The England national team went down to a narrow loss to Spain in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, but they were loudly and proudly represented by thousands of supporters at the Stadium Australia – including a group from Everton as well.
Over 75,000 spectators flocked to the stadium in Sydney Australia for what was a widely watched Women’s World Cup final between the two best in the world. It was a pretty tight, end-to-end encounter in which both teams had quite a few chances to score.
However, ultimately, a first-half strike from Spanish full-back Olga ended up making the difference between the two sides. England, to their credit, tried extremely hard to get back into the game and even had a second-half penalty for Spain saved by their No. 1 and Golden Glove award winner Mary Earps.
Fans notice interesting Everton flag in WWC Final
Alas, they failed to break the Spanish side and win their first-ever Women’s World Cup title. Despite the disappointing outing in the final, the England players were energized by the roar of their fans at the Stadium Australia – as well as millions watching on TV.
One interesting fan group that represented themselves pretty well inside the stadium was the Everton fan group ‘Everton The Gear’. Some eagle-eyed spectators watching on TV were able to quickly identify one moment in the game when the cameras caught the official flag of the Everton group.
Indeed, beside an England flag behind one of the goal-line corner areas was a pretty prominent blue flag with the words ‘Everton The Gear’ written on it. This really stood out because most of the flags carried by the English fans to the stadium was the England national flag, with many of them being spotted all around the ground.
A lot of Everton fans watching immediately saw this iconic flag, which has been representing their club and fanbase for many decades now. This isn’t really a specific fan group for Everton, but might be described as their unofficial club flag or banner that has been a mainstay in their culture and history.
The history of the Everton flag
This flag has been proudly representing the Merseyside club for many, many decades and one of the first instances (or at least proof) of it being shown in public was the 1966 FA Cup final. Everton won their third FA Cup title on that day with a thrilling 3-2 win over Sheffield Wednesday, coming back from going 2-0 down to clinch the title.
The ‘Everton The Gear’ flag was seen to being carried around by the fans back then as a representation of their club and identity. It has since been carried down a number of generations and continues to be proudly displayed – with the blue flag having the words written down in white.
The flag is so famous that Everton themselves have adapted it to their club gear as well. In the unveiling interview of their latest signing Jack Harrison, eagle-eyed viewers immediately noticed the flag behind the player in the area where he was being interviewed at.
Everton fans are mighty proud of their supporters representing their club impressively at the Women’s World Cup and travelling all the way down under to Australia to support the ladies. Some have even hilariously pointed at their support probably being a reason why the England team failed to win the trophy, maybe as a reference to their own troubles at the moment.
Everton might not have started the 2023/24 Premier League season strongly, losing both their games and looking set to be in a relegation battle again. But one thing that will always keep the club in bright light will be their passionate, unbreakable fan-base who will keep their own blue flag flying high forever.
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