England star Jess Carter revealed she feared “astronomical” racist abuse. This would have happened if teammate Lauren James was the only player to miss a penalty in the Euro 2025 quarter-final shootout against Sweden. The case highlights the racial abuse Black players face in women’s football.
Chelsea forward Lauren James missed England’s second penalty in Zurich. However, Beth Mead, Alex Greenwood, and Grace Clinton—all white players—also missed their shots. Despite these misses, the Lionesses advanced. Later, they beat Spain in the final via another penalty shootout.
Carter told ITN: “It’s horrible to say but it’s almost like a sigh of relief when other players that weren’t black missed a penalty, because the racism that would have come with LJ [Lauren James] being the only one that missed would have been astronomical.”
Lauren James and Jess Carter Both Targeted by Online Racism
James faced online racist abuse during her time at Manchester United in 2021. She was targeted again while at Chelsea in 2023. Carter also suffered online racism during the tournament. The Football Association (FA) worked with police to identify those responsible.
Carter described the abuse’s impact: “It makes you feel really small. It makes you feel like you’re not important, that you’re not valuable. It makes you second guess everything that you do – it’s not a nice place to be.”
FA and England Team Respond to Racial Abuse
FA chief executive Mark Bullingham called the abuse “abhorrent.” He confirmed the FA referred the cases to the police during the tournament. After the abuse, Carter stepped back from social media. However, she said the support from England fans “meant everything.”
The England team decided to stop taking the knee before matches. Manager Sarina Wiegman said the anti-racism gesture’s impact was “not good enough.”
Carter admitted the abuse affected her mentally before the final: “That’s the first time I’ve ever been scared – too scared to play. I think it was a mixture of such a big game, but then on top of that [I was] scared of whatever abuse might come with it, whether it’s football based or whether it was going to be the racial abuse that was going to come with it because I did something wrong.”
This honest account by Jess Carter reveals the harsh reality of racial abuse in football. It also stresses the urgent need for stronger actions against online racism.
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