With 500 days to go before Women's Euro 2021 gets underway, the English FA have announced that the inaugural match will be played at Old Trafford on 7 July, tournament hosts England will take on an opponent yet to be confirmed.

Wembley, two European finals in two years

The final, set for 1 August will be played at 90,000-seater Wembley - the venue that will also host the final of the Men's Euros this summer. After their opening game at Old Trafford, England's Lionesses will play their other wto group games at Brighton & Hove Albion’s Community Stadium and Southampton's St. Mary’s Stadium.

Phil Neville delighted to kick off Euro 2021 at Old Trafford

For England coach Phil Neville, the decision to stage the opening game at Old Trafford is a dream come true: "It doesn’t get much bigger than managing your country at a home EURO and to have the opportunity to do so at a stadium that holds so many memories for me is huge," Neville said. "Old Trafford has a special place in my heart, but it’s also one of the country’s most iconic football grounds, so this announcement is a significant one for the tournament. I’m looking forward to kicking off our campaign in Manchester and to offering fans across the country the chance to watch the elite women’s game on home turf next summer".

England, along with France, the Netherlands and Germany are the big favourites to lift the trophy. Jorge Vilda's Spain side, who top their qualifying group on 7 points from three games, will also be hoping to play an important role at the tournament. La Roja have five qualifiers left to play, starting with home games against Czech Republic and Moldova in April.

Spain complete the qualifying stage with games against Poland (home) on 7 June, Moldova (away) on 19 September and Azerbaijan (away) on 22 September.

Women's Euro 2021 - qualifying

Qualifying for Women's Euro 2021 finishes in September - the winners of the nine groups (A to I) together with the three runners-up with the best records against the teams in their qualifying section will automatically book their place at the finals directly while the other six teams to end second in their group will go into the Play-Off round in October 2020 - from which the three winners will qualify for the tournament proper.