Copa 71 tells the story of ‘maverick’ Harry Batt, who took England to the first unofficial Women’s World Cup On a cold day in March 1971, thousands of men and women marched through the streets of London. ‘Equal pay now’ the signs proclaimed;’ ‘women unite,’ the banners read. It was the country’s biggest demonstration of its kind since the days of the suffragettes. By this point, Britain was riding high on the second wave of the feminism movement.
‘It was heartbreaking,’ recalls Jan Emms, from Biggleswade in Bedfordshire. She’d quit her job at the Trusting Savings Bank to embrace the ‘golden opportunity’ of playing for her country. She scored twice in England’s final game, a play-off with France. Jan, who was 19 during the World Cup, tells Metro: ‘It completely broke Harry when he got that ban.