SYDNEY — The rallying cry “It’s coming home!” is one win away from reality, along with the end of England’s 57-year title drought in global soccer at its highest levels.
With a victory Sunday, a World Cup trophy would return to the birthplace of the sport for the first time since 1966. But if it happens, the journey back to England will be with the women’s national team rather than the men.
The Lionesses have roared their way into their first Women’s World Cup title game, and they’ll face Spain at Stadium Australia. It is the first all-European final since 2003, when Germany beat Sweden.
Spain is in its first final less than a year since 15 players quit the team in protest.
England expected to be here, and all around the world, in pubs and at viewing parties, the team’s supporters have been singing “It’s Coming Home,” a reminder that the men’s 1966 title remains the country’s most recent World Cup championship. While the World Cup for men debuted in 1930, a FIFA-sanctioned women’s equivalent of the biennial soccer tournament didn’t kick off until 1991.