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England Ladies Come to Bloomfield Road Blackpool
Blackpool’s Bloomfield Road stadium will stage England Ladies’ opening World Cup qualifier with Malta.
The tie will take place on Sunday, October 25 with a 5.30pm kick off after being chosen by the Football Association.
Seasiders boss Ian Holloway said: “It is fantastic news for the club and the town.
“The FA have recognised the fantastic work we have done on our pitch and stadium.”
“The England ladies team have done exceptionally well in recent seasons and were unfortunate to come across an excellent German side in the final of the European Championships.”
Women’s football has been played in England for over a century, it has only been in the 1990s that the game has seen a large increase in female players, as well as in female spectators, culminating in England hosting the Women’s European Championships in 2005.
In the period from early in the First World War until the Football Association’s ban on women playing football on the grounds of its affiliates in 1922 (which lasted for 40 years) women’s football was very popular and a true rival to the men’s game. One match featuring the Dick, Kerr’s Ladies team from Preston, played at Goodison Park, Liverpool on Boxing Day 1920, attracted a crowd of 53,000 with another 10,000 – 15,000 reported turned away because the ground was full.
Today, the FA runs directly the top women’s competitions. The most significant national competition is the national cup, the FA Women’s Cup, followed by the top national league, the FA Women’s Premier League National Division. The Premier League has recently increased in importance because its winner is the only English representative allowed in Europe. Women’s football also has its own Premier League Cup, limited to the teams in the Premier League and the regional second divisions. To promote women’s football, the FA allows cup finals to be held at various men’s Premier League/Football League stadia throughout the country (as opposed to men’s finals which are usually held at the national stadiums); for the 2006-07 season, the League Cup final took place at Scunthorpe United’s Glanford Park, and the FA Cup final will take place at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground.
You know over here on the other side of the pond we don’t hear much about WOrld Cup let alone the Ladies World Cup, is it big over there?
I used to live out that way and while the Ladies World Cup is not that popular, they still play at a very high level.
No even women love this sport. I agree with David, they still play at a very high level. Not all women loves it.
I was searching for fifa worldcup 2010 tickets and found your blog via google.But I would say that I became fan of yours in few mins after reading interesting facts about my favourite game.
Congratulations to Blackpool for hosting the England game and for their recent promotion to the Premier League.