The teams are lining up in the tunnel. We’ve had our lights show, now it’s time for the main event.

European champions versus Olympic champions. Welcome home, Emma Hayes.

Rachel Daly is being honoured at Wembley tonight after her retirement from international duty earlier this year. Daly won 84 caps for England, played at two World Cups, and started every game of the Euro 2022 triumph.

“To be at Wembley and to be honoured, it’s a great feeling. It’s a bit different. I’m used to the grass but I’m deligted to be here with my family as well,” she says after being recognised in a thank you ceremony.

The USA are unbeaten in each of their last 19 friendly matches (W17 D2), keeping a clean sheet in 15 of those – they have however lost their last two friendlies in Europe: vs England in July 2022 and Spain in November 2022. 

The Lionesses have lost two of their last four home games (W2), more defeats than they suffered across their previous 22 matches on home soil (W15 D6 L1).  

In addition, they have failed to win their first game of an international break in three of the last four attempts (W1 D1 L2), having lost none and won 13 of their first 16 such matches under manager Sarina Wiegman (D3). 

Emma Hayes with Mauricio Pochettino on the sidelines at Wembley. The new manager of the men’s USA team is here to support the women’s team. Hayes and Pochettino were also both at Chelsea at the same time.

England are warming up with Alex Greenwood at left-back, and Jess Carter at centre-back. Leah Williamson has shifted to the right of centre-back with Carter on the left.

Not since their very first two games against the Americans in 1985 and 1988 have the Lionesses beaten the Stars and Stripes in back-to-back matches.

England have lost only one of their last 12 matches in all competitions against opponents from outside of Europe (W8 D3), losing 2-0 at home to Australia in an April 2023 friendly.

 The USA have won 12 of their 13 matches in all competitions under manager Emma Hayes (D1); the only managers to win as many as 13 of their first 14 games in charge of the USWNT are Vlatko Andonovski (14 in 2021) and Pia Sundhage (13 in 2008). 

Emma Hayes: “I think it’s fair to say both countries are committed to women’s sport and developing the women’s game.

“As always, we can talk about the things we need to keep doing to improve it, but I think we need to celebrate how far we’ve come too, and having 80,000 paying fans to watch a great match-up is again not just a sign of progress but shows that the Lionesses are sustaining a lot and being able to play at Wembley so often.

“So celebrate both countries, celebrate the work that’s being done, as opposed to pick it apart.”

These two sides have faced each other a total of 19 times, with the first meeting dating back to 1985. Overall, the Lionesses have won just five, with the USA winning 12 and two ending as draws.

The most notable meeting between the two came at the 2019 Women’s World Cup, when the USA triumphed 2-1 thanks to a goal from Alex Morgan.

Most recently, England won 2-1 when the teams met in 2022, courtesy of goals from Lauren Hemp and Georgia Stanway.

Lucy Bronze: “I think, as long as I’ve been an England player, it’s been one of the most exciting games to play in. We always play them in big occasions. There seems to be a rivalry that’s been, yeah, blossomed out of nowhere over the past decade.

“And we know, no matter what players show up, what players are on the pitch, who the manager is even, it’s such a competitive, high-level game. To win the Olympics, you have to be intense, have to be ruthless, you have to have that crazy mentality.

“I think that sums up the USA perfectly, so if we can go toe-to-toe with a team like that, see the mentality that it takes, learn from any mistakes that we make and learn from them, push ourselves and show what we’re capable of, what we can do against a top team like that, it’s going to put us in very good stead for the next six to eight months.”

Here’s how Hayes will line up on her England homecoming.

USA XI: Naeher; Fox, Girma, Sonnett, Krueger; Lavelle, Coffey, Horan; L. Williams, Thompson, Sears

Subs: Sams, Albert, Nighswonger, Shaw, Sentnor, Yohannes, Davidson, Malonson, Hershfelt, Haught, Gaetino, Ryan