Ukraine vs England live: Lionesses game goes ahead amid safety concerns as World Cup qualifying campaign begins | OneFootball

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Sarina Wiegman eyes more success with England

England kick off their qualification campaign for the 2027 Women’s World Cup tonight as they take on Ukraine in Antalya.

The Lionesses are in “close contact” with the UK government over the fixture, which is being played in Turkey due to the war in Ukraine but has raised safety concerns due to the proximity of the fresh conflict in the Middle East.

On the pitch, England are returning to competitive action off the back of making history in 2025, with Sarina Wiegman guiding the nation to a second consecutive European Championship in Switzerland last summer.

Wiegman’s side will now be dreaming of glory on the global stage, hoping to avenge the heartache they suffered in the 2023 final as they lost out on the World Cup crown to Spain in Sydney.

The defending champions join England in their qualifying group, setting up a rematch at Wembley on 14 April, with Iceland also in Group 3. But can the Lionesses avoid an early slip-up against Ukraine on neutral soil.

England's qualifying streak

Since missing out on the 2003 Women’s World Cup by losing both legs of their play-off final against France, England are unbeaten in each of their last 46 qualifying matches for the tournament (42 wins, four draw).

They’ve scored 225 goals and conceded just eight times.

(The FA via Getty Images)

Mike Jones3 March 2026 16:35

Stanway on leaving Bayern Munich

Georgia Stanway will be leaving Bayern Munich at the end of the current season and revealed that she hopes to leave with ‘good memories’.

The midfielder explained: “It was really difficult, I’ve absolutely loved my time at Bayern.

“Honestly, it's been probably one of the best decisions I ever made in my life. From the moment I got there, it felt like home. It was a really difficult decision to tell them that I wasn’t going to be re-signing and that’s because I still love it there.

“I’ve kind of come to the conclusion that I want to always have good memories at Bayern – I never want to get to the point where I’m not enjoying something or I’m a little bit over it.

“I want to continue to fulfil the rest of this season – we’re in a really good place in the league, in the Champions League as well – and I want to try and make as many memories as possible.”