FA LODGE BID TO HOST WOMEN’S EUROS

ENGLAND’S bid to host the Women’s European Championship in 2021 has been handed in to UEFA, with Wembley primed as the venue for the final. The Football Association officially submitted their bid yesterday, promising ‘the biggest and best showcase for women’s football ever seen in Europe’. The other proposed venues for the 16-team tournament in England’s bid are Brighton’s AMEX Stadium, Milton Keynes’ Stadium MK, the Manchester City Academy Stadium, Meadow Lane in Nottingham, Peterborough’s ABAX Stadium, Rotherham’s New York Stadium and Sheffield’s Bramall Lane. Hungary are England’s only rivals to host the tournament, with Austria pulling out of the running after their FA president said: ‘England is too big an opponent.’ The deadline for bids is tomorrow and a final decision will be made by UEFA on December 3. FA chief executive Martin Glenn said: ‘We have invested heavily in the women’s game in recent years and the opportunity to bring the tournament to England would represent a landmark moment for women’s football in this country. Our aim is to make UEFA Women’s Euro 2021 the biggest and best showcase for women’s football ever seen in Europe.’ The bid follows the Lionesses’ runs to the semi-finals of the 2015 Women’s World Cup in Canada and at Euro 2017 in Holland, the latter generating a peak UK television audience of four million.