To the allegedly “English” men on social media who have been saying, “It is a different sport”, I have no response, because none of them I have seen so far on Twitter (for which it shall remain) have more than about 20 followers and I could not care less about their so-called opinion.
To you, the people who matter to me, I say that I am appalled by (at least) all of the following:
1. How anyone who purports to be English and is interested in team sport could fail to be jumping up and down with jubilation about the fact that the Lionesses are in the final, to say nothing of the fact that the USA and Germany have already been eliminated.
2. Even if you insist that “men’s football” and “women’s football” are “different sports” (which they are) but that is all you have got, then you still have a problem: a linguistic problem.
In the following phrases:
(1) FIFA Women’s World Cup
(2) FIFA Men’s World Cup
Both the particles except “Men’s”, “Women’s”, and “Cup” are exactly equivalent. It is the same organising body, and the same planet.
The trophy is different, but, in a parallel world, you could imagine a society in which the Women’s and Men’s World Cups were held in different years (as they are in our world) and both sets of teams compete for the same block of metal.
The planet, in my opinion, is the decisive thing.
Did the Lionesses qualify for the tournament?
Yes, but they were just women.
Did they get through the group stage?
Yes, but they were just women.
Did they win their tie in the group of 16?
Yes, but they were just women.
Did they win their quarter final?
Yes, but they were just women.
Did they win their semi-final against the host nation, in front of a crowd of 75,000 mostly hostile fans, in a nation that has the reputation of producing some of the most mentally and physically tough competitors, and most cohesive teams, of any nation on Earth?
Yes, but, in this case, they were just women.
Be all that as it may.
“When they take to the field for the final, they will be competing for the World Cup.
Yes, but they will be just women.”
— No. The last bit is not just emotionally but logically untenable.
Argentina is offically the current holder of the Men’s football World Cup.
USA is officially the current holder of the Women’s football World Cup.
A new Women’s World Cup holder will win the title on Sunday.
But the “World” in both the Men’s and the Women’s is the same planet, the same society, the same global importance, the same jeopardy.
[Addressed to the people who are never going to see this:]
If you purport to follow football, and you purport to support England, but you are still trying to say the Lionesses’ achievement is not important, then you have something fundamentally wrong with you.
And I despise you all the more, because you have all but reduced a bona fide (that’s Latin) Englishman (one word) to the unspeakable vulgarity of having to explain why being English, on this occasion, is important.
iamhyperlexic 