France boss Corinne Diacre hailed a sizzling performance as Les Bleues trampled over Italy in Rotherham to start their Euro 2022 campaign with a 5-1 statement victory.

Paris Saint-Germain's Grace Geyoro marked her 50th cap by becoming the first player to score a hat-trick in the first half of a Women's European Championship match, and France led 5-0 at the break in the Group D clash.

Geyoro spoke of it being "a great collective effort from the team", largely deflecting well-earned personal praise.

Diacre, whose squad selections faced scrutiny after she omitted France's record scorer Eugenie Le Sommer and Champions League player of the match Amandine Henry, was glad to reflect on a job well done.

She was asked whether it had been the kind of start that France anticipated.

"No, even though we wanted to get off to a strong start in the first match," Diacre said. "The players have done very well in their first game."

France have now won their opener in each of the last five Women's Euros tournaments. They were only the third side to score five or more goals in their opening game of an edition of the competition, after Norway in 1997 (5-0 v Denmark) and England in 2017 (6-0 v Scotland).

It was France's biggest win at the Euros in their history and means they have equalled a team-best run of 11 wins in competitive games.

Still, few were talking up France's chances heading into the tournament, with the likes of England, defending champions the Netherlands, and Spain getting the most attention. This was the kind of performance that might change a few minds.

There were aspects of France's display that were not quite as glorious as their all-action early raids on Italy's backline, with Diacre admitting the second-half display "was less good", albeit crediting the opposition, saying: "The Italians brought a little more."

She was told supporters had been chanting her name in Paris but said it was important to "stay vigilant... stay focused... stay humble".

Italy head coach Milena Bertolini said she felt her side were overly stretched in the first half.

"Maybe we thought we could play it evenly, but we are not on a par with France in terms of physique, technique and intensity," she said.

Being France, there is still time for a crisis to develop, for a rotten egg to slip into the souffle mixture, or a contretemps to blow up into full-blown guerre civile.

But for now, after dismissing Italy in brutal fashion in their Women's Euro 2022 opener, Les Bleues are looking simply magnifique.

When coach Corinne Diacre left Amandine Henry and Eugenie Le Sommer out of her Euros squad, deciding France could cope without the Champions League final player of the match and the national team's record goalscorer, it was a calculated act of coaching courage that had the potential to backfire spectacularly.

And it still might, because Sunday evening's 5-1 drubbing in Rotherham taught us only so much: on the front foot, against opponents whose defending leaves a lot to be desired, they can fill their boots.

Diacre felt Henry and Le Sommer were not ideal fits for this team, and the coach whose controversy-packed five-year reign makes her a divisive figure staked her reputation on it.

France, like this tournament's hosts, England, have yet to win a major tournament, but they have been fancied more often than the Lionesses to come away with a trophy and repeatedly failed to deliver on expectations.

They have typically run into strong opposition and not had quite enough. Italy have a long way to come before they fall into the 'strong opposition' category, with the Azzurre recklessly obliging in this Group D landslide at the New York Stadium.

France had set two Women's Euros records by half-time, becoming the first team to score five goals before the break, with Grace Geyoro the first player to hit a first-half hat-trick.

Italy had won their opening match at just two of their previous 11 Women's Euros (D4 L5). Hopes of a third such victory were already over as they retreated for dressing-room respite. They have now lost 11 of their past 16 games at the Euros (W4 D1).

It might have been a different story if Barbara Bonansea buried an early chance, but she was denied by the legs of France goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin, and a rout ensued.

Kadidiatou Diani, a menace on the right, sent over a low centre that was feebly dealt with by Italy, allowing Geyoro a ninth-minute tap-in, and the second French goal was also about threat from the flanks, with Sakina Karchaoui racing down the left before her deflected cross was palmed into the path of a grateful Marie-Antoinette Katoto by Italy goalkeeper Laura Giuliani.

Twelve minutes in, France were 2-0 up and rampant. Delphine Cascarino hit a delightful third from the edge of the box, Geyoro rounded Giuliani for a fourth and added number five in the 45th minute, disrupting Italian possession herself before taking a return ball from Sandie Toletti and smashing home.

Unable to halt Geyoro by fair means, Italy elected for another approach after the break as captain Sara Gama hacked down the forward with a messy challenge on the left. Shown a red card initially, it was reduced to yellow after a VAR check, which probably saved Italy from greater humiliation.

They got a goal back through Martina Piemonte's neat header, too, France becoming briefly ragged. The French might need to win this tournament, or at least reach the July 31 final at Wembley, for Diacre's big decisions to be justified, so here was a just a glimpse of fragility. A fifth successive win in European Championship openers was never in doubt.

One more number felt significant on this warm Yorkshire night. The crowd of 8,541 drew warm applause around this tidy lower-league ground, and rightly so. When these teams met in the group stage of Euro 2005, also hosted by England, only 957 turned out at Preston's Deepdale ground to witness the occasion.

The women's game is changing, and perhaps the same might be said for France.

Grace Geyoro's stunning first-half hat-trick helped France throw down a Women's Euro 2022 gauntlet in a 5-1 rout of Italy in Rotherham.

Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Geyoro, winning her 50th cap, became the first player in tournament history to score three times before half-time, with Les Bleues' five goals heading into the interval also a record.

In an explosive performance that only solidifies their credentials as one of the pre-tournament favourites, France extended their winning run to 15 games across all competitions to go top of Group D after the first round of fixtures.

Geyoro's opener in the ninth minute set the tone for a superb first half at New York Stadium, with Marie-Antoinette Katoto doubling the lead three minutes later, before Delphine Cascarino sparked a madcap stretch before the interval that saw her team-mate grab her second and then third.

Matters looked to have gone from bad to worse for Italy after captain Sara Gama was shown a red card in the 66th minute for a high, mistimed tackle on Geyoro, but the VAR recommended a pitchside review, which controversially saw the decision downgraded to a booking.

That kept a full contingent of players on to help seize a late consolation goal through substitute Martina Piemonte, but Milena Bertolini's side now face a serious test of their character to see how they respond to such an emphatic drubbing.

Next, they play Iceland, who drew 1-1 with Belgium in Manchester as Justine Vanhaevermaet converted a spot-kick and Berglind Thorvaldsdottir missed one.

Thorvaldsdottir did get on the scoresheet five minutes after half-time, having earlier seen a tame penalty saved by Nicky Evrard, but Vanhaevermaet struck from 12 yards to secure a share of the spoils for the Red Flames.

Maybe this time football really is 'coming home'.

Hosts England are widely considered among the favourites to win Euro 2022 as Sarina Wiegman leads the Lionesses onto the big stage, and they can be considered marginal front-runners for a wide-open tournament.

That conclusion is based on modelling from Stats Perform's Artificial Intelligence team, using Opta's data reserves to quantify each team's chances of winning the entire tournament.

Every match has been run through the Stats Perform Women's Euro prediction model to calculate the estimated probability of the outcome (win, draw or loss). This uses odds from betting markets and Stats Perform team rankings, which are based on historical and recent performances.

The model takes into consideration the strength of each team's opponents as well as the difficulty of their respective paths to the final, plus the make-up of the groups and any relevant seedings heading into the knockouts.

The rest of the tournament is then simulated thousands of times and analysed, providing the probability of each team progressing round by round and ultimately lifting the trophy at Wembley on July 31.

Spain have been widely portrayed as favourites, but La Roja might find it hard going in England. Here is a run-down of the AI results, and they might shock you.
 

MOST LIKELY CHAMPIONS

1. England (19.3 per cent)

Runners-up in 1984 and 2009, perhaps England's second European finals on home soil could bring about a triumph the Lionesses have longed to achieve.

They have such immense strength in their forward ranks that Ellen White, joint top scorer at the 2019 World Cup, is not assured of her place in the team. The likes of Ella Toone, Beth Mead and Alessia Russo could push White for the starting spot as striker, with three attackers set to feature in behind, as manager Wiegman looks to blow away the opposition.

England are given an 81.9 per cent chance of coming through the group stage to reach the quarter-finals, a 54.1 per cent shot at getting through to the semi-finals, and a 31.1 per cent hope of making it through to the Wembley trophy match. Their 19.3 per cent chance of carrying off the trophy means it is hardly a given that England will finish bathed in glory, and that is because the opposition is so strong.

2. France (18.5 per cent)

Les Bleues left Amandine Henry and Eugenie Le Sommer out of their squad, meaning two of their recognised stars will be conspicuously absent from Corinne Diacre's team.

Stats Perform's women's football Power Rankings puts France second on the global list, behind only the United States, but coach Diacre is dicing with danger by omitting proven performers. Should things go wrong, fingers will likely be pointing her way.

However, at the back France have the stalwart Wendie Renard skippering the side, while in attack the Paris Saint-Germain striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto should make a big impact on her first major senior tournament. They possess quality, notwithstanding the notable absentees.

France have Italy, Belgium and Iceland as Group D rivals and are given a 74.8 per cent chance of advancing and are rated 49.1 per cent shots to make in into the semi-finals.

3. Sweden (14.6 per cent)

FIFA ranks Sweden second in its own rankings, and the Scandinavians were only denied Olympic gold in Tokyo last year after a penalty shoot-out loss to Canada in the final.

They might lack superstar names, but the likes of Barcelona's Fridolina Rolfo, Milan's Kosovare Asllani and Arsenal's Stina Blackstenius are players to keep an eye on.

The Swedes are given an 84.2 per cent chance of reaching the quarter-finals – the highest percentage of all teams – as they head into a group that also features defending champions the Netherlands along with Switzerland and Portugal.

4. Germany (11.5 per cent)

The eight-time winners cannot be ruled out, but they are no longer the team that everyone fears. Starting off in the same pool as Spain complicates their task considerably, with Euro 2017 runners-up Denmark also in Group C, along with Finland.

Given that line-up, Germany are given a 72.8 per cent shot at finishing in the top two and reaching the quarter-finals, plus a 43.2 per cent chance of making the last four and  a 22.0 per cent prospect of getting through to the final.

5. Spain (8.8 per cent)

Some might scoff at Spain being given such a low rating, but they face the same problem as Germany initially, with no guarantee of escaping Group C.

Jorge Vilda's Spain are built on formidable foundations, with players from Barcelona and Real Madrid dominating their squad. Barcelona won all 30 of their domestic league games last year, but their players were knocked out of stride by defeat to Lyon in the Champions League final.

Having the likes of 100-cap playmaker Alexia Putellas in their ranks makes Spain an undoubted threat. However, she has suffered an injury on the eve of the tournament, and Spain have yet to triumph on the big-tournament stage. Like Spain's men before they found a winning formula, the women's football can be a joy to watch, but their efficiency in front of goal can be lacking.

They have reached quarter-finals at the last two editions of the Euros, and are rated as 71.6 per cent likely to at least go that far this time around. Will they reach a final first? The AI analysis gives them just a 19.0 per cent chance of featuring in the Wembley showpiece.

6. Netherlands 7.2 per cent

Champions last time out when they hosted, the Dutch will believe they can defend their title, and the team's opener against Sweden will tell us a lot about their potential.

Englishman Mark Parsons has stepped in to replace Euro 2017-winning boss Wiegman, inheriting a group containing the likes of Vivianne Miedema, Lieke Martens and Danielle van de Donk, who are all potential stars of the tournament.

This time the Netherlands are given only a 64.6 per cent chance of advancing to the quarters, and a 15.8 per cent hope of reaching another final. A 5-1 pasting by England in a pre-finals friendly has cast doubt on whether they can be the same force as five years ago. If they fail to top Group C, a likely quarter-final with France awaits.

TITLE CHANCES OF THE REST (all figures are percentages): Belgium 4.5, Italy 2.9, Iceland 2.8, Austria 2.6, Norway 2.3, Switzerland 2.3, Denmark 1.1, Finland 0.6, Portugal 0.6, Northern Ireland 0.3

A year later than planned, the pandemic-delayed Women's European Championship takes place in England this month, at a time when the women's game is enjoying a popularity surge.

Barcelona Femeni packed out Camp Nou twice for Champions League games in the season just ended, in what was the most eye-catching sign of years of steady growth.

Many players who a decade ago would have needed part-time work to supplement their playing wages are now enjoying the trappings of being full-time professionals.

It means these players are physically sharper, more tactically astute, and skill levels are soaring skywards, making Euro 2022 an unmissable prospect.

Here, Stats Perform looks at seven players who could emerge as dominant stars of the tournament.

Alexia Putellas, Spain and Barcelona

Generally considered to be the world's best player, Putellas became the first Spain women's international to reach 100 caps on Friday when she played and scored in a 1-1 friendly draw against Italy. She runs the show for Barcelona, captaining the team, and delivered a flood of goals from midfield. She hit 34 goals across all competitions last season, including a four-minute hat-trick against Valencia, and in the Champions League she was named player of the season, despite her team's 3-1 defeat to Lyon in the final.

Irene Paredes, Spain and Barcelona

If Putellas pulls the strings in the opposition half, it will likely fall to Paredes to organise at the other end of the field, as favourites Spain look to keep it tight at the back. The Barcelona centre-back is set to captain Spain, who are seeking their first European Championship title. After joining last year from Paris Saint-Germain, Paredes helped Barcelona to a polished Primera Division campaign of 30 wins from 30 games, with only 11 goals conceded. Almost 11 years since making her debut in Euro 2013 qualifying, Spain will look for Paredes to lead by example.

Pernille Harder, Denmark and Chelsea

Harder is a serial winner at club level, having won four consecutive league and cup doubles with Wolfsburg before joining Chelsea for a reported world-record fee in September 2020 and adding back-to-back WSL and FA Cup doubles. The classy forward will create chances for others but is also a deadly finisher, scoring 68 goals in 134 internationals. Runners-up last time, Denmark will look to Harder to ensure they are in the mix again this month.

Ada Hegerberg, Norway and Lyon

Hegerberg is the returning Norway heroine, coming back into the fold in March after almost five years in self-imposed exile, having previously been upset by the national federation's treatment of the women's game. A true superstar of the game, the Lyon striker and former Ballon d'Or Feminin winner suffered an ACL injury in early 2020 that kept her sidelined for 20 months, but she is emphatically back now, as she proved when scoring in the Champions League final win over Barcelona – a 59th European club competition goal in her 60th such game.

Beth Mead, England and Arsenal

Once a teenage revelation at Sunderland, now at Arsenal, Mead had to wait until just before her 23rd birthday before earning a first England cap. In the four years since that debut, she has floated in and out of the team, with the Lionesses having serious riches with their attacking options. This could be the Whitby-born player's tournament, with Sarina Wiegman expected to include her in an attacking three behind a main striker. Mead has hit three hat-tricks for England in the last nine months and is also a highly creative player from the flanks. She is one of a handful of England attackers who could light up the tournament.

Vivianne Miedema, Netherlands and Arsenal

Mead's club-mate has enjoyed a stunning five-year spell in the English top flight, hitting a record 74 Women's Super League goals in 89 games. In May, the former Bayern Munich player agreed a new deal with the Gunners, and now she will spearhead the Netherlands' European title defence. Described by team-mate Jill Roord as "an absolute killer", Miedema helped the Netherlands reach the 2019 World Cup final and scored a record 10 goals at the Tokyo Olympics, despite the Dutch campaign ending with a quarter-final penalty shoot-out loss to the United States. Miedema surprisingly missed from the spot, so she is not perfect, but defences will fear her presence over the coming weeks.

Marie-Antoinette Katoto, France and Paris Saint-Germain

The PSG and France men's teams have Kylian Mbappe, and the women have Marie-Antoinette Katoto, a record-breaking superstar in her own right. Both are 23 years old, both have over 100 goals for PSG, and both could lead their country to trophy glory this year. Katoto became PSG's record scorer in the women's game last season, and last week agreed a new contract tying her to the capital club until 2025. There lies another Mbappe parallel, with PSG determined to keep the striker out of the clutches of rival clubs, knowing she is the sort of talent that could make an explosive impact on Euro 2022.

Five years after Sarina Wiegman's Netherlands team triumphed on home turf at the European Championship, Sarina Wiegman's England begin among the favourites to ... triumph on home turf.

Wiegman's switch to coach the Lionesses has served as a key sub-plot to the tournament, which will put women's football in the spotlight throughout July.

It gets under way when England play Austria at Old Trafford on Wednesday, women taking the spotlight in a year when the men's World Cup unusually takes place in November and December.

Almost 120,000 spectators attended games when England's north west staged Euro 2005; however, the overwhelming majority were either at games featuring England, or at the final between Germany and Norway at Blackburn Rovers' Ewood Park.

That meant some games were sparsely attended, with just 957 spectators seeing France beat Italy in the group stages in Preston. This time, with the tournament boosted from eight to 16 teams since England were last hosts, over 500,000 tickets have been sold, meaning near-empty stadiums should be a thing of the past.

Here, Stats Perform looks at what to expect from the 26-day finals.

German dominance gives way as rest of Europe catches up

Germany used to be the queens of the Women's Euros, but their crown has slipped. After winning six consecutive titles, the Germans fell short at Euro 2017 when they lost to eventual runners-up Denmark in the quarter-finals.

It was all rather end-of-an-era stuff, with the rise of professionalism across Europe's most powerful and forward-thinking footballing nations only likely to be further in evidence this year. Germany, of course, are included among those powerhouses, but they have plenty of company now at the top table.

The Dutch hosts roared to glory at Euro 2017, with Vivianne Miedema scoring twice in a 4-2 victory over the Danes in the final, having demolished Mark Sampson's England 3-0 to reach that stage. Miedema joined Arsenal shortly before that tournament and has become the Women's Super League's record scorer while with the Gunners, the defining player of the blossoming WSL.

This is a tournament that was first officially staged in 1984, with Sweden beating England on penalties in Luton after the teams finished tied on aggregate after home and away ties.

From the second staging in 1987 through to 1997, the tournament was staged every two years, with Norway triumphing in 1987 and 1993. Germany – and West Germany in 1989 – otherwise swept the board and continued to do so when it became a quadrennial championship.

The mighty Germans dismissed England 6-2 in the 2009 final in Helsinki, with a Lionesses team that included Alex Scott, Kelly Smith, Karen Carney, Eni Aluko, Fara Williams and Casey Stoney overwhelmed. Another survivor from that match, veteran midfielder Jill Scott, features in Wiegman's squad this year.

Mighty Spain top list of trophy contenders

Spain are favourites with the bookmakers, and what a team they are, built on classic foundations of players from Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid. Their sensational midfielder Alexia Putellas could own this tournament, but the Spanish rise was checked by Barcelona's stunning defeat to Lyon in the Champions League final.

French outfit Lyon have been established titans of the women's game for years, but Barcelona looked to have surpassed them, winning all 30 of their Primera Division games last season in a display of their might. Yet on the biggest club stage of all, Barcelona, with their many Spain stars, were caught cold and slumped to a 3-1 loss.

That should give Spain's Euros rivals some hope, as should the blow that Spain suffered when star forward Jennifer Hermoso was ruled out by a knee injury.

There are plenty of credible challengers, with hosts England among them. Since Wiegman replaced Phil Neville, England have won every match under their new coach, including a 5-1 victory over the Netherlands at Elland Road in June, and they should be able to handle group games against Austria, Norway and Northern Ireland.

Expect the familiar European giants to contend. Women's football is gradually becoming big business, and the richest countries are building the best facilities and funding the game on a professional level, which is a far cry from how the game was a decade ago.

England go Dutch, Dutch go English, Scandinavians on a mission

France have left national team greats Amandine Henry and Eugenie Le Sommer out of their squad, so how they cope without that illustrious duo remains to be seen, while England are without long-standing former captain and defensive mainstay Steph Houghton, who was judged not fit enough by Wiegman after an injury lay-off.

The hosts have Barcelona's new recruit Lucy Bronze, another rock of their team for many years, while the likes of winger Lauren Hemp and strikers Ella Toone and Alessia Russo should announce themselves on the big stage. Not for the first time, England look forward-heavy, with question marks over their midfield strength. New captain Leah Williamson attended the last Euros as a fan, so this is a significant step up.

While England are coached by a Dutchwoman, the Netherlands are bossed by Englishman Mark Parsons, who had a long spell with the Portland Thorns before replacing Wiegman. The reigning champions are contenders again, given the presence of Miedema and the mercurial Lieke Martens, who has traded Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain in the off-season. The thumping by England was a jolt, but don't read too much into that result.

Denmark's Pernille Harder and Norway's Ada Hegerberg are superstar strikers in teams that might cause a surprise, Sweden sit second in the FIFA rankings so rightly fancy their chances, and then you have Germany. The eight-time winners lack the star power of their rivals and must play Denmark and Spain in the group stage, but their squad is packed with experience, so count them out at your peril.