Football fans, famous names, and more have been reacting to England’s “inspirational” win in the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 final last week.
People have been taking to social media in their thousands to shower the Lionesses with deserved praise and support after they not only clinched the coveted title of 2022 European Champions by beating Germany 2-1 in a thrilling final match at Wembley Stadium yesterday – but also truly inspired the nation in the process.
In front of a roaring sold-out stadium packed full of excited fans, England scored the match’s first goal, with Tyldesley-born Manchester United forward Ella Toone smashing it into the back of the net in the 62nd minute, but hopes were dashed slightly when Germany equalised shortly after.
With the score 1-1 at the full 90-minutes, the match was taken to extra time.
The winning goal didn’t come straight away, but with the prospect of a penalties looming, the ball was at the feet of Manchester City star Chloe Kelly – who scored in the 110th minute to bring home the title.
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The win is the country’s first international silverware since 1966.
Bringing home the title was the icing on the cake to what had been an impressive run of victories and goals by the Lionesses throughout European football’s flagship tournament, and has cemented its stars as household names throughout the country.
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Many have already called England’s victory more than just a sporting achievement.
Some have branded it a “seismic moment” in this country’s history, and others have said the impact of the win is too great to truly quantify at this time.
Rafts of football fans, famous names, and people previously not-interested in women’s football alike have all taken to social media last night and this morning following the win to share their reactions and thoughts, and ultimately pay congratulations to the Lionesses.
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The Lionesses took home the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 title beating Germany 2-1 / Credit: Lionesses (via Twitter)
Queen Elizabeth II, and the Duke of Cambridge Prince William were among the famous names to lead the congratulations to the team.
“The championships and your performance in them have rightly won praise,” The Queen said.
“However, your success goes far beyond the trophy you have so deservedly earned. You have all set an example that will be an inspiration for girls and women today, and for future generations. It is my hope that you will be as proud of the impact you have had on your sport as you are of the result today.”
Prince William – who is president of the FA, and watched the match live at Wembley yesterday – described the match as “sensational”, and said “the whole nation couldn’t be prouder of you all”.
“Your success goes far beyond the trophy you have so deservedly earned.
“You have all set an example that will be an inspiration for girls and women today, and for future generations.”
🏴 🏆 The Queen has sent a message of congratulations to the @Lionesses:
Sensational. An incredible win @lionesses and the whole nation couldn’t be prouder of you all. Wonderful to see history in the making tonight at Wembley, congratulations! W
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) July 31, 2022
Several of England’s national men’s team also took to both Twitter and Instagram to share their messages of support and congratulate the Lionesses, as well as a few of them being present at Wembley to watch the win live.
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England captain Harry Kane, as well as Jack Grealish, Marcus Rashford, and Phil Foden were just a few of the players to publicly show support.
Absolutely unreal scenes at Wembley!! Massive congrats to the amazing @Lionesses!! @ellatoone99 take a bow for that finish too 👌
Manchester United captain Harry Maguire said on Twitter: “Huge congratulations to the Lionesses. Brilliant game. History made. The whole country is proud of you. Enjoy the celebrations.”
“Unbelievable achievement from the Lionesses. An inspiration to everyone in the country,” Manchester City’s newest recruit and England midfielder Kalvin Phillips said on Twitter.
Former City winger Raheem Sterling also called the Lionesses “history-makers” on Twitter.
Gary Lineker, Michael Owen, Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand, Ian Wright, Alan Shearer, and a handful of English football’s other most-famous names in recent years have also heaped praise on the Lionesses after the win.
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Football is a simple game. 22 women chase a ball for 90 minutes and, at the end, England actually win. Congratulations @lionesses. Fabulous.
What the @Lionesses have just done is amazing and so damned bloody hard to do. A seismic moment for Sport in this country! Well done to you all 🏴 ❤️⚽️
Former England and Arsenal defender Alex Scott struggled to speak as the players celebrated their win on the Wembley pitch, explaining: “This is a dream, an absolute dream for every young girl that dreamt of playing football.
“It’s incredible.
“Every single player has played a part. Nikita Parris, who came on at the end, came on to do a job for the team and the way teams play as a whole determines its success.”
Away from football, countless celebrities and well-known names have congratulated the Lionesses on their title, with some of the most prominent and heartfelt messages of support coming from iconic 90s girlband Spice Girls, singer Adele, Dame Joan Collins, and comedian Miranda Hart.
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Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood also said that the Lionesses had “made us all so proud” as he congratulated them.
“What an incredible result – Thank you forever!” he added.
Adele described the achievement as a “game changer, and shared a photo of the Lionesses celebrating their win on Instagram, writing: “You did it – It’s come home.”
Crying. So brilliant. So important. Too emotional to articulate more. I am glad there are 7 year olds watching this who wanted to be a goalkeeper like I did! But didn’t think it was ‘appropriate’ or ‘allowed’ to voice it. Thank you Lionesses. #Lionesses
The Manchester 24 Hour Run raises over £70,000 for the region’s homeless community
Danny Jones
The numbers are in for the 2025 Manchester 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness, which saw hordes of runners take over the city centre to generate money for the ever-crucial cause.
Having set an ambitious target of £50,000, not only did they manage to achieve their goal, they absolutely SMASHED it, totalling more than £70k.
In fact, with last-minute donations and matching contributions still trickling in over a fortnight on from this year’s event, the final figure is actually set to surpass that by several thousands.
Simply incredible stuff. Speaking on the night, here’s what the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, had to say about another inspiring edition of the annual endurance relay.
Running in the wind and rain, dashing through puddles in the cold, the pitch black and all through the night into the fresh cold Manc morning this month, more than a thousand volunteers, locals, businesses, and more laced up their trainers for the seventh edition in six years.
For those unaware, this event is a recurring 5k relay loop around Manchester, with the route designed to run around parts of the city centre where you can witness homelessness first-hand.
Taking place in November every year – when the region is even more dark, grey and wet than usual – this also gives participants an opportunity to further empathise with the discomfort felt by rough sleepers.
Well over 4,000 individuals and 165 organisations have taken part in this initiative since 2019, funding more than 70,000 nights of accommodation through the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity and its ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme. That tally is set to jump massively, once again, after this year’s run.
Here’s how the 2025 stats on the tarmac break down:
100 running clubs and organisations
Over 1,500 individual runners and walkers
44 x five-kilometre consecutive relay laps run
Over £188,700* raised across all events and years.
Multiple sponsors, including Autotrader, Accenture and Mistral
Credit: Ed Hill (supplied)
In 2025, the 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness also successfully expanded to Sheffield and Hereford for the first time, as well as returning to Birmingham for its second year.
The event unites local running communities to support local organisations. Better still, in 2026, the event is expected to expand again; for instance, after a rescheduling, the event is heading over to Yorkshire once more for the inaugural edition of The Leeds 24 Hour Run in March 2026.
Reflecting on the event’s seventh year, The 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness co-founder, Thomas Lewis, says: “Every year I think we’ve hit our peak in terms of fundraising and turnout, and every year we somehow manage to surpass it. I’m completely blown away by the support and dedication of the Manchester running community. Bring on next year.”
Fran Darlington-Pollock, the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity’s outgoing CEO, added: “We’re so proud to continue supporting this incredible event and all the hard work that goes into making it such a success year after year.
“The passion and dedication of the organisers, runners, and supporters are truly inspiring, and we’re so grateful for the funds raised, which help people experiencing homelessness through A Bed Every Night.”
Anyone still wanting to make a donation can do so by visiting The 24 Hour Run website and the attached JustGiving page HERE, which will remain open for a few weeks following the event.
There are plenty of other ways we can help fight homelessness throughout the year, and it’s by pursuing vital causes like this that we truly put the great in Greater Manchester.
John Cooper Clarke announces latest UK headline tour along with new book
Danny Jones
The ‘Bard of Salford’ himself, Dr John Cooper Clarke, is back with another UK headline tour in 2026, plus a brand-new book to boot.
Now 76 and still as fiery as ever, ‘The Godfather of Punk Poetry’s career spans more than half a century, and as a Greater Manchester native and cultural icon, he’s still just as worth celebrating as ever with each passing year.
Becoming the first poet to ever headline a UK arena with his landmark Co-op Live back in March, it’s been another milestone 12 months for local legend, and he clearly has absolutely no intentions of slowing down next year either.
Revealing a raft of new tour dates on Monday, 1 December, John Cooper Clarke will be bringing his spoken word stylings and latest collection – satsifyingly titled Have It – to crowds all over the country.
Confirming a total of 20 new live shows, JCC will be kicking off his next tour in October 2026 in time for the launch of his latest title.
Following on from last year’s release, ‘WHAT‘, which became an instant Sunday Times bestseller, and his memoir (published back in 2020), this will be his fifth book to date.
2025 also saw him receive the prestigious Northern Music Award (NMAs) in recognition of his phenomenal influence in the music world and art as a whole.
As for us here at Audio North, we recently also had the incredible privilege of sitting down to chat with Cooper Clarke ourselves ahead of the announcement.
You can see John Cooper Clarke’s list of live shows in full down below.
JCC UK headline tour dates 2026
We’ve kindly italicised all the Northern dates for you as well.
Tickets for Dr John Cooper Clarke in October 2026 will be available from this Friday, 5 December at 10am via Gigs and Tours as well as his official website.
Emily Sergeant -
1st August 2022 
