England fans pack out Trafalgar Square in wild Euros final win celebrations as hungover Lionesses get heroes’ welcome
ENGLAND’S legendary hungover Lionesses received the heroes’ welcome they thoroughly deserved as thousands of fans packed out a jubilant Trafalgar Square.
Sarina Wiegman’s stars secured the nation’s first major football trophy since the World Cup in 1966 by beating Germany at Wembley last night in the Euro 2022 final.
The celebrations went on at the stadium and then at the team hotel in West London late into last night.
And just a few hours after getting to bed, the slightly-worse-for-wear girls were on the bus and driving into central London to present the trophy.
Fans of all ages snapped up the 7,000 tickets available on a first-come-first-serve basis – with queues starting as early as 7am.
For those working nearby, many opened office windows to catch a glimpse of the history makers as they were announced at the party parade after Mayor of London Sadiq Khan’s warm-up act.
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There were a few tired faces and lots of sunglasses after the Lionesses partied until 4am with champagne and cocktails at their plush hotel in West London.
Ex-England ace Alex Scott introduced the heroes on to the platform as skipper Leah Williamson, manager Sarina Weigman, goalscorers Chloe Kelly and Ella Toon as well as Lucy Bronze and Jill Scott all spoke passionately about the victory and the impact it will have on the nation.
But before long, just after the trophy was passed around and lifted up to massive cheers, it descended into another sing-song, kickstarted by the Wembley anthem Sweet Caroline.
Kelly was right at the thick of the party while Rachel Daly grabbed the microphone for her very own solo.
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Bleary-eyed hero Kelly appeared with her partner Scott Moore this morning and told The Sun it was an “amazing” night.
Wiegman told the Lionesses YouTube channel: “Crazy. Lot’s of drinking, lots of dancing.
“English people can drink! So a little bit too much alcohol, I think.
“But that’s OK. We are enjoying it. When you have this accomplishment it is really good to have a party.”
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Captain Leah Williamson arrived at the hotel carrying a huge speaker but emerged “a little bit rough” on Monday with the iconic trophy in her hands.
And she kept it safe for the coach journey from Teddington to Trafalgar Square, where thousands of fans – especially kids on school holidays – gave them a deserved heroes’ reception.
A record crowd for a European Championships match – men’s or women’s – were in attendance at Wembley.
A whopping 87,192 crammed into the national stadium on Sunday evening to watch Chloe Kelly’s dramatic extra-time winner – prompting wild scenes inside the ground and across the nation.
A peak audience of 17.4million watched the game on BBC One last night as Gabby Logan fronted the brilliant coverage.
That is the most people to tune in for a women’s football match in UK history – and the biggest TV audience of the year to date.
Millions more piled into fan parks, pubs and lounges to take in the memorable occasion as Sarina Wiegman’s side really did bring football home.
Wembley broke into utter bedlam when Kelly poked home with ten minutes to go.
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And her sky-high reputation soared even further when she ditched her post-match interview to join in singing Sweet Caroline.
Then the Lionesses squad gatecrashed manager Wiegman’s press conference, bursting in belting out It’s Coming Home and dancing on the table in jubilant scenes.