England Women’s World Cup LIVE: Sarina Wiegman confirms new Lionesses captain after announcing squad

USA: 11/4

England: 10/3

Spain: 6/1

Germany: 13/2

France: 10/1

Australia: 13/1

Sweden: 16/1

Netherlands: 19/1

Brazil: 22/1

Canada: 30/1

Japan: 33/1

Italy, Norway: 50/1

South Korea: 66/1

Denmark, Portugal: 80/1

China, Republic of Ireland: 100/1

Colombia, Switzerland: 200/1

Philippines, Vietnam, Panama, Zambia, Costa Rica, South Africa, Argentina, Morocco, Jamaica, Nigeria, Haiti: 500/1

Odds source: Betfair

Maya Le Tissier, Jess Park and Emily Ramsey have been named on standby and will train with the squad when they report to St. George’s Park in June. Ramsey will leave the group prior to departure for Australia. Le Tissier and Park will join the group in travelling to Australia on 5 July for the final preparation phase of the tournament, remaining up to the opening match against Haiti on 22 July.

England boss Sarina Wiegman has named her chosen 23 - and of her picks has said: “I have huge belief in this squad and we’re very fortunate to be selecting a fantastic group of players to travel to Australia. We know we will face tough challenges from strong teams, and we will have to be competitive from the first match on 22 July. We will do everything to be at our very best again this summer.

“It is important the players get some well-deserved time to rest and recover over the next few weeks before we start the final preparations to get them ready. We learned a lot of positive lessons about how to get the players fit, fresh and ready from the EURO last summer and we know what we have to do to make sure we hit the ground running in the right way when the tournament starts.”

The Lionesses squad is here:

GK: Mary Earps, Hannah Hampton, Ellie Roebuck

DF: Millie Bright, Lucy Bronze, Jess Carter, Niamh Charles, Alex Greenwood, Esme Morgan, Lotte Wubben-Moy

MD: Laura Coombs, Jordan Nobbs, Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone, Keira Walsh, Katie Zelem

FW: Rachel Daly, Bethany England, Lauren Hemp, Lauren James, Chloe Kelly, Katie Robinson, Alessia Russo

We are almost ready to go.

An impromptu BBC poll asking for who should be named captain in the absence of Leah Williamson saw Lucy Bronze just pip Millie Bright to top spot.

Another big call for Wiegman to make.

The Women’s World Cup continues to face a TV blackout in Europe this summer, as some of the biggest football countries have yet to agree broadcast deals for their markets with almost 50 days to go before the tournament begins in Australia and New Zealand.

Figures within the sport feel that the offers so far have been so derisory that they represent a “betrayal” of supposed commitments to the women’s game, that could affect its growth and future deals.

While the United Kingdom deal with the BBC and ITV is close to an agreement, that is not yet the case with France, Spain, Germany, Italy or Japan.

Despite booming interest in the women’s game in all of these territories, none of the offers have yet reached even 6 per cent of the price agreed for the men’s World Cup in 2022. In Italy, it has been as low as 1 per cent and in Germany under 3 per cent.

Just fifteen minutes now until Sarina Wiegman’s press conference to unveil the World Cup squad.

England manager Sarina Wiegman is set to name her squad for this summer’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where the Lionesses will look to add to their Euros triumph with the game’s biggest prize.

Wiegman’s side will be among the favourites as England aim to win the World Cup for the first time, but the Lionesses have been rocked by the news that captain Leah Williamson has been ruled out of the tournament after rupturing her anterior cruciate ligament.

Suddenly, the England manager could be without a core of players who started for the Lionesses at the Euros last summer, which puts pressure on having the right depth throughout the squad.

And with Wiegman naming her squad today following the end of the domestic season, time has run out for players on the fringes of Weigman’s plans to stake their claim.

So ahead of the World Cup, who’s on the plane to Australia and New Zealand, and who’s hasn’t done enough to make the squad?

Jamie Braidwood assesses the situation ahead of the big reveal:

Growing up as a Manchester United fan, I came to understand the game, and its magnetic culture, through the lens and language of men. I loved going to Old Trafford but acknowledged that casual misogyny would be a facet of the day. I prided myself on becoming one of the “lads”, repressing my own antipathy in the process.

As the drummer and only woman in my band Sports Team, I found parallels. I became adept at minimising my gender in order to fit in and be taken seriously as a woman in an industry dominated by men. The long-term impact on your psyche is powerful. As a woman, you feel you may inhabit but not own these spaces. This was the tacit “rule” that shaped my perception of the social world and how I navigated through it.

Moments like the recent women’s FA Cup final collapsed this notion. I watched my team walk onto the pitch at a sold-out Wembley and sobbed for my childhood self as I had when I watched the Lionesses last summer; with joy, and envy at what felt like the limitless possibilities now open to the next generation.

Alex Greenwood discusses the growth in the game and the problems still to overcome:

Euro 2022 winner Jill Scott believes England can overcome the absence of key players to claim World Cup glory this summer.

Manager Sarina Wiegman’s preparations for the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, which begins in July, have been hampered by the loss of some star names to injury.

The European champions will be without captain Leah Williamson and midfielder Fran Kirby due to long-term knee problems while another casualty, forward Beth Mead, is rated highly doubtful having been sidelined since November.

But with two more experienced campaigners in Scott herself and Ellen White having retired since last year’s European success at Wembley, there could be a very different feel to the Lionesses squad.

More here from the former Lionesses midfielder: