England will host the 2021 Women's European Championship, UEFA confirmed, according to the BBC. The FA was the only bidder but "had to meet strict guidelines" before being named host it by European football's governing body. FA Head of Women's Football Sue Campbell said, "This is fantastic news for the FA, the country and for the development of girls' and women's football in England." The final will be held at Wembley. Eight other venues were included in England's bid. The other cities and stadiums to be used are Brighton & Hove Albion's Amex Stadium, Brentford's Community Stadium, MK Dons' Stadium MK, Man City's Academy Stadium, Nottingham Forest's City Ground, Rotherham's New York Stadium, Sheffield United's Bramall Lane and Southampton's St. Mary's Stadium (BBC, 12/3). In London, Louise Taylor reported the FA's choice of proposed host cities and stadiums is "controversial" as no games would be hosted north of Manchester and Rotherham. That means "a huge swathe of the north," most notably the northeast, could be excluded from easy access to the tournament. UEFA was "impressed by the strength of the FA's bid" for a 16-team competition concluding in a Wembley final but the geographical spread and limited size of certain venues "seems puzzling," particularly as Euro 2021 is regarded as "integral to the development of the women's domestic game." It appears "slightly unambitious" that the northwest is currently represented "merely" by City's Academy ground which only has a 7,000 capacity and is 145 miles by road from Newcastle. Meanwhile, Rotherham and Sheffield "fly the flag for South Yorkshire," leaving "potentially decent venues further north" including Blackburn, Burnley, Leeds, Hull, Middlesbrough, Sunderland and Newcastle excluded from the tournament (GUARDIAN, 12/3).
