In a victory that goes far beyond the 2023 Women’s World Cup, Nike has finally agreed to sell Mary Earps’ Lionesses shirt following backlash across the country and the footballing world. Get in.
The Lionesses and Man United Women’s no.1 has been leading the charge when it comes to demanding Nike U-turn on their decision not to sell female goalkeeper kits for this year’s tournament and after weeks of uproar among the general public, the sports brand has finally buckled.
Following Earps saving what has now gone down as an iconic penalty moment in the Women’s World Cup final against Spain, the public outcry for the company to produce replicas of her England shirt grew even louder, with more than 150,000 people signing a petition in support of selling the kit.
As a result, the petition was submitted to Parliament and Nike has now confirmed they will finally manufacture and sell ‘Mary Earps 1’ Lionesses shirts. About bloody time.
Nike confirm they will sell England goalkeeper Mary Earps' replica shirt in limited quantities 👕 pic.twitter.com/o95nTULy7F
Issuing a statement to The New York Times on Wednesday night, 23 August, a spokesperson said: “Nike has secured limited quantities of goalkeeper jerseys for England, U.S., France and the Netherlands to be sold through the federation websites over the coming days, and we are also in conversations with our other federation partners”.
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As per multiple outlets, they went on to assure, “We’ve seen and share the unprecedented passion and interest in women’s football this year and remain committed to playing our part by offering the best products and services to athletes and fans.
“We invested more in this year’s WC than any other global tournament to date… We recognize that during the tournament we didn’t serve those fans who wished to show their passion and support to the squad’s goalkeepers. We are committed to retailing women’s goalkeeping jerseys for major tournaments in the future.”
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While the female keeper kits will only be available in “limited qualities” for the four nations, the U-turn is a watermark moment in the women’s and serves as a brilliant moment in which the general public notched a huge win against a worldwide corporation. They didn’t let up for one second and here in Manchester, we had a feeling the writing was on the wall from the get-go.
Speaking when the controversy first came into the public eye, the 30-year-old England women’s keeper said, “I can’t really sugar-coat this in any way, so I am not going to try. It is hugely disappointing and very hurtful… What you’re saying is that goalkeeping isn’t important but you can be a striker if you want.”
The support from her teammates, across the nation and throughout football in general has been nothing short of seismic and after she once again called out the giant sporting fashion franchise for what many labelled a bit of non-statement, it’s clear that the fan pressure and public sentiment became to big to ignore.
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A truly massive and well-deserved moment for Mary Earps and her fellow women goalkeepers.
We knew it was going to happen the second she saved that pen.
Rio Ferdinand is stepping away from TNT Sports after more than a decade
Danny Jones
Manchester United legend and ex-England international Rio Ferdinand has announced he will be stepping away from TNT Sports, leaving more than a decade with the broadcaster.
Ferdinand has spent the best part of the last 10 years serving as a leading pundit and analyst, as well as hosting his own ‘Rio Meets’ online series – the interview format of which has been replicated on his YouTube channel.
However, after having been one of their main anchors both under the BT Sport and even more so since the inception of the rebranded TNT Sports Football umbrella, the 46-year-old has confirmed he has now quit their regular coverage following the Champions League final this weekend.
In a lengthy statement on social media, the ex-Man United defender, who also played for Leeds, West Ham, Bournemouth and QPR, described it as a “difficult decision.”
Taking time to thank the network for their “tremendous support” over the years, especially those “behind the scenes, whose work often goes unseen but has been essential to our success.”
The talented centre-back retired in May 2015 after more than 500 appearances and 81 national team caps, making an almost immediate switch into punditry and remaining a household name.
Rio has also remained a popular figure at Old Trafford and, indeed, across various parts of Manchester since leaving United in 2014.
For instance, his self-titled Foundation has carried out some truly transformational local outreach across various boroughs, as it has back in his home city of London.
Responding to the news, TNT Sports said nothing more than “Thanks for everything, Rio”; meanwhile, fellow former Red, Danny Simpson (who retired last year and also works as a pundit/presenter for MUTV) added: “You’re going to be missed, bro. Every time you’re on, you give us all the mad insight.”
However, he has promised he will remain in the media industry, continuing to work under the Rio Ferdinand Presents digital brand and pursuing “other business interests”.
With his ‘Rio Reacts’ and ‘Vibe with FIVE’ series regularly raking in millions of views, he might not be on the box during European nights but you’ll still be seeing plenty of him.
Rare bat-eared foxes have arrived at Chester Zoo for the first time in more than 30 years
Emily Sergeant
It’s time to say a big hello, as rare bat-eared foxes have now arrived at Chester Zoo.
The two sisters, named Maasai and Malindi, have been welcomed by conservationists after travelling more than 500 miles from a zoo in Paris, and they are the first mammals of their kind to come to Chester Zoo in more than 30 years.
First images show the pair exploring their home in the zoo’s new Heart of Africa habitat – which officially opened to the public back in March, and is the largest zoo development ever undertaken in the UK, spanning more than 22.5 acres in size.
The adorable – but rather unique-looking – bat-eared fox is named after its distinctive oversized ears and is native to the open savannahs and arid grasslands of eastern and southern Africa.
They live for around 13 years on average, and their characteristically large ears help regulate their body temperature and enhance their incredible hearing, allowing them to prey like detect insects moving underground.
The species faces increasing threats in the wild, largely due to the loss of their habitat caused by agriculture, human encroachment, and hunting.
This is why Chester Zoo has long been at the forefront of protecting African wildlife.
Its teams’ have been supporting everything from the safe translocation of northern giraffes to protected national parks in Uganda, to developing cutting-edge AI trail cameras to protect giant pangolins from illegal trafficking in recent years.
Bat-eared foxes have arrived at Chester Zoo for the first time in 30 years / Credit: Chester Zoo
“It’s incredibly exciting to welcome bat-eared foxes back to Chester Zoo after a 30-year hiatus,” commented David White, who is the Twilight Team Manager at Chester Zoo.
“Both Maasai and Malindi are settling in well so far, spending much of their time exploring their expansive home and getting to know their new housemates – a family of twelve Cape porcupines. These two species would often come across one another in the wild, so we’ve recreated this right here at Chester.
“In time, we hope to introduce one of the two sisters to a male fox, with the hope that we can contribute to the European conservation breeding programme, helping to ensure there’s a healthy, genetically diverse back-up population in human care.
Danny Jones -
24th August 2023 
