What I learned about surviving as a freelancer by watching the Lionesses

Image licensed via Alamy / dpa picture alliance

England’s Euro 2025 victory offers us unexpected lessons as creatives.

Let’s get something out of the way from the start: I’m not a football fan. And some will see people like me—who swoop in and pay attention when the national team is doing well, then lose interest later—as the worst kind of human. To which I say, fair enough.

But if you flip that around, that actually says something remarkable about what the England team, aka the Lionesses, achieved in this summer’s Women’s Euros. Because for the first time since Gazza cried in the 1990 World Cup, I became not just engaged, but passionate about football again.

So what is it about the Lionesses that gripped me and millions of others, and what lessons can this teach us?

Stubbornness and determination

For me, the main thing that sucked me in was the sheer level of grit, stubbornness and determination. The Lionesses came from behind in all three knockout stage games, just when it really looked like things were hopeless, and truly personified the notion of “giving it your all” (more on that in a moment).

This is a pattern that any creative can connect with. How many times have we faced rejection, watched a project fall through, or seen a rival get the brief we wanted? When this happens, it’s natural to crumble, second-guess everything, and wonder if you’re in the wrong profession entirely.

Players like Lucy Bronze, though, show what happens if you take the opposite tack. The veteran defender, who many wrote off after England’s early loss to France, didn’t just bounce back; she played the entire tournament with what we’ve just learned was a broken tibia.

Lucy’s middle name is literally Tough—I’m not joking—and she more than lived up to it. In the words of fellow Lioness Beth Mead, “She’s just a nutter”. But you saw similar grit in Hannah Hampton, playing on with blood oozing from her battered nose and saving penalty after penalty at the end of the Sweden quarter-final. Or Lauren James battling through an ankle injury for the entire first half of the Spain final. I could go on, but you get the picture.

When you see the obvious pain on these players’ faces, yet the stubborn refusal to give in, you can’t help but be inspired, in whatever career you choose to follow.

In creative work, for instance, we rarely have the luxury of perfect conditions. The brief isn’t quite right. The budget’s been slashed. The deadline’s impossible. We’re carrying personal struggles that feel overwhelming. But watch the Lionesses on the attack, and it reminds you that sometimes the best response isn’t to wait for ideal circumstances, but to find ways to deliver despite them.

Patience as a superpower

Hannah Hampton’s journey particularly resonated with me as I watched from my sofa, fists clenched in unexpected tension throughout each game. Before the Euros, she felt fans “didn’t want her in goal” after Mary Earps’ shock retirement. The pressure must have been horrific. Yet her patience paid off spectacularly. Her penalty saves in the quarter-final against Sweden, followed by her heroics in the final, earned her a rightful place in football history.

Watching her celebrate on Sunday night, I was reminded of every designer, photographer, illustrator who’s been told they’re not quite ready, not quite the right fit, not quite what the client is looking for. Because let’s be honest, our industry can be brutal. Projects take months to materialise, clients change their minds, trends shift, and sometimes the work you’re proudest of never sees the light of day.

Hannah’s inspiring journey shows me how persistence isn’t just about working harder—it’s about staying ready for when your moment comes, and ignoring all those voices that tell you you’re not.

The long game

What Sarina Wiegman’s squad ultimately demonstrated over those three weeks in Switzerland is that success isn’t about being the most talented or the most fortunate. It’s about persevering; outlasting the moments when everything seems like it’s going wrong.

To me, this was more than entertainment. This was an epic, visceral drama about resilience. About learning to bend without snapping. About being knocked down and coming back stronger, and believing in your ability to deliver when it matters.

At a time when our profession feels more and more uncertain, perhaps we need this reminder more than ever. That success belongs not to those who hide from the struggle, but to those who embrace it, learn from it, and emerge stronger on the other side.