SARAH VINE: Mary Earps howl of defiance after her World Cup final penalty save spoke for every woman who's been sidelined in a man's world

Football may not be coming home - but there's no doubt the Lionesses themselves return triumphant.

They have helped change the face of women's football for ever, ignited a thousand young girls' dreams, shown the world that they can be just as tough, just as tenacious, just as thrilling as their male counterparts.

They have made history, and they should be very proud of themselves.

What's more, they've done it all in the face of the most tedious, mealy-mouthed, everyday sexism. Starting with the Prince of Wales, who so rarely puts a foot wrong but who, on this one, has proven himself decidedly tin-eared.

The idea that, as president of the FA, he would not have been heading straight to Sydney to cheer on the men's team is unthinkable. The entire clan would have been on a plane. That he wouldn't do the same for the women is - to put it bluntly - a bit shoddy.

It's a pity, of course - but there is no shame in our girls losing to Spain. I'm no football pundit but even I could tell that, on the day, Spain were the better team.

But it is somewhat galling that the Spanish royal family managed to hit the back of the net by sending Queen Letizia, looking stunning on the day in a fiery red trouser suit, while all our team got from Prince William was a 15-second message of encouragement on social media, filmed alongside Princess Charlotte from a windy bench somewhere. House of Bourbon 1, House of Windsor 0.

Might the presence of the future monarch and president of the FA - after all, the oldest football association in the world - have made a difference to their performance on the day? We will never know. But there's no doubt that having the support of Queen Letizia certainly seemed to mean a great deal to the Spanish team.

Yes, this is sport; but playing for one's country is also a moment of great patriotism, and it's at times like these that institutions such as the monarchy play their part. Our girls should have been represented. They were not.

Elsewhere, too, they were let down. Nike refused to make a replica kit for goalkeeper Mary Earps because they figured it wouldn't sell enough. Yet this is the same company which was perfectly happy to pay a small fortune to a trans woman with zero sporting expertise - TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney - to advertise their sports bras.

Want to talk about discrimination, Nike? Explain the logic behind that, then. Earps' track record throughout this tournament has been so exemplary she was named best goalkeeper in yesterday's awards ceremonies and handed the coveted Golden Glove. But not before she had performed a stunning save to block Jennifer Hermoso's penalty in the 69th minute.

No wonder as she got to her feet afterwards, clutching the ball and waving her team up the pitch, she uttered a defiant howl of 'f*** off'. Damn right, Mary, damn right. You speak for every woman who's ever been sidelined in a man's world.

Perhaps all of this goes some way to explaining their passion, their ambition, their hunger.

As any professional woman who has ever striven to get ahead in a male-dominated field knows, you have to work twice as hard to get half as far. Football is no exception. Yet none of this got in their way. None of it stopped them from playing some of the most thrilling football we have seen for years. They may not have scored, but that final was anything but boring.

And we're talking actual football, not the kind of amateur dramatics we see all too often in the men's game these days. No rolling around in faux-agony at the slightest tap on the ankle, no pitch histrionics or hissy fits. Just honest, straight-up soccer.

Poor Alex Greenwood got a knee to the face in the 79th minute but within minutes she was bandaged and up, sprinting half the length of the field to tackle back and win possession of the ball.

Tenacious, tough, resilient. And all for a fraction of what the men get paid.

Ah, the pay. When I mentioned the gaping abyss between what the Lionesses take home and what their male counterparts get last week in the pages of the Daily Mail, a number of extremely grumpy - and I have to say, somewhat patronising - gentlemen wrote in to explain to my tiny pink brain why I was wrong.

The women's game could never make as much money as the men's game, see, because it will never generate nearly enough ticket sales or advertising revenue.

That may indeed be true. But let's also not forget that the men's game on the global stage has had a bit of a head start on the women's - about 150 or so years, in fact.

The ladies are only just getting going, and from what I've seen throughout this tournament, they're catching up fast.

It's not just the players, either: this tournament has also enlisted an entire army of new fans.

And the good thing about women's football fans is that when their team loses they don't get blind drunk and smash the place up: they go home and have a nice consolatory cup of tea and a biscuit. (Well, at least that's what this fan did.) There's no denying it: yesterday's result was a disappointment.

To see them lift that trophy would have been such a joyous occasion, a proud moment for us all. But they won our hearts, even if they didn't win the trophy. And they impressed us all with their courage, focus and teamwork.

They were a reminder to those of us who are not natural football fans that this sport is not just about huge transfer fees and intergalactic egos, about spoiled, pampered WAGs with too much time, money and lip filler; it's something we can all - man, woman and child - enjoy for what it is: a beautiful game.

Which, thanks in no small part to our lovely Lionesses, just got a whole lot more beautiful.