Nikita Parris impressed by growth of women's football as Euro 2025 gathers pace

Englad international Nikita Parris continues to be impressed by the growth of women’s football and now the striker is predicting further explosion following the exposure and excitement of the UEFA European Women's Championships.

The Brighton & Hove Albion striker attended the Big Football Day this weekend in London – a grassroots football celebration delivered across England by The FA and supported by The National Lottery. The National Lottery have invested £6 billion into grassroots sport over the last 30 years – changing the game for women’s and girls’ football. The event is to celebrate EURO 2025 this summer and to increase female participation, with clubs being asked to open their doors to host a Big Football Day during the month of July. The day will bring the community together and people can pop down to their local clubs to get involved in female taster sessions for all ages, match screenings, fun football festivities and more.

It is vastly different from Parris’ introduction to the game that saw her form her own girls’ team as opportunities did not exist at the time.

“There weren’t many opportunities like this, and I started my own girls’ team for Kingsley United when I could no longer play with the boys,” the 31-year-old said. “At that time when you were 11-plus, you could not play with boys, so I had to create my own with family, friends and whoever walked past the park with a dog, parent, I took them in.

“It is so nice to see so many girls’ teams playing here. It is so different, it is lovely to see so many young people playing and they are all girls’ teams. When I was younger it was mixed or lads I played with.

“It is so nice that there are initiatives happening all round the country and young girls