- Jess Carter admitted feeling relief when non-Black England teammates also missed penalties in the Euro 2025 quarter-final shootout, fearing Lauren James would face astronomical social media abuse if she had been the only one to miss.
- Carter explained that the shared misses by Beth Mead, Alex Greenwood, and Grace Clinton alongside James helped to diffuse potential severe racial targeting.
- Having personally experienced online racism during the tournament, Carter revealed the abuse made her feel scared to play in the final, fearing further racial or football-related backlash.
- She described the psychological impact of the abuse as making her feel small, unimportant, and not valuable, which severely affected her confidence.
- The Football Association's chief executive, Mark Bullingham, confirmed that the abhorrent abuse directed at players during the tournament was referred to UK police.
IN FULL
