England’s Lionesses have been given a massive boost ahead of their next World Cup game.
This week the girls are set to take on Australia’s national team for the nail-biting semi-final.
And, ahead of the match, the ladies were given a huge boost, with Brits seemingly backing them to go all the way in scenes that could be reminiscent of England’s sensational win at Euro 2022.
England’s Lionesses bring in record viewing figures
In a major show of support for the team that can only boost morale, it has been revealed that more than 7.2 million football fans watched England roar to victory on Saturday (August 12) on ITV1.
The Lionesses beat Columbia 2-1 in the quarter finals, sending them through to Wednesday’s semis, and a staggering 58% of Saturday morning’s television audience tuned in to the game.
ITV said in a statement: “It was ITV’s second biggest peak audience this year, beaten only by the Grand National. And it was ITV’s most watched women’s football match ever and the biggest on any channel since the Lionesses won the Euros last year.”
England to come to a standstill?
As a result, the Lionesses will now be training hard ahead of Wednesday’s semi-final (August 16). They take on hosts Australia will air at 11am on BBC One.
According to the Daily Mail, pubs are said to be “anticipating big crowds” as millions skip work to watch the game, bringing the country to a standstill.
As well as that, the 87,000 English ex-pats living Down Under will also be glued to their screens.
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The Lionesses roar: ‘Bring it on’
England’s 11 beat Columbia 2-1 on Saturday, with striker Lauren Hemp and forward Alessia Russo each scoring a goal. Speaking after the match, Lauren said: “We are all feeling really confident. Australia, bring it on. I’m absolutely over the moon, I can’t wait. The atmosphere here was incredible, it’s going to be incredible again.” She then added: “That’s when you thrive, I feel like we will thrive once again.”
Alessia, meanwhile, promised fans that the team will be “working hard” over the next few days.
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She said: “We’re just so happy to be in the semi. We have had to dig deep from the first game. Colombia have so many players who can cause you so much trouble, but the backline was impressive for us.”
Alessia then added: “England fans can always dare to dream, but we’ll carry on working hard.”
So will you be watching the Lionesses on Wednesday? Let us know over on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix.