Lionesses praised for World Cup squad announcement featuring famous faces
The Duke of Cambridge, Emma Watson and Ellie Goulding were among the celebrities announcing who had made the squad on Twitter.
England have drawn praise for their unusual squad announcement for the Women’s World Cup.
The squad names were released one by one on Wednesday in a series of videos posted on Twitter by a host of famous faces, starting with the Duke of Cambridge, who announced the name of England captain Steph Houghton.
Other famous names involved included Harry Potter actor Emma Watson, who announced Demi Stokes, and chat show host James Corden, who revealed the name of Ellen White, while Fran Kirby’s place in the squad was confirmed by pop star Ellie Goulding.
Some big names from the men’s game were also involved, with Raheem Stirling, Jordan Pickford and former England skipper David Beckham announcing Georgia Stanway, Karen Bardsley and Nikita Parris respectively.
The unusual announcement proved a hit, drawing praise from fans, media and sportspeople.
The move was explained by England head coach Phil Neville as an opportunity to give the players a “special moment”.
He told BBC Sport: “We wanted to make sure that each individual player really had a special moment.
“Going to a World Cup was something I never did as a player and for these girls it’s the biggest thing in their lives.”
