Three Years On from Chloe Kelly’s Iconic Shirtless Celebration After Scoring the Euro 2022 Winner!

Three Years On from Chloe Kelly’s Iconic Shirtless Celebration After Scoring the Euro 2022 Winner!

 

 

 

It’s been three years since Chloe Kelly etched her name into English football history—not just for the goal that sealed England’s Euro 2022 victory, but for the iconic celebration that followed. As the ball hit the back of the net in extra time at Wembley, Kelly tore off her shirt, ran across the pitch swinging it over her head, and roared in triumph. The moment was raw, emotional, and instantly legendary.

Looking back, Kelly still remembers the intensity of that night, though much of it, she admits, was a blur. “Just that moment, everything is a blur and you celebrate for what the moment is,” she explained. “It’s not: ‘Am I allowed to take my shirt off?’ I’m taking my shirt off and going crazy because a male footballer would be doing exactly the same. As women, why can’t we?”

Her words strike at the heart of a much larger conversation about gender norms in sport. Male footballers have celebrated with shirtless sprints for decades, often lionised for their passion and emotion. But when Kelly did the same, it prompted debates—not just about sportsmanship, but about gender, modesty, and the different standards placed on women athletes.

Kelly’s celebration was more than a moment of personal expression. It became a cultural milestone. The image of her, shirt in hand, muscles flexed, roaring in front of thousands of fans, was splashed across newspapers, murals, and social media feeds. It was a declaration: women’s football had arrived, not as a polite or restrained version of the men’s game, but as its own powerful, emotional, and equal force.

The celebration also brought attention to the ways in which women athletes are still policed—on the pitch and off. For Kelly, the moment wasn’t about making a statement. It was instinct. It was joy. It was the culmination of years of hard work, injury recovery, and dreams realized. That it sparked so much commentary revealed more about the world watching than the player herself.

Three years later, the legacy of that celebration continues to resonate. Young girls across the UK and beyond cite Kelly as a role model—not just for her footballing talent, but for her unapologetic authenticity. She didn’t ask permission to celebrate like a man. She simply did what any athlete would do in the moment of ultimate triumph.

In retrospect, the shirt came off, but the weight of history fell away too. In that brief, unforgettable moment, Chloe Kelly gave England more than a trophy. She gave it a new image of what a champion could look like—bold, fierce, and free.

As women’s football continues to grow in visibility and support, Kelly’s iconic celebration stands as a reminder of how far the game has come—and how much further it can go when players are free to express the full emotion of the sport they love.