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Jess Carter (left) feared for her team-mate Lauren James when she missed a penalty in England's shootout against Sweden Jess Carter feared team-mate Lauren James would suffer "astronomical" racist abuse if she had been the only England player to miss a penalty in the Euro 2025 quarter-final shootout against Sweden. Chelsea forward James was the target of online racist abuse in 2021 when playing for Manchester United and again in 2023 when at Chelsea. Carter was the target of online racism during the tournament, with the Football Association (FA) working with the police to try to identify those responsible. James missed England's second penalty in Zurich, but Beth Mead, Alex Greenwood and Grace Clinton - who are all white - went on to miss as well. Despite those misses the Lionesses still managed to progress, before going on to beat Spain in the final in another penalty shootout. Carter told ITN: "It's horrible to say but it's almost like a sigh of relief when other players that weren't black missed a penalty, because the racism that would have come with LJ [Lauren James] being the only one that missed would have been astronomical. "It's not because we want them to fail - it's about knowing how it's going to be for us [black England players] if we miss. " More abuse as women's football grows - Bronze England players and subs stand in support of Carter Taking the knee 'not good enough' - Wiegman Speaking about the impact the abuse had on her, Carter said: "It makes you feel really small. It makes you feel like you're not important, that you're not valuable. "It makes you second guess everything that you do - it's not a nice place to be. It doesn't make me feel confident going back on to the pitch. My family was so devastated by it as well and so sad. " FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said during the tournament that the governing body had referred the "abhorrent" abuse to UK police. Carter stepped back from social media following the abuse, though she said the support received from the England fans "meant everything". The England team decided to stop taking the knee before matches, with manager Sarina Wiegman saying the impact of the anti-racism gesture was "not good enough". Carter said the psychological impact of the abuse she suffered made her feel "scared" when Wiegman told her she had been selected to play in the final. "That's the first time I've ever been scared - too scared to play, " she added. "I think it was a mixture of such a big game, but then on top of that [I was] scared of whatever abuse might come with it, whether it's football based or whether it was going to be the racial abuse that was going to come with it because I did something wrong. " Head here to get involved How do Newcastle resolve Isak saga & rescue 'nightmare' window? Raducanu 'getting back to best' but edged out by Sabalenka European demotion could galvanise Palace - Sutton New drama from writer Jimmy Mc Govern Take a ride on Japan's record-breaking rollercoaster The Jessops are back with more chaotic family comedy Investigating the rise of medical conspiracy theories How do Newcastle resolve Isak saga & rescue 'nightmare' window? Raducanu 'getting back to best' but edged out by Sabalenka Owners worth billions, so why might Red Bull era dawn slowly at Newcastle? Liverpool 2. 0 launched at Wembley - and Slot has bugs to fix Who to pick, who to avoid - your team's FPL assets ranked Chaos & controversy - Rashford's first two weeks inside Barca soap opera England dominate France in final World Cup warm-up match. Video England dominate France in final World Cup warm-up match How finest margins propelled Lionesses to Euro 2025 final. Video How finest margins propelled Lionesses to Euro 2025 final Who is most likely to challenge Liverpool this season? When England won by two runs - the greatest ever Test match? Video When England won by two runs - the greatest ever Test match? My 30-year-old world record 'not a good sign for athletics' - Edwards Why is it so hard to break into the NFL? Bring back the Delap delivery - how to make throw-ins a weapon Becky Zerlentes - the first female boxer to die in fight in US Hansie Cronje, match-fixing and plane crash that left a complex legacy Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.