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| England fans show passion ahead of Euro 2025 semi-final | England fans show passion ahead of Euro 2025 semi-final |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Lucy (left) and Jen are from the north of England say it is wonderful to see northern players such as Lucy Bronze represent the Lionesses | Lucy (left) and Jen are from the north of England say it is wonderful to see northern players such as Lucy Bronze represent the Lionesses |
| I have never been to Geneva before but I imagine large crowds of England fans standing outside a pub in the city on a sunny, hot Tuesday afternoon is not the norm. | |
| I arrive to excited chants of "come on England", accompanied by a drum, followed by trumpet song and shouts of "Sarina" in homage to England manager Sarina Wiegman. | |
| I first meet Lisa and Jen, who have been in Geneva since Thursday after having spent four days hiking in the Alps. | I first meet Lisa and Jen, who have been in Geneva since Thursday after having spent four days hiking in the Alps. |
| "Down here it's a bit busier, as you can imagine, but we're really enjoying it," says Lisa, who turns 50 next week and may be celebrating the milestone on the same day that England play in the final if they beat Italy. | "Down here it's a bit busier, as you can imagine, but we're really enjoying it," says Lisa, who turns 50 next week and may be celebrating the milestone on the same day that England play in the final if they beat Italy. |
| "Fingers crossed eh," she says. | "Fingers crossed eh," she says. |
| Both women are among those lucky enough to have tickets to the semi-final and say they are very excited to support the team. | Both women are among those lucky enough to have tickets to the semi-final and say they are very excited to support the team. |
| "I'm probably going to be get quite emotional," she says. | "I'm probably going to be get quite emotional," she says. |
| Kerry (left), Chrissy (centre) and Charlotte are new friends who have met as a result of the tournament | Kerry (left), Chrissy (centre) and Charlotte are new friends who have met as a result of the tournament |
| Also looking forward to watching the semi-final match at the stadium are Kerry, Chrissy and Charlotte, who have all met as a result of the tournament. | Also looking forward to watching the semi-final match at the stadium are Kerry, Chrissy and Charlotte, who have all met as a result of the tournament. |
| "Everyone's really friendly, so you can sort of just talk to anyone," says Chrissy. | "Everyone's really friendly, so you can sort of just talk to anyone," says Chrissy. |
| "It's been more emotional than I was expecting. Last week's game [the quarter-final] really took it out of us," she adds. | "It's been more emotional than I was expecting. Last week's game [the quarter-final] really took it out of us," she adds. |
| Chrissy is not alone in feeling that the nail-biting quarter-final match against Sweden was hard for the nerves. Other England fans I spoke to also described it as an "emotional rollercoaster" but they are thrilled the Lionesses came out on top. | |
| Charlotte says she developed a real love of the sport when she attended the Euro 2022 final, when England beat Germany. | Charlotte says she developed a real love of the sport when she attended the Euro 2022 final, when England beat Germany. |
| "I'm just really excited to kind of go through those emotions again and this time be really passionate about it," she says. | "I'm just really excited to kind of go through those emotions again and this time be really passionate about it," she says. |
| Also meeting for the first time at the Euros were Manish, who lives in the Swiss city of Bern but supports England, and Stephen, who is British and says he believes Switzerland has been doing a great job as tournament hosts. | Also meeting for the first time at the Euros were Manish, who lives in the Swiss city of Bern but supports England, and Stephen, who is British and says he believes Switzerland has been doing a great job as tournament hosts. |
| "It's an amazing place. Great country, great people, great hospitality, it's been wonderful." | "It's an amazing place. Great country, great people, great hospitality, it's been wonderful." |
| Manish (left) and Stephen have also met for the first time at the tournament | Manish (left) and Stephen have also met for the first time at the tournament |
| Fans I have spoken to are particularly keen to support defender Jess Carter, who revealed she has been targeted with racist abuse on social media throughout the tournament. Carter is being replaced in the semi-final starting line-up by Esme Morgan. | |
| "All of the Lionesses... we are truly behind them," Jen says. | "All of the Lionesses... we are truly behind them," Jen says. |
| Chrissy tells me she supports the England team in their decision not to take the knee before matches. On Sunday, England's players said they would stand at kick-off instead of kneeling as it was "clear we and football need to find another way to tackle racism". |