as reigning champions, but the preview opens on who will not be there. Mary Earps retires from international football after being told she is no longer the number one, Hannah Hampton having been preferred since Earps’s injury in the May 2024 qualifier with France. Fran Kirby follows, bidding farewell on learning she is out of the squad, and a day later Millie Bright withdraws from contention, the Chelsea captain saying she is not able to give 100% mentally or physically. She Kicks weighs the damage to Sarina Wiegman’s plans against the depth still available, with Georgia Stanway back after five months out following knee surgery and Lauren James’s fitness the central question. A “Ready to Roar?” panel picks out Aggie Beever-Jones, fresh from a hat-trick against Portugal, and Grace Clinton.