The Azzurre`s journey towards Euro 2025 officially begins today in Weggis. This picturesque town in the Canton of Lucerne, nestled on the shores of Lake Lucerne at the foot of Mount Rigi in central Switzerland, has been hosting the Italian Women`s National Team since yesterday evening, effectively transforming into their `Team Base Camp`.
Weggis was selected due to the high standard of its hospitality services and sports facilities, a choice made by Head Coach Andrea Soncin despite the approximately 280 km distance from the first two match venues, Sion and Geneva. To mitigate the travel impact, the Azzurre will relocate to these cities two days prior to their respective games. After arriving via a Rome-Lugano flight followed by a 45-minute bus transfer, the Italian delegation received a warm welcome upon reaching the Campus Hotel Hertenstein, situated on a peninsula overlooking the lake.
From the hotel, the team will head to the Thermoplan Arena, their designated training ground during their stay in Switzerland, located just 2 km away. In preparation for the camp, work was recently completed at the arena to upgrade the dressing rooms, set up a gym, and create a dedicated media area. This media space will host interactions between the press and the players, starting this afternoon at 15:00 with a press conference featuring Coach Soncin.
Tomorrow, the arena`s stands, which can accommodate around 500 spectators, will be opened to local residents and fans for a training session completely accessible to the public, a common practice during the European Championships. Following this, there will be just four days until the team`s tournament debut. The match is scheduled for Thursday, July 3rd, at 18:00 (broadcast live on Rai 2), taking place at the Stade de Tourbillon in Sion, against Belgium. It was Belgium who ended Italy`s run in the last edition of the competition three years ago, on July 18, 2022, in Manchester, with Tine De Caigny scoring the decisive goal early in the second half.
Notably, ten members of the current Italian squad were part of that match: Giuliani, Di Guglielmo, Linari, Boattin, Giugliano, Bonansea, and Girelli were in the starting lineup, Caruso came on as a substitute for Rosucci, while Piemonte and Lenzini remained on the bench.
