Blaise Tapp: Fatherhood turned me into a bit of a women’s football superfan
One of the many upsides of being a parent is that it tends to broaden your cultural horizons.
Since I became a dad nearly 16 years ago, I’ve learned the names of the members of both One Direction and Little Mix, watched every Disney film at least seven times, have formed a close affinity with Mr Tumble and Daddy Pig and discovered that I don’t actually hate musical theatre.
However, aside from rejoining the Scouting movement (long suffering readers will know that I recently became a Cub leader) the main added pleasure that parenthood has brought me is my love for women’s football.
Since being introduced to the women’s game four years ago, I’ve watched scores of games with our daughter, visiting a host of new football grounds I hadn’t previously managed to get to during more than 35 years of going to men’s matches.
Since 2020, when I watched the Lionesses with the family for the first time, my appreciation for women’s football has grown to the point where I now consider myself to be a true supporter. While the men’s game is played at a faster pace and with greater levels of power, the game of Lauren James, Leah Williamson and Alessia Russo can be just as exciting, with impressive levels of skill, not to mention plenty of drama.
Just last Friday night, our eldest and I made the now regular trip to Wembley, to watch England make light work of Portugal in a 6-0 drubbing. Nearly 50,000 fans made the trip to the national stadium, while the match was aired on primetime television - women’s football really is mainstream.
Yet there remains plenty of negativity from keyboard warriors, who make it their mission to comment on any women’s football story of news and sport websites. Their go-to message being ‘who cares?’.
All of the messages I read appear to blokes who somehow take issue with the fact that the women’s game should receive the levels of publicity it does. Since the Lionesses won the Euros three years ago, the sport has soared in popularity, with more and more players becoming household names.
Women’s football isn’t a threat to the multi-billion pound men’s game but it can successfully thrive and co-exist, meaning those men babies who go to the trouble of denigrating a growing and popular sport look increasingly out of touch.
The Euros start in about a month and thousands of England fans - my daughter and I included - will make the journey to Switzerland, in the hope the team can repeat their efforts of three years ago. If they do, they will further cement a place in the nation’s hearts.