AFP, Manchester :
England will play host to the women’s European Championship over the next month with record crowds raising hopes the tournament will take the female game’s rising profile to an even higher level.
Nearly half a million tickets have been sold to fans in 100 countries, including sell-outs for the opening game at Old Trafford when England face Austria on Wednesday and the final at Wembley on July 31.
Initially scheduled for 2021, UEFA moved the tournament back a year after the men’s Euro 2020 had to be delayed 12 months due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As governing bodies scrambled to restart the men’s competitions as soon as possible to secure lucrative broadcast income, even the elite end of the women’s game was treated as somewhat of an afterthought.
