Lucy Bronze has called on social media companies to take action over online trolls after England defender Jess Carter was racially abused following the chaotic quarter-final win over Sweden.

Carter, who played 70 minutes of the match which England finally won on penalties, said she had received a ‘lot’ of online hate after the game and announced yesterday she was stepping away from social media.

Full back Bronze, 33, yesterday launched a fiery condemnation of the vile comments aimed at Carter and revealed abuse has been on the rise in the women’s game as it has grown in popularity.

‘(We’re feeling) anger and sadness that our team-mate has gone through this. We don’t want it to happen. We want to be focused on the football.

‘We want Jess and anybody else who puts on an England shirt to be brave, to be happy when they play for England.’

England’s players have unanimously decided not to take the knee before their semi-final against Italy, saying it is time to find a new way to tackle racism

Lionesses star Jess Carter has stepped away from social media after a wave of racist abuse

The 27-year-old said that she has received ‘a lot of racial abuse’ since the start of Euro 2025

Carter, 27, had posted on Instagram: ‘From the start of this tournament, I have experienced a lot of racial abuse. Whilst I feel every fan is entitled to their opinion on performances and results, I don’t think it’s OK to target someone’s appearance or race.

‘I am grateful for all the support from the genuine fans, but I am taking this measure to protect myself in a bid to keep my focus on helping the team any way I can. Hopefully speaking out will make the people writing this abuse think twice, (and) others won’t have to deal with it.’

Women’s football has experienced a boom in popularity in recent years but, as Bronze (right) made clear, that growth has brought serious challenges.

‘The bigger the game gets, the bigger the noise becomes, the more fans there are, the more critics there are,’ said the Chelsea defender. ‘We’re obviously open to critics, that’s why we love the sport, but we’re not open to abuse.

‘The bigger the sport’s got, it seems to be that more abuse has come as well and especially in women’s football, the online abuse seems to be getting worse and worse.

‘We see it more in the stadiums in men’s football, as well as online, but with women’s football there seems to be a real target online. People need to be held accountable.’

Carter, who plays for New Jersey-based Gotham FC, has started every game for England in Switzerland but was substituted for Esme Morgan towards the end of normal time against Sweden.

Alongside Bronze and Leah Williamson, Carter is one of the leaders in the England dressing room, having earned 49 caps in her eight-year career with the national team.

FA CEO Mark Bullingham said: ‘We strongly condemn those responsible for this disgusting racism’

The FA contacted UK police after hearing of the racist abuse Carter had been subjected to

‘Jess has had an amazing tournament. She was one of our best players in the Netherlands (group) game,’ Bronze added. ‘She should be able to see messages from fans and the support and live in that moment, because it’s something you should be able to celebrate.’

The Lionesses have confirmed they will not take the knee before their semi-final against Italy tomorrow. ‘Is the message as strong as it used to be?’ asked Bronze. ‘It’s about putting another statement out there to say it’s something that’s still a problem and that more needs to be done in society.

‘We know the people higher up are the ones who can ultimately put in things to make change. But we also know we’re never helpless as players and our voices are loud enough to be heard around the world, whether that’s social media or federations like UEFA and FIFA.

‘That’s something we’re very proud of as a team, that we’ve created this voice and a platform and we can reach the highest of heights.

‘We’re willing to use that platform and voice to make differences. The sentiment of taking a knee and then standing, as small as that might seem to some people, I think the noise will go around the world.’

The England squad criticised the ‘poison’ directed at Carter in a collective statement and the 27-year-old also received messages of support from Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman, UEFA and Gotham FC.

Her fellow defender Lotte Wubben-Moy joined Bronze in calling out the social media companies, saying: ‘I will not continue to feed the very platforms that enable this abuse with no consequences.’

FA chief Mark Bullingham revealed the governing body are ‘working with police to ensure those responsible for this hate crime are brought to justice’. He added: ‘Regrettably, this is not the first time this has happened to an England player, so we had measures in place to allow us to respond quickly.’

Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho were racially abused after England’s defeat by Italy in the Euro 2020 final.