Baddiel and Skinner’s classic football song ‘Three Lions’ has been rewritten as ‘Three Lionesses’ in support of the England Lionesses ahead of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019.
Comedians David Baddiel and Frank Skinner gave their permission alongside The FA for the song to be rewritten in a special commission by Lucozade Sport, as part of the sport drink’s support of women’s football.
The famous song was penned by Baddiel and Skinner in 1996, but was reworked to include the names of members of the England Lionesses, in an effort to make them as much household names as their male counterparts.
Names included in the original ‘Three Lions’ such as Gary Lineker, Nobby Stiles, and Bobby Moore have been replaced by Lionesses Steph Houghton, Jordan Nobbs, and Jade Moore.
The song is being used as the soundtrack to Lucozade Sport’s new advert, which tells the story of women footballers overcoming prejudices to make it to the international stage.
And the track is also part of the sports drink’s campaign to inspire support for the Lionesses this summer, which includes encouraging women to try football by giving away 90,000 minutes of free pitch time nationwide through Powerleague and Goals football centres.
Footballer Jordan Nobbs said: "I know the players love the ‘Three Lionesses’ track and I hope it inspires the team to World Cup glory. This is an incredible time for women’s football as awareness and popularity continues to grow and initiatives such as the 90,000 free minutes make it easier than ever for more women to give football a go."
While Clair Keaveny, head of marketing for Lucozade Sport, added: "Arguably ‘Three Lions’ is the most iconic England song so we’re proud to be able to give it a Lionesses twist in support of the team and the women’s game in general. Our aim is to stir up support for the Lionesses, but also inspire a generation to get moving and try football."