England women’s football team will take part in a new tournament – the SheBelieves Cup – in which four of the top teams in the world (USA, Germany, France and England) will compete.
The Lionesses will play hosts USA on Friday 4th March at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. From Florida they will head to Nashville to face Germany on 6th March. The final game for England will be against France on Thursday 10th March in Boca Raton.
Full fixtures are:
3 March Germany 1-0 France Raymond James Stadium Tampa, Fl0rida
3 March USA 1-0 England Raymond James Stadium Tampa, Fl0rida .
6 March USA 1-0 France Nissan Stadium Nashville, Tennessee
6 March Germany 2-1 England Nissan Stadium Nashville, Tennessee .
9 March France 0-0 England FAU Stadium Boca Raton, Florida
9 March USA 2-1 Germany FAU Stadium Boca Raton, Florida
Sadly, this means they will not be able to defend their title in the Cyprus Cup this year since there is a clash of timings.
England will be back in Euro qualifying action on 8th April at home to Belgium and then away to Bosnia & Herzegovina on 12th April.
Meanwhile the FA have announced that Mark Sampson has agreed a two-year contract extension that will run until 2019.
The deal will see Sampson lead his team through qualification and into the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup as well as next summer’s UEFA Women’s European Championships in Holland.
Sampson was awarded the extension after guiding the Lionesses to a best-ever third place finish at last summer’s World Cup in Canada. His side also have a 100 per cent record in their Euro 2017 qualifying campaign and are fifth in the FIFA World Rankings – their highest-ever position.
Goalkeeping coach Lee Kendall has also agreed a two-year extension to his current deal. England’s goalkeepers have impressed in recent months with Karen Bardsley featuring in the FIFA World Cup All Star squad and named player of the match against both Norway and Germany in Canada.
Sampson, along with assistant coach Marieanne Spacey, was appointed in December 2013, with Kendall joining a month later.
Sampson said: “I am delighted to have agreed to continue working with the Lionesses through to the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
“It is an honour and a privilege to manage such a fantastic group of people who represent their country with incredible pride and passion. We have all worked very hard over the last two years to improve both individually and collectively and our World Cup bronze medal highlights the progress this team has made.
“It was crucial post the World Cup we worked hard to continue to grow the game and I am pleased with the steps we have taken we are ready to do just that.
“I am delighted that Lee Kendall has also agreed to extend his contract with the team and over the coming weeks we will highlight the good work that has gone on behind-the-scenes to support the team.
“It is an incredibly exiting period for all players and supporters of the Lionesses and I am proud to continue leading the team through this special journey.”
