Leicester will be welcoming England’s Lionesses to the King Power Stadium in October, when the venue will host England Women’s UEFA Women’s Nations League fixture against Belgium.
The game, which will kick off at 7:45pm on Friday October 27, will be the first time the Lionesses have played in Leicester since a 1-1 draw against Sweden in September 1980.
It will also mark one of the first opportunities for supporters to see the Lionesses in action on home soil following their return from the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where they booked their spot in the quarter-finals with a shootout victory over Nigeria on Monday.
The King Power Stadium meeting with Belgium, whose most capped international player is current LCFC Women star Janice Cayman, will be followed four days later with a return game hosted at King Power at Den Dreef Stadium – the home of LCFC’s sister club, OH Leuven, in Belgium.
Leicester City Chief Executive, Susan Whelan, said: “We’re delighted to once again be able to host such a prestigious international fixture at King Power Stadium, and on behalf of the Football Club, we very much look forward to welcoming the Lionesses to Leicester.
“It’s such an exciting time for women’s football both internationally and domestically, so for the city of Leicester, it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to see some of the world’s best footballers play here at King Power Stadium.
“For the Football Club, it’s also a proud moment to see that both fixtures between the Lionesses and the Red Flames will be hosted by teams that are part of the King Power football family. The return game will take place at our sister club OH Leuven’s stadium and is a clear demonstration of King Power’s commitment to help grow the women’s game.”
OH Leuven Chief Executive Peter Willems added: “Hosting international football is always an honour for OH Leuven but this occasion is made even more significant with our colleagues at Leicester City providing the venue for Red Flames’ fixture in England.
“It’s certain to be a fantastic spectacle between two excellent teams in front of an ever-growing audience of women’s football supporters and we very much look forward to welcoming both teams to Belgium following the meeting at King Power Stadium.”
The England-Belgium double-header will mark both teams’ third and fourth fixtures in the inaugural Nations League with the competition beginning the previous month.
Sarina Wiegman’s squad start the campaign with their first post-FIFA Women’s World Cup match on Friday 22 September at home to Scotland at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light before facing the Netherlands away in Utrecht on Tuesday 26 September.
The final matches in the group will be played on 1 and 5 December respectively with England first welcoming the Netherlands to a yet-to-be confirmed venue before making the short trip north of the border to Scotland.
The team that tops the four-team section will progress to the Nations League finals between 21-28 February. Two semi-finals will be played before a showpiece match to determine the overall winners.
Tickets for the game at King Power Stadium will go on sale to My England Football members on Friday (August 11) and on general sale on Tuesday 15 August.
