England keeping close eye on safety before World Cup qualifier in Turkey

"If our government thinks it's not safe, then we'll go back; at this moment we don't have signals of that. Yes, we did have reassurances. Of course we are in close contact with our government, but also with the responsible people here, so our security team is really in contact with them and we're fine here, but they're keeping an eye on it and are in contact with the authorities all the time."

"Of course you're concerned about what's happening in the world that's not nice. You don't want war, do you? That makes it really hard. The uncertainty of the situation was illustrated by the unusually quiet media session. Only Sky Sports News asked questions at England's press conference on Monday in-person, after the other UK media organisations who had been planning to travel cancelled over safety concerns."

England's women's football team is preparing to face Ukraine in a Women's World Cup qualifier in Antalya, Turkey, on neutral ground due to the war in Ukraine. The team arrived before the Middle East conflict began and has received reassurances about their safety. Manager Sarina Wiegman confirmed the squad remains in close contact with both the UK government and local Turkish authorities through their security team. The UK Foreign Office advises against travel within 10km of the Syria border, which includes Antalya, though the rest of Turkey requires vigilance. Wiegman stated they will leave if the government deems it unsafe, but currently have no such signals. The match represents the first of six World Cup qualifiers in England's group.

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