England defender Jess Carter said she felt a sigh of relief when her non-black teammates missed penalties during their shootout win over Sweden in the Women's Euro 2025 quarter-finals, fearing Lauren James would suffer "astronomical" racist abuse if the forward had been the only player to miss her spot-kick.

England overcame a two-goal deficit to force penalties in Zurich, eventually triumphing 3-2 in a dramatic shootout that featured 14 attempts.

Sweden goalkeeper Jennifer Falk saved four England penalties, including James' second effort. Beth Mead, Alex Greenwood and Grace Clinton, who are all white, also missed their spot-kicks for England.

"It's horrible to say but it's almost like a sigh of relief when other players that weren't black missed a penalty, because the racism that would

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