The City of Sheffield and Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane stadium have been confirmed as hosts by the Football Association in its bid to stage the UEFA Women’s EURO 2021 in England.
It promises a substantial commercial and profiling boost to the area.- the tournament, the biggest and best showcase for the women’s game, attracts a significant print and broadcast media audience across Europe as well as overseas visitors and players and officials from 16 countries.
Inclusion in the list of proposed cities and stadia – Rotherham and the AESSEAL New York Stadium are also included – reflects the growth of the women’s game in the area with Sheffield United Women recently granted permission to play in the second tier of the Women’s Super League
Councillor Mary Lea, Cabinet Member for Culture, Parks and Leisure said :“We are delighted that the work we have done with our friends and partners at Sheffield United has gained Sheffield a prestigious place on the host city list in the England FA bid.
“Sheffield is the home of football; this is where the rules were written, this is home to the first, and the oldest teams in the world, and this is a reinforcement of Sheffield as a world-class location for world-class events. Sheffield’s presence, along with Rotherham’s shows the growing support and involvement in women’s football across South Yorkshire and means this is great news for the women and girls involved in playing football, and their families and friends, as their footballing heroes and role models could be heading for the city.”
Sheffield United Operations Director Dave McCarthy said: “This is wonderful news. The development of our stadium and investment in the pitch means that we are now in a position to stage high profile matches and events which bring so much benefit to the city as well.
“We have developed a close working partnership with Sheffield City Council and event reputation which I am sure has helped in being chosen as part of the Football Association’s bid. In recent years we haver staged a number of high profile events at Bramall Lane, such as the Kell Brook world championship boxing bout, the opening ceremony for the UK Special Olympics, the UEFA Under 21 qualifier for the 2019 championships and the FA Women Premier League Championship play-off .”
UEFA’s deadline for bids to stage the tournament is Friday (31 August), with a final decision on the successful host nation to be taken by the UEFA Executive Committee in early December 2018.
- The other proposed cities and stadia included in the bid are: Brighton – Amex Stadium; London – Wembley Stadium connected by EE and Brentford Community Stadium; Milton Keynes – Stadium MK; Manchester – Manchester City Academy Stadium; Nottingham – Meadow Lane and Peterborough – ABAX Stadium.
All proposed venues put forward in the bid are subject to evaluation by UEFA and are subject change
