Wolves have become the first club to be sanctioned by the Football Association solely over the homophobic chant of ‘Chelsea rent boy’ by their fans.

The Premier League side have been hit with a six-figure fine and imposed with an action plan by the FA after supporters chanted the slur during a fixture against Chelsea in April.

While the FA has always condemned the use of the term, a statement from the governing body in January confirmed to clubs they could now be charged with disciplinary action if their fans engage in discriminatory behaviour – including the use of the term ‘rent boy’.

Wolves have accepted breaches to FA rule E21 following incidents where written reasons for the charges stated: “a chant by a large number of supporters for a prolonged period of approximately 20 seconds each in the 61st and also in the 71st minutes.”

Three arrests were made by West Midlands Police for alleged homophobic chanting during the game.

Wolves have been fined £100,000 and issued an 11-point action plan as it was deemed their reaction and response to the homophobic chanting was inadequate.

In its written reasons for the charges, an Independent Regulatory Commission said a public announcement made 10 minutes after the chanting was heard was “weak” while the lack of reaction from matchday stewards was also condemned.

It was noted that the post-match response from Wolves deserved praise but the commission said there had been “a clear and significant break down between taking on board what The FA has said in its statement about the Chant and actually doing anything about it.”

Included in the action plan imposed alongside the fine and to begin from the 2023/24 season, the club has to communicate the outcome and response to the charge on their website, social media and in the next matchday programme.

In their response on their official website, a Wolves statement said: “We will continue to campaign for inclusivity in football and society and to tackle discriminatory abuse whether inside stadiums or online.

“Furthermore, Wolves will not cease in its work with supporters, communities and local stakeholders to drive LGBTQ+ inclusion and ensure the game we love is a place where everyone is respected and can feel safe playing or supporting their team.”

Other points on the action plan called for a full review of steward management, development of educational programmes, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion work and a zero-tolerance media campaign.

Wolves will also have to review ticket sales policies, deploy announcements and messages to target the prevention of discriminatory chanting and have an FA compliance officer present at their next home game against Chelsea – currently scheduled for December 23.

There were 106 reported incidents of hate crime involving sexual orientation at matches in England and Wales during the 2021-22 season, according to Home Office figures released last year. That represented a 186 per cent increase on 2018-19, the last full season unaffected by the Covid-19 pandemic, when there were 37 such incidents reported.

Last season the ‘rent boy’ chant was heard at Chelsea’s matches against Nottingham Forest and Manchester City, and also at the Manchester United v Everton FA Cup match, where it was aimed at then-Toffees boss Frank Lampard, a former Chelsea player and manager.

Earlier this week, a Fulham supporter was been banned from football for three years and fined after admitting a public order offence relating to homophobic chanting.

Stuart Findlay has returned to Kilmarnock on a season-long loan deal from Oxford United, pending Scottish Football Association approval.

The 27-year-old defender had two previous loan spells with the Rugby Park club in 2015/16 and 2017/18, before joining on a permanent deal the following season.

Findlay scored on his Scotland debut against San Marino at Hampden Park in October 2019, prior to signing with Philadelphia Union in the MLS before returning to the UK to sign for League One side Oxford last summer.

A statement on Kilmarnock’s website confirned Findlay’s return, adding: “Everyone at Kilmarnock FC would like to wish Stuart a warm welcome back home.”

Conditional jockey Dylan Kitts has had his licence suspended with immediate effect following a formal hearing in front of the British Horseracing Authority’s judicial panel.

Kitts voluntarily stood down on July 7 when it was announced there would be an investigation into his ride on the Chris Honour-trained Hillsin at Worcester, where he finished a length-and-a-half third.

The raceday stewards referred Kitts to the BHA while Hillsin was banned from running for 40 days. Honour later said his family had received abuse on social media and he subsequently asked Hillsin’s owner Alan Clegg to remove his horses from his yard.

A BHA hearing took place on Thursday, with Kitts now unable to take rides or attend any racecourses in Britain until further notice.

A statement said: “Further to the voluntary standing down by Mr Kitts last Friday, a formal hearing was held yesterday before the deputy chair of the judicial panel.

“By agreement between the parties it has been ordered that Mr Kitts’ jockey licence be suspended with immediate effect and Mr Kitts is prohibited from attending any racecourse in Great Britain.

“This order will be kept under review and will last until a further order is made, whilst the BHA investigation and potential disciplinary proceedings remain ongoing and which will be dealt with as swiftly as possible.”

Millwall have confirmed James Berylson as the club’s new chairman following the death of his father earlier this month.

American businessman John Berylson, who was appointed Millwall chairman in 2007, died in a car crash in the United States on July 4 at the age of 70.

His son, James who has been on the board of directors at The Den since 2010, will now to take over as chairman ahead of the 2023/24 Sky Bet Championship season.

In a tribute to his father on Millwall’s website, he said: “It is with sincere and immeasurable pride that I take on the chairmanship of this great football club.

“It is what my dad wanted, and I am so thankful for his mentorship since I joined the board of directors in 2010 and blessed by his trust and faith in me.

“This will mark the start of a new era, one in which we will strive to fulfil dad’s legacy.”

Liam Dawson has stopped “wasting energy” thinking about an England recall, insisting he paid no attention to speculation about being parachuted into the Ashes.

When spinner Jack Leach was ruled out of the series due to injury last month, Dawson was tipped by many as one of the replacement candidates given he is also a slow left-armer and more useful with the bat.

England instead persuaded Moeen Ali to to end his Test retirement at Edgbaston but when a blistered finger ruled him out at Lord’s, it was teenage leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed who was drafted into the squad.

Dawson, who played the last of his three Tests in July 2017, responded by taking 12 wickets after scoring a century in Hampshire’s LV= County Championship innings win over Middlesex last month.

However, the 33-year-old was adamant a remarkable performance was not a retaliation to the England selectors following his snub, having decided long ago to channel his energies into what he can control.

He told the PA news agency: “I didn’t even think about it. Test cricket has not been on my mind for a number of years. I’ve never expected to play for a long time and it’s not something that I worry about.

“Playing for England isn’t the be-all and end-all for me any more, it’s not healthy to worry about that, I did that way too much earlier in my career and that certainly affected performances.

“It’s just wasting energy. Now it’s about enjoying my cricket and if you do that, you hopefully do well and if that leads to playing for England then great but if not then I’ll enjoy playing for Hampshire.”

Dawson will be bidding to make history with Hampshire in the Vitality Blast at Edgbaston this weekend, where they can become the first team to retain their title and claim a record fourth crown.

Dawson, alongside James Vince and Chris Wood, have been mainstays in Hampshire’s success, especially in the shortest format where on Saturday they will be competing in their 10th Finals Day in 14 editions.

Vince has been central to their success this year, topping the tournament run-charts with eight 50-plus scores in 15 matches, averaging 65.7 with a sparkling strike-rate of 154.95.

Dawson said: “The older Vincey’s getting, the better he’s getting. He’s so consistent not only in T20s but in all formats.

“Any time he’s at the crease, it relaxes the changing room and the opposition knows he’s the big wicket to get. As long as he’s out there it gives the changing room huge confidence.

“But as a group we don’t want to put extra pressure on him and him feeling like he has to get the runs. We know that we can’t just rely on him to always get the runs, it’s down to everyone else as well.”

All four teams from the South Group won their quarter-finals at the expense of their northern rivals to get to Birmingham, where Hampshire will play Essex before Somerset take on Surrey.

The winners are then scheduled to meet on Saturday evening – although the forecast rain means there are concerns about spilling over into a reserve day for just the second time in the event’s history.

Hampshire did the double over Essex in the group stages but Dawson was adamant that will have no bearing on this weekend.

He added: “The two games in the group stages are completely irrelevant. It means absolutely nothing.”

Basketball star Russell Westbrook has revealed he is a part of the consortium led by 49ers Enterprises which is poised to take full ownership of Leeds.

Los Angeles Clippers point guard Westbrook, who won the NBA’s most valuable player award in 2017, has followed American golfers Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas in becoming a minor stakeholder in Leeds.

Westbrook, according to Forbes the 14th highest-paid athlete in the world, said he had invested in the Yorkshire club at a sports and entertainment summit held by Sportico.

The 34-year-old said: “I was lucky enough to have conversations with some of the partners in this deal, who already have ownership, the 49ers.

“So I was lucky enough to talk through that with friends, talking with my business partner as well about different things and having conversations, figuring out if this was the right deal and how we could make it different.”

Westbrook, who signed with the Clippers from the Los Angeles Lakers in February, is a nine-time NBA All-Star.

Three-time major winner Spieth has confirmed he and Thomas had become minority stakeholders in Leeds earlier this week, but fellow golfer Rickie Fowler pulled out of a deal when the club were relegated from the Premier League in May.

Leeds’ joint-owners 49ers Enterprises, the financial arm of NFL franchise San Francisco 49ers, have bought former chairman Andrea Radrizzani’s majority 56 per cent shareholding.

The English Football League is currently carrying out its owners and directors test before it sanctions the 49ers’ full takeover.

Republic of Ireland midfielder Denise O’Sullivan is less than a week away from making her World Cup debut in front of more than 80,000 people – but confesses it was perhaps the fanfare-filled Knocknaheeny farewell in front of far fewer that will ultimately prove the more intimidating atmosphere.

O’Sullivan’s name will go down in history as one of the 23 women who were chosen to represent the Girls in Green at their maiden World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where they will take on the Matildas in their July 20th tournament opener at Sydney’s sold-out Stadium Australia.

When the North Carolina Courage captain steps onto the pitch in front of that cauldron of Aussie support she will particularly feel the absence of a few familiar faces in the crowd.

Though her family was unable to make the trip, they did their best to compensate with a spectacular home send-off in front of the hundreds who descended on her mum’s house and decorated the neighbourhood to wish her luck.

O’Sullivan said: “I was mortified, but it was class to be fair. A few weeks before that I got permission from (manager) Vera (Pauw) just to go home to see the family because unfortunately, they weren’t coming over here to the World Cup.

“The minute I told them that, they were organising something and I knew it! But I didn’t know they were organising to that extent, to be quite honest – band and everything.

“Rappers, bands, oh my goodness. It was mad. My family have always been a great support and you can see what football does. It just brought the whole community and everyone together that night to support me. It was a great send off.”

O’Sullivan, 29, was speaking at Brisbane’s Meakin Park a few days before the Republic’s final friendly against Colombia.

Group B encounters with Olympic champions Canada and Nigeria follow the opener against FIFA world no 10 Australia, with the top two from each group advancing to the last-16 knockout round.

The long journey is now behind Vera Pauw’s squad, who have been adjusting to the nine-hour time difference through a strict training regimen of shifting start times. On Wednesday, they hosted an open session and invited local Irish fans to watch the team in action.

Those kids in the crowd sporting tiny green kit – whether in Queensland or Cork – are what motivate O’Sullivan to keep going.

She said: “In that field where I was that night with my family and everyone, that’s where I grew up playing football. That’s where I played street football with my brothers and all the boys. That night, I was there signing autographs for kids sitting in that same field, so just to look forward and look how far I’ve come and what I’m doing now.

“Look, I have a platform to inspire people and I think that’s what this team is doing. I want to leave this green shirt in the best condition I can for when I’m about to retire – not anytime soon [laughs], but that’s definitely what it’s all about. It’s about inspiring the next generation.”

O’Sullivan was just a young girl herself when father John brought her to a bar early in the morning to watch the Republic face Germany in the 2002 World Cup, when Robbie Keane scored his historic equaliser in the second minute of stoppage time.

In 2016, O’Sullivan, who was preparing to move to America to play for Houston Dash, lost her beloved dad just five weeks after he was diagnosed with cancer. Her World Cup debut is the realisation of a long-held dream shared by them both.

She added: “He was the biggest supporter for me in my journey to get to where I am. Obviously, to have him here would be a dream but I know he’s looking down. He’s proud anyway. He pushed me along the way to get to where I am today.”

The Women’s World Cup gets under way next Thursday in Australia and New Zealand.

Here, the PA news agency looks ahead to the tournament in numbers.

4 – the United States hold the record for Women’s World Cup titles, winning four of the eight previous tournaments including the last two back-to-back. Four is also the number of different nations to have been crowned champions, with Germany winning twice and Norway and Japan once each.

17 – Brazil’s Marta will go into her sixth World Cup as the competition’s all-time leading scorer with 17 goals.

10 – the record goal tally in a single edition, by American Michelle Akers in the inaugural 1991 competition. That included five in a match, against Chinese Taipei, a record matched by compatriot Alex Morgan against Thailand in 2019.

13-0 – the USA’s World Cup-record winning margin in that game against Thailand.

30 – Kristine Lilly played more World Cup finals matches than any other player, 30 for the USA between 1991 and 2007.

190 – Christine Sinclair’s career goal tally for Canada is a record for a male or female player. There are 21 squads at this World Cup whose cumulative total is less than Sinclair’s own.

16 – age of the youngest ever player at a Women’s World Cup. Nigeria’s Ifeanyi Chiejine was 16 years and 34 days old when she played against North Korea at the 1999 tournament – South Korea’s Casey Phair will break that record if she appears in either of her country’s first two matches this summer, against Colombia or Morocco.

32 – teams in this year’s competition, up from 24 in 2019 and 16 as recently as 2011.

8 – nations making their debut, as was the case when the tournament expanded from 16 to 24 teams. Haiti, Morocco, Panama, the Philippines, Portugal, the Republic of Ireland, Vietnam and Zambia are the newcomers this time around.

2 – it is the first Women’s World Cup with two co-hosts, Australia and New Zealand.

15 – previous World Cup matches for New Zealand, without recording a win.

Australia’s Cameron Smith will defend his title when the 151st Open Championship takes place at Royal Liverpool Golf Club from July 20-23.

Smith is bidding to become the first player to retain the Claret Jug since Padraig Harrington (2007-08) as the Open returns to Hoylake, nine years after Rory McIlroy’s wire-to-wire victory.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the main contenders for the year’s final major championship.

Rory McIlroy

McIlroy enjoyed a purple patch of form the last time Hoylake staged the Open in 2014, holding off Sergio Garcia to claim a wire-to-wire victory and then winning his next two starts for good measure. The last of those, the US PGA Championship at Valhalla, remains his most recent major title and he was unable to convert a share of the 54-hole lead at St Andrews last year. McIlroy also finished second in the US Open, muttering “St Andrews all over again” to his manager after a closing round containing a solitary birdie at the opening hole.

Scottie Scheffler

Scheffler has been consistency personified in 2023, winning twice and finishing no worse than 12th in any event. A share of 10th in his title defence in the Masters is also his worst result in a major, the world number one finishing second in the US PGA and third in the US Open. Leads the PGA Tour in numerous statistical categories off the tee and into the green, but ranks a lowly 131st in putting and is contesting just his third Open at Hoylake.

Cameron Smith

Smith had already won twice in 2022, including the prestigious Players Championship, before securing his first major title thanks to a brilliant final round of 64 in the 150th Open at St Andrews. The Australian joined LIV Golf the following month but despite being unable to earn ranking points on the Saudi-funded breakaway, remains in the world’s top 10 thanks to finishing ninth in the US PGA and fourth in the US Open. Won his second LIV event in Hertfordshire 10 days before the start of the Open.

Rickie Fowler

Fowler was joint second behind McIlroy in 2014, a year in which he finished in the top five in all four majors, and won on a links course in 2015 when the Scottish Open was stage at Gullane. Suffered a loss of form in recent years but equalled the lowest round in major history last month with an opening 62 in the US Open at Los Angeles Country and ended a four-year winless drought on the PGA Tour two weeks later.

Tommy Fleetwood

Fleetwood came agonisingly close to winning his maiden PGA Tour title in last month’s Canadian Open, with home favourite Nick Taylor holing from 72 feet for an eagle on the fourth play-off hole. A week later the Ryder Cup star carded a final round of 63 in the US Open for the second time, earning him a tie for fifth. Runner-up to Shane Lowry in the 2019 Open and fourth last year, albeit having never been in contention at St Andrews. The Southport native will have plenty of support at nearby Hoylake.

Republic of Ireland defender Louise Quinn has described what lies ahead as the fulfilment of a “life-long ambition” as the team prepare to make their major tournament debut at this summer’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

History was secured for the Girls in Green last October when Vera Pauw’s side beat Scotland 1-0 in the qualifying play-offs, and their World Cup finals bow comes with a clash against Australia in Sydney next Thursday.

Quinn has made 105 appearances for the team, the 100th having come a month after the Scotland match in the next game – and the first back in 2008.

The 33-year-old Birmingham centre-half told the PA news agency: “Individually we know this has been that kind of life-long ambition.

“You watched the men in the World Cup and just being a fan and seeing how happy it made the country at the time…I was literally kind of growing up with it.

“I suppose you don’t think it’s a possibility, but at the same time you also see these guys running around playing for their country and the joy I remember it was bringing my family at the time, the town – you’re kind of like, ‘that’s cool and I play football, so why not, who knows’?

“I probably didn’t even know really what a World Cup was at that stage, but you’re like ‘that’s cool and I want to do that’, and then it just starts to gradually build.”

With the dream finally becoming reality – and Quinn and her team-mates in the women’s side now set to be watched on by youngsters back at home as they perform on the biggest stage – she added: “We looked up to the men’s team and really wanted it.

“It just lets people dream, lets people see it’s possible.

“That sort of pressure of young kids (watching), that’s an absolute privilege to have that pressure, to inspire, to grow the game, to get people wanting to play football, be involved in it, because it is the love of my life – my partner won’t be happy with me saying that!”

As well as playing the co-hosts, who are ranked 10th in the word, in a sold-out contest at the 80,000-plus capacity Stadium Australia, 22nd-ranked Ireland will also face Canada – the seventh-ranked Olympic champions – and Nigeria in Group B.

Quinn said: “We have a squad filled with massive experience, of winning leagues, FA Cups, playing in Champions League semi-finals. All of these things we have to take on board and help each other out along the way.

“I think for us, we obviously have that goal of getting through the group, but first and foremost we just have to not let the occasion get to us and take it in for what it is.

“Sport is sport. Sometimes another team is better then you have to kind of accept that, but I feel if we don’t just take it on for what it is or let the occasion get to us, there might be some disappointment in that.

“I think if we can just relish it, take on those good nerves that get the adrenaline going and as we’ve done for a lot of the campaign, keeping clean sheets, not letting teams through and then we have the ability to score all over the pitch as well…we know when we’re 100 per cent, we’re a very, very tough team to beat.”

When asked about the considerable Irish expat community in Australia and support the team will get at the World Cup, Quinn said with a smile that Irish fans would “definitely give it a good go” at trying to drown out their counterparts in the first match, and added: “There’s definitely going to be a wave of green in patches all over the stadium.

“My sister lives in Australia as well…and she’ll be getting everyone on board as much as she can. I have so many friends from uni and from everywhere that are over there.

“We’re very well known for being some of the best fans in the world and I know it’s going to be the exact same on the other side of the world in Australia.”

Royal Liverpool will host the Open Championship for the 13th time in its history from July 20-23.

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are the most recent winners at Hoylake, but the course also boasts a rich history of staging the game’s oldest major.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the most memorable moments at the venue.

1907 – Arnaud Massy becomes first overseas winner

Qualifying was introduced for the first time, with players split into two sections and each contesting 36 holes in one day. Massy led the qualifiers from day one and benefited from a day off before the Championship got under way. Rounds of 76 and 81 on Thursday gave the Frenchman a one-shot lead and after falling behind JH Taylor due to a 78 on Friday morning, Massy carded a closing 77 to win by two and become the first overseas winner. He later named his daughter Margot Hoylake Massy.

1930 – Bobby Jones remains on course for historic feat

Jones had already won the Open in 1926 and 1927, but his 1930 victory at Hoylake was part of an unmatched clean sweep of the era’s biggest four championships. After winning the Amateur Championship at St Andrews at the end of May, Jones lifted the Claret Jug for a third time three weeks later as a closing 75 proved enough for a two-shot victory. He returned home to win the US Open in July and the US Amateur in September, completing what became known as the ‘Impregnable Quadrilateral’, before retiring from competitive golf at the age of 28.

1956 – Peter Thomson completes hat-trick

After finishing sixth on his debut at Royal Portrush in 1951, Thomson went on to produce an incredible run of results in the Open and lifted the Claret Jug a total of five times. Despite winning the title in 1954 and 1955, the Australian still had to come through qualifying at Hoylake and Wallasey, but led after 36 and 54 holes and won by three shots from Belgium’s Flory van Donck to become the only player to win a hat-trick of titles in the modern era.

2006 – Tiger Woods bounces back

Woods had missed the cut in a major for the first time as a professional in June’s US Open at Winged Foot, which came after an unprecedented nine-week lay-off following the death of his father Earl. However, the defending champion was in imperious form at a bone-dry Hoylake, hitting driver just once and finding only three bunkers all week as he held off the challenge of Chris DiMarco to win by two shots before breaking down in tears in the arms of caddie Steve Williams.

2014 – Rory McIlroy claims third major title

McIlroy led from start to finish as he completed the third leg of a career grand slam, although he had to hold off a spirited challenge from Ryder Cup team-mate Sergio Garcia in the final round. The two-shot victory made McIlroy the first European player to win three different majors since the Masters was founded in 1934, while it also made his father Gerry and three of his friends £50,000 each after they bet £100 on the 15-year-old at 500-1 a decade ago to lift the Claret Jug before his 26th birthday.

Royal Liverpool member Matthew Jordan admits there will be no excuses when he tees it up in his second major on the home course he has played for 20 years.

The 27-year-old, who grew up in nearby West Kirby and lives in Hoylake, followed in his father and grandfather’s footsteps by becoming a member at the club while he was still at primary school.

Jordan has played the Wirral links in every conceivable weather and course condition and, while the most significant change for the Open is the switch of routing which means players tee off at what is the members’ 17th hole, he knows he has to take advantage of that knowledge after coming through final qualifying for the second successive year.

A post shared by Matthew Jordan (@matty_jordan7)

“I would be amazed if there is something I don’t know. I’ve experienced it in all kinds of conditions so I guess there is no kind of excuse now.

“I know pretty much every pin position, I’ve seen it soft, I’ve seen it hard, I’ve seen it with rough up and down.

“I’ll probably play it exactly how I know how to play it but in terms of practice it is going to be a bit strange.”

Royal Liverpool is hosting its third Open in 18 years – after a hiatus of 39 years – and after weeks of primarily dry weather it seems likely conditions will be similar to 2006 when baked hard, fast-running fairways saw Tiger Woods use his driver just once in winning his third Claret Jug.

A major change to the course for this edition has seen the creation of a new 17th hole overlooking the Dee Estuary, a 140-yard par-three with an exposed green surrounded by bunkers which usually plays into the prevailing wind, which has become something of a talking point.

As a member, Jordan remained admirably diplomatic on the subject.

“I think it depends on individual opinion. Me personally, it will depend on conditions and how windy it is, how firm it is as well, as that will make a massive difference into how easy or difficult it will play,” he said.

“My reservations about it are if it will be a good hole for the Open, which will require it being into the wind and not soft and straightforward.

“I’ll have to ask the other pros what they think.”

The phrase ‘bigger and better’ has become a bit of a cliche, but it is still perhaps the most authentic way of describing the ninth edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup at a moment of reckoning in women’s football.

Australia and New Zealand are co-hosting the 2023 edition, which for the first time will feature 32 nations, 20 more than the inaugural 12-team tournament held in China in 1991.

Eight teams – the Republic of Ireland, Vietnam, Zambia, Haiti, Morocco, Panama, the Philippines and Portugal – are making their debuts in a World Cup organisers are hoping will attract a record two billion viewers.

The overall performance-based fund for the finals has skyrocketed to 110 million US dollars (£84.2m), more than three times what was on offer at the 2019 World Cup in France, with the players sharing more than 44 per cent of that between them.

Previously, there was no requirement for national associations to distribute a minimum amount of World Cup prize money to participating players.

Also, for the first time, FIFA will be directly paying all athletes for their participation in the tournament, with amounts increasing the deeper teams get, ranging from USD 30,000 (£22,964) per player for the group stage to USD 270,000 (£206,678) allotted to each champion.

It is a significant sum at a time when the average salary in the women’s game worldwide is USD 14,000 (£11,000), according to last year’s FIFA benchmarking report, although the improved pot still remains well short of the USD 440m (£337m) distributed after the 2022 men’s World Cup in Qatar.

FIFA has outlined ambitions for parity by the respective 2026 and 2027 tournaments.

The increased fund did not emerge out of thin air. A group of 150 players from 25 national teams, including England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland, wrote to FIFA in October last year calling for equal conditions and for a guarantee that at least 30 per cent of prize money would be allocated to players.

Indeed, this World Cup arrives during what feels like the dawn of a paradigm shift in the women’s game. For much of its existence, players have often felt obligated to express gratitude for anything they were given, from meagre mentions in the media to ill-fitting equipment not designed for women’s unique needs.

They are beginning to demand more. In February, Olympic champions Canada played the SheBelieves Cup under protest as part of an ongoing dispute with their national federation over pay and working conditions, while other nations, including England, wore purple wristbands in a show of collective solidarity and desire for progress.

That same month, France captain Wendie Renard and two team-mates announced they were pausing their international careers over “conditions” in camp, part of a so-called ‘revolt’ that led to the sacking of head coach Corinne Diacre just four months before the World Cup. Renard and others have since returned to the French fold after former Saudi Arabia men’s boss Herve Renard took over the team.

Players from numerous other countries, including Spain and Jamaica – and even Nigeria’s head coach – have taken action or called out their federations over issues such as pay, resources and personnel, while the Lionesses’ open letter to the then-Conservative leadership candidates following their Euro 2022 triumph led to the announcement of a £600m Government package to improve the PE provision in schools and grant girls equal access to school sports.

There have also been calls from all corners of the globe for more funding and research into women’s health.

The World Cup will be deprived of top talents like England’s Beth Mead and Leah Williamson, the Netherlands’ Vivianne Miedema, Canada’s Janine Beckie, the USA’s Catarina Macario and Christen Press, New Zealand’s Katie Rood and Zambia goalkeeper Hazel Nali, all of whom are on an exhaustive list of players whose dreams of representing their countries were dashed by anterior cruciate ligament injuries, for which women are at a three-to-six times higher risk than men.

As England’s Lucy Bronze told Sky Sports during an open training session in Queensland: “It’s a shame that women in sport in general have to (fight for change), but I think it’s a role that many athletes, many women, take on in society and in sport.”

Nevertheless, they will persist long after the trophy is lifted in Sydney.