England manager Hope Powell is confident the women's game will thrive in England regardless of how the team fair in the World Cup finals in Germany. Powell's side begin their campaign with a Group B fixture against Mexico on June 27 and the finals in Germany have been identified as a big opportunity to promote the game in England, particularly given the recent launch of the new Women's Super League.
"The game won't die if we don't do well," Powell told Eurosport as her squad was unveiled at London's Somerset House. "I think what happens is that when you do do well it raises the profile, more people come out and support events like this.
"We will do our level best to give the game an opportunity to grow. But if we don't do well the game won't suddenly disappear. We just work hard to make sure that next time we put ourselves in a good position to go to a major tournament and we will continue to do that.
"But if we do well, of course it heightens awareness, raises the profile, it means that more girls want to get involved because they see role models on the TV, and so it goes on.
"For us though, our priority is trying to win football matches and you really forget what is going on and you are almost cocooned, which is no bad thing, because you have a very clear focus."
