Football Foundation celebrates Lionesses Futures Fund pitches

With 100 days to go until the UEFA Women’s EUROs kicks off in Switzerland, the Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation is celebrating the inspirational performances of the Lionesses in 2022 and 2023 with over 30 new pitches or facilities.

Each of these will provide women and girls with a gold standard place to play up and down the country. 

Thanks to a £30m cash injection from The FA and Government, communities from Peacehaven to Portishead and Northumberland to the New Forest received funding from the Lionesses Futures Fund to place women and girls at the heart of their local football facility. 

The grants recognise the trailblazing success of the Lionesses and will help meet the growing demand for grassroots football among women and girls we’ve seen since England’s triumph at the last EUROs in 2022 and the team’s historic run to the FIFA Women’s World Cup Final in 2023.  

Importantly, these facilities will prioritise access for women and girls through reserved peak-time slots and welcoming changing facilities, and have set the tone for the standard that the Foundation now expects from all the sites that are funded. 

Leah Williamson England captain for the UEFA Women’s EURO campaign in 2022, said:  

“The whole squad feel really honoured to have been recognised in a way that has given back to women and girls who share the same passion we do for playing football. All these pitches will provide the very best playing experience and ensure that women and girls are able to play at peak times and on a state-of-the-art pitch.

“I feel so proud to be a Lioness and proud of the whole team for inspiring women and girls to play football.” 

Millie Bright, England captain for the FIFA Women’s World Cup campaign in 2023, said: 

“It has been a real honour to see how much the Lionesses’ success over the last few years has meant to everyone across the country. And now we have over 30 pitches, in all corners of England, that are going to inspire women and girls to get down to their local pitches and play football. 

“As a young girl our teams really struggled to get access to pitches at reasonable times, we know that thanks to this funding women and girls will have priority access to peak slots – we hope that this means more people lacing up their boots.” 

Robert Sullivan, CEO of the Football Foundation, said:

“The Lionesses have been an inspiration to thousands of women and girls across the country, both on and off the pitch. 

“Since the squad lifted the EUROs trophy, a further 68,000 girls are playing football. The Lionesses Futures Fund is helping to provide each and every one with a great place to play.

“And the work doesn’t stop here. Using the funding we receive from the Premier League, The FA and Government, the Football Foundation, we are committed to providing equal access for women and girls at every facility we fund. We look forward to more women and girls being inspired over the summer who will have the opportunity to play at more sites that are delivering this gold standard.”