England Women players have been told they will not feature in a key pre-World Cup friendly if they do not commit to joining a preparation camp on June 19, and the warm-up match against Portugal on July 1 is now in doubt.
The proposed start date for England’s training camp — June 19 — is four days earlier than football’s world governing body FIFA and the European Club Association’s recommended window of June 23 to June 29.
England players have also been dragged into the dispute during their short post-season break, with squad members asked to indicate whether they would be happy to report on June 19 or June 23 by using a thumbs up emoji in a WhatsApp group.
Release dates for players ahead of this summer’s tournament in Australia and New Zealand have been an ongoing point of conflict between many clubs and national teams.
Last month, FIFA and the ECA, which represents the interests of European professional football clubs, announced a compromise had been agreed which meant players could be released to national teams between June 23 and June 29. A mandatory release date of July 10 remains in place and the World Cup starts in New Zealand and Australia on July 20.
England still plan to start their official preparation camp on June 19 and the issue has caused tension, with…
