SportsLaura Bassett england women's world cup

Soccer Fans Everywhere Rally Around A Heartbroken Laura Bassett

A wonderful response to a heartbreaking own goal.
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Senior Reporter, HuffPost

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Heartbreak overwhelmed the English women’s national team Wednesday after the team lost 2-1 to Japan in the semifinal of the Women’s World Cup. But it particularly overwhelmed Laura Bassett, the English defender responsible for the own goal that cost her team a trip to the finals.

It was the first own goal to ever occur during injury time in the Women’s World Cup, according to SportsCenter, and Bassett was understandably inconsolable.


But something sort of nice happened after the game ended. Rather than coming at Bassett with spite and hate, with ugliness and insults, with mockery and derision, soccer players and soccer fans alike came at Bassett with something else: kindness.

“Laura should be remembered as an absolute hero,” Mark Sampson, the team’s head coach, said after the game. “People will remember the Laura Bassett who headed, blocked and tackled.” By the look of things, they actually will.

@laurabassett6 #proudofbassett you held off the holding champions to the very brink, that is something you should be so proud of.

— sierra (@tbhcalumh) July 2, 2015

#FIFAWWC #ENGvJPN #ProudofBassett Hi from the U.S. Great effort. Be proud. No shame in that game. Congratulations to Japan.

— James (@InRecline) July 2, 2015

@laurabassett6 --- LAURA "LEGEND" BASSETT!! You're amazing girl!!! #Lionesses proud of you!! 👏👏👌👌👌⚽️🏆🇬🇧❤️

— 【ツ】#Lionesses #ENG (@AimzyLou) July 2, 2015

@laurabassett6 No matter what, you are a credit to the nation. Be proud of your tournament and game.

— Lee David Catigen-Co (@ledavcatco) July 2, 2015

@laurabassett6 I am SO sorry. Heart broken for you. I wanted a USAvENG final. Hold your head up. All the best to you & the Lionesses.

— Christi Atherton (@ChristiAtherton) July 2, 2015

At least one columnist saw all this kindness as a form of sexism, noting that David Beckham was treated much worse years ago when he received a red card in the 1998 World Cup. Perhaps there’s something to the idea that we are more willing to treat male athletes harshly, to mock them for their mistakes. But I’d like to believe something else: that we’re learning to treat all athletes, men and women, with basic human decency. That Laura Bassett is an example not of how we treat women differently on the field, but of how we’re treating all athletes differently these days.

But probably not.

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Before You Go

Women's World Cup: England Squad
Karen Bardsley(01 of23)
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Positon: Goalkeeper
Club: Manchester City
Caps: 43
Age: 30
Fast Fact: Bardsley was born and raised in California but qualifies for the England squad through family connections to Stockport. (credit:Richard Heathcote via Getty Images)
Carly Telford(02 of23)
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Position: Goalkeeper
Club: Notts County
Caps: 5
Age: 27
Fast Fact: When she was at Leeds, Telford was named player of the match in the 2008 FA Cup final, even though Leeds lost 4-1 to Arsenal.
 (credit:Jon Buckle - The FA via Getty Images)
Siobhan Chamberlain(03 of23)
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Position: Goalkeeper
Club: Arsenal
Age: 31
Fast Fact: Chamberlain has the same surname as Arsenal men's player Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and the same birthday. (credit:David Price via Getty Images)
Lucy Bronze(04 of23)
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Position: Defender
Club: Manchester City
Caps: 16
Age: 23
Fast Fact: Bronze signed from Liverpool in November but missed the first three matches of City's season after undergoing knee surgery. She's said it was a "big relief" to make the squad after the set back. (credit:GEOFF ROBINS via Getty Images)
Laura Bassett(05 of23)
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Position: Defender
Club: Notts County
Caps: 49
Age: 31
Fast Fact: According to the BBC, when she's not playing footie, Bassett tests her teammates knowledge as the squad's quiz master. (credit:Matt Lewis - The FA via Getty Images)
Alex Scott(06 of23)
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Position: Defender
Club: Arsenal
Caps: 123
Age: 30
Fast Fact: Scott discovered her love of music while she was recovering from an injury and now picks the tunes the ladies listen to in the dressing room. (credit:Ben Hoskins - The FA via Getty Images)
Alex Greenwood (07 of23)
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Position: Defender
Club: Notts County
Caps: 12
Age: 21
Fast Fact: Despite being a Liverpool supporter, Greenwood joined Everton when she was just eight years old. She ended her 13 year association with the team when she joined Notts County last January. (credit:Jon Buckle - The FA via Getty Images)
Steph Houghton(08 of23)
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Position: Defender
Club: Manchester City
Caps: 53
Age: 27
Fast Fact: Despite playing in defence, Houghton scored in all three of team GB's group matches in the 2012 Olympics. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Claire Rafferty(09 of23)
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Position: Defender
Club: Chelsea
Caps: 9
Age: 26
Fast Fact: When she's not playing football, Rafferty is an analyst at Deutsche Bank. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Katie Chapman(10 of23)
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Position: Midfielder
Club: Chelsea
Caps: 85
Age: 32
Fast Fact: Chapman is one of only two mothers on the England team. She has three children: Harvey, 12, Riley, six and baby Zachary.
(credit:GEOFF ROBINS via Getty Images)
Casey Stoney (11 of23)
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Position: Defender
Club: Arsenal
Caps: 118
Age: 32
Fast Fact: Alongside training, Stoney and her partner (former Lincoln Ladies player Megan Harris) have been busy caring caring for their six-month-old twins, Teddy and Tilly. (credit:Ben Hoskins - The FA via Getty Images)
Jade Moore(12 of23)
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Position: Midfielder
Club: Birmingham City
Caps: 16
Age: 24
Fast Fact: When Moore was 18 she won a Football Association scholarship to train at Loughborough University. Once there, a routine screening revealed she had two holes in her heart but she was soon back playing after corrective surgery. (credit:Clint Hughes - The FA via Getty Images)
Jordan Nobbs(13 of23)
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Position: Midfielder
Club: Arsenal
Caps: 21
Age: 22
Fast Fact: Nobbs is the daughter of former Hartlepool player Keith Nobbs. (credit:Matt Lewis - The FA via Getty Images)
Jo Potter (14 of23)
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Position: Midfielder
Club: Birmingham City
Caps: 19
Age: 30
Fast Fact: Potter's recall to the England squad comes after a seven-year absence. (credit:Nick Taylor - The FA via Getty Images)
Jill Scott(15 of23)
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Position: Midfielder
Club: Manchester City
Caps: 90
Age: 28
Fast Fact: She's no stranger to silverware, having been on the teams that won the Women’s FA Cup in 2010 and the League Cup in 2008. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Fara Williams(16 of23)
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Position: Midfielder
Club: Liverpool
Caps: 139
Age: 31
Fast Fact: Williams has more caps under her belt than any other player in the team. (credit:Tom Dulat - The FA via Getty Images)
Eniola Aluko(17 of23)
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Position: Forward
Club: Chelsea
Caps: 90
Age: 28
Fast Fact: Qualified lawyer Aluko will be writing a regular column for the BBC throughout the World Cup. (credit:Tom Dulat - The FA via Getty Images)
Karen Carney (18 of23)
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Position: Forward
Club: Birmingham City
Caps: 103
Age: 27
Fast Fact: Earlier this year, Carney said suffering from depression almost made her give up football. But, she said, wanting to be a good role model to her niece got her back in the game. (credit:Christopher Lee - The FA via Getty Images)
Toni Duggan(19 of23)
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Position: Forward
Club: Manchester City
Caps: 25
Age: 23
Fast Fact: Duggan scored the Women's Super League's goal of the season in 2014 against Chelsea. (credit:Dave Thompson - The FA via Getty Images)
Fran Kirby(20 of23)
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Position: Forward
Club: Reading
Caps: 8
Age: 21
Fast Fact: Kirby returned to football last season following a four year absence after her mother's death. She's said she's determined to make her late mother proud in the World Cup. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Lianne Sanderson(21 of23)
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Position: Forward
Club: Arsenal
Caps: 46
Age: 27
Fast Fact: Sanderson is something of a globe-trotter having played for clubs in the US, Spain and Cyprus. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Ellen White (22 of23)
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Position: Forward
Club: Notts County
Caps: 50
Age: 25
Fast Fact: White is back on top form after having damaged a cruciate ligament in her knee during a pre-season friendly against Durham last year. (credit:Tom Szczerbowski via Getty Images)
Jodie Taylor (23 of23)
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Position: Forward
Club: Portland Thorns
Caps: 8
Age: 28
Fast Fact: She may have began her career with local team Tranmere Rovers, but Taylor has since played for major clubs in the US, Canada and Australia. (credit:Dave Thompson - The FA via Getty Images)
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