The moment Lionesses' hearts broke: Emotional England Women collapse as they're told they will NOT...

6 Dec 2023

Lionesses' Hearts Broken: England Women Denied Olympic Opportunity

Michael Pavitt wrote an article for Mailonline.

Posted: 08:41 AM UTC, December 6th, 2023 | Revised: 12:36 PM UTC, December 6th, 2023

Lucy Bronze, who is a prominent football player in England, fell down to the ground in sadness upon receiving the news that the Women's football team of Great Britain will not participate in the Olympic Games happening next year.

The female football team, Lionesses, had the responsibility of ensuring their participation in Paris 2024 by being the designated nation in the Olympic qualifying competition.

To stay eligible for qualification, England was required to come out on top of their group in the UEFA Women's Nations League. The top two teams will advance to the finals in February, where they will have the opportunity to earn a spot at the Games alongside host country France.

On Tuesday night, Sarina Wiegman's squad had to improve the outcome of the Netherlands by a margin of three goals to reach the finals of the Nations League.

It seemed like England had completed their job after easily defeating Scotland with a score of 6-0 in Hampden Park. However, the Netherlands unexpectedly scored a goal during the 95th minute which led them to triumph over Belgium with a score of 4-0.

The Olympic hopes of Team GB were dashed by a sudden goal from the Netherlands, leaving England feeling devastated.

England's Lucy Bronze found the back of the net for the sixth time during their match against Scotland; however, this outcome was not satisfactory enough.

Qualifying For Women's Olympics: How It Works

The initial champions of the UEFA Women's Nations League will be determined in a knock-out tournament held between February 23 and 28. Teams that have qualified for this competition are the Netherlands, France, Germany, and Spain, as they were the winners of their groups in League A.

The teams that win in the two semi-final games move forward to the final game, while the teams that lose compete in the third-place game.

The duo finalists have secured their spot at the 2024 Women's Olympics alongside France - who got automatic qualification as the hosts. In case France makes it to the finals, the spot left for the Olympic Games will be filled by the team that comes in third place.

Due to the Netherlands scoring a goal in the late fourth quarter, England failed to advance to the semi-finals of the tournament based on their Group A1 standings, as they fell behind the Dutch on goal difference.

The first champions of the UEFA Women's Nations League will be decided through a knock-out competition held from February 23 to 28. The four teams that topped their respective groups in League A, namely the Netherlands and France, will go head-to-head.

The teams that win in the two semi-finals move on to the final round, while the losing teams compete in the third-place game.

The 2024 Women's Olympics will have two qualifiers joining the hosts France, who automatically qualify. In case the hosts make it through to the finals, the vacant spot at the Olympic Games will be filled by the team that wins third place.

A video has surfaced showing the very sad moment when the England team gathered in a tight circle to learn about the Dutch goal that came late and crushed Team GB's dreams of winning a medal at the Olympics.

During the final moments of the Netherlands game, a staff member from the Lionesses was observed watching it on their cellphone. They then informed the team that a goal had been made.

Lauren Hemp, the forward player, was witnessed showing her sadness by turning away. Meanwhile, Bronze dropped down on the ground and covered her face with her hands.

At first, Bronze appeared to be the player who had sustained the chances of Team GB.

In the final moments of the game, the defender managed to score and secured England's position at the top of the table. However, their triumph was short-lived when the Dutch made a comeback and took over the leading position.

England was left to regret their previous defeat against the Netherlands in the group stage, along with an unexpected 3-2 loss to Belgium in October.

Under the previous method of qualification, UEFA awarded three spots for the Olympics based on teams' performances at the Women's World Cup. As England came in second place, Team GB would have been able to secure a place in the Olympics.

After the match, Wiegman expressed immense disappointment. That's the strongest feeling they have at the moment. Wiegman believed that they performed well in the game, and the team showed great personality.

in Group B of the Women's Euro qualifiers, securing a 2-1 victory. Egurrola's goal came in the 87th minute of play, edging out England in a closely contested match. The Netherlands earned an important win over England in the Women's Euro qualifiers, thanks to Damaris Egurrola's decisive late goal. Egurrola's strike in the 87th minute secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory for her team. The match was a nail-biter until the very end, as both sides put up a strong fight. However, the Netherlands emerged victorious in the end.

The Dutch team rejoiced as they maintained their chance to participate in the Olympics, unfortunately at the cost of Team GB.

I had hope when Lucy kicked in the winning goal, but as we all know, football can have unexpected twists. The last few minutes felt like an eternity as we held our breath in anticipation. Ultimately, Netherlands slipped in a late goal and the game was down to the wire.

We believed we had succeeded. I was at a loss for words when it came to addressing the players because I was extremely impressed with their performance. Unfortunately, we haven't completed our goal yet and I'm feeling very let down.

The women's football team from Britain, known as Team GB, have successfully qualified for the upcoming Tokyo 2020 tournament. This was made possible by an understanding reached by the four football associations representing different regions of the United Kingdom.

Team GB made their second appearance at the London 2012 Olympics, having been given a spot as the host country.