Lionesses will 'put hands in pockets' so their families can watch and support them at Euro 2025 - with FA fund not covering Switzerland's 'very expensive' cost of living
England players are contributing their own money to help cover the cost of bringing family members to Switzerland for this summer's Women's European Championship, due to the country's high cost of living.
Four Swiss cities – Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Bern – ranked among the top 10 most expensive cities globally last year, behind only Hong Kong and Singapore. The average price for a pint of milk is as high as £1.67.
The FA are providing England players with a financial contribution to support the travel and accommodation expenses of their families.
The sum is comparable to what was provided for the 2023 Women's World Cup in Australia, and it matches the amount given to the men's team.
The average salary in the Women's Super League (WSL) was reported by the BBC in 2022 to be £47,000 per year. A comparable figure for a Premier League player was £4.7 million annually – 100 times more.
England midfielder Georgia Stanway said: 'I'm aware that Switzerland is a very expensive country. Even just for flights, hotels, the cost of living there is extremely high, so we understand the demand it is on fans. And I think that's difficult for us as well because we want to help and support as much as possible.'
The tournament will take place across Switzerland, with the Lionesses playing their first two group stage matches in Zurich against France and the Netherlands on 5 and 9 July.
They will then travel to St Gallen to face Wales on 13 July. The final is scheduled for 27 July at St Jakob-Park in Basel.
Stanway said: 'A lot of us are putting our hands in our pockets to make sure that our families can get over there. We would love to see as many fans as possible, and we want to thank them in advance because we know it's not cheap.'
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