England, Canada, Germany and Spain will compete in its inaugural year with the action kicking off on Thursday 17th February at Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough.

The next games will be played on 20th February at Carrow Road, Norwich and the final fixtures will take place on 23rd February at Molineux, Wolverhampton.

Each team will face each other once and the winner will be determined by the number of points accumulated.

The tournament will serve as an excellent exercise for the three European sides who will be taking part in the Euro’s this summer, also hosted in England.

The announced squads are as follows:


England

Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses will hugely benefit from this tournament in regard to pinpointing areas of improvement. In their recent fixtures, the Lionesses have faced lower ranked sides and have won these with incredibly large scorelines. Whilst it’s great to win, these fixtures do not offer a true reflection, almost creating a false impression of how the team may perform when coming up against more challenging opponents.

The Lionesses will be without captain Steph Houghton and striker Bethany England who are both absent through injury.

Squad:
GK: Mary Earps, Hannah Hampton, Ellie Roebuck
DF: Millie Bright, Lucy Bronze, Jess Carter, Niamh Charles, Rachel Daly, Alex Greenwood, Demi Stokes, Leah Williamson, Lotte Wubben-Moy
MF: Fran Kirby, Jordan Nobbs, Jill Scott, Georgia Stanway, Keira Walsh, Katie Zelem
FW: Lauren Hemp, Beth Mead, Nikita Parris, Alessia Russo, Ella Toone, Ellen White

One to watch:
Manchester City’s Lauren Hemp does not only set the Women’s Super League alight. The winger is quick, aggressive and devious, simply a relentless headache that defenders have a hard time shaking. Hemp has consistently demonstrated her talent on both the domestic and international stage and will no doubt prove to be one of the Lionesses most important assets once again.


Canada

Boss Bev Priestman was the first to announce her team, with 18 of her 23-strong squad part of the side that won last years Olympic Games. Priestman boasts an impressive side calling upon personnel from leagues all over the world including Shelina Zadorsky, Jessie Fleming, Janine Beckie and Deanne Rose of the Women’s Super League.

Canada will be without skipper Christine Sinclair who has withdrawn for personal reasons, as well as goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé who has recently announced her retirement from international football.

Squad:
GK: Sabrina D’Angelo, Devon Kerr, Erin McLeod, Kailen Sheridan
DF: Kadeisha Buchanan, Vanessa Gilles, Shelina Zadorsky, Gabrielle Carle, Allysha Chapman, Jayde Riviere, Sura Yekka
MFs: Marie-Yasmine Alidou D’Anjou, Jessie Fleming, Julia Grosso, Ashley Lawrence, Victoria Pickett, Quinn, Sophie Schmidt, Desiree Scott
FW: Janine Beckie, Tanya Boychuk, Jordyn Huitema, Cloe Lacasse, Nichelle Prince, Deanne Rose

One to watch:
PSG’s Ashley Lawrence is widely considered one of the best fullbacks in the world. Her performance at the Olympics rightly pricked up the ears of many as she asserted herself as one of Canada’s key players in both attacking phases and defensive security in play. Lawrence will no doubt be a handful to contend with throughout the tournament.


Germany

Two-time World Cup winner’s Germany have named a 25 strong squad to compete in the Arnold Clark Cup. Head coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg has had a fairly turbulent tenure with the national side having been knocked out of the quarter finals of the World Cup in 2019 and subsequently failing to qualify for last years Olympics.

Germany will be without several staple players for this tournament including captain Alex Popp, Chelsea’s Melanie Leupolz, Bayern Munich's Sydney Lohmann and Lyon's Dzsenifer Marozsan.

Squad:
GK: Ann-Katrin Berger, Merle Frohms, Almuth Schult
DF: Sara Doorsoun, Jana Feldkamp, Giulia Gwinn, Sophia Kleinherne, Sarai Linder, Lena Oberdorf, Maximiliane Rall, Felicitas Rauch
MF: Nicole Anyone, Jule Brand, Klara Buhl, Selina Cerci, Sara Dabritz, Linda Dallmann, Fabienne Dongus, Laura Freigang, Svenja Huth, Lena Latein, Lina Magull, Ramona Petzelberger
FW: Sjoeke Nusken, Lea Schuller

One to watch:
19-year-old Jule Brand is certainly a player to look out for throughout this tournament. The winger caused Arsenal trouble during the Champions League knockout stages with her on-the-ball dynamism and deft touch that is as adroit with both feet. Brand has just signed a three-year deal with German side Wolfsburg from Hoffenheim.


Spain

Spain head into this tournament as possibly the most exciting side to watch. The named squad has a heavy Barcelona contingent, the absolute dominant force in Europe right now. As Spanish football goes from strength-to-strength so too does Jorge Vilda’s national side who will prove difficult opposition for all involved in the Arnold Clark Cup.

Spain will be without captain Irene Paredes, as well as midfielder Claudia Zornoza who had to leave camp after receiving her first call up in six years.

Squad:
GK: Sandra Panos, Lola Gallardo, Misa Rodriguez
DF: Mapi Leon, Leila Ouahabi, Andrea Pereira, Ivana Andres, Ona Batlle, Laia Aleixandri, Olga Carmona
MF: Alexia Putellas, Patri Guijarro, Aitana Bonmati, Irene Guerrero, Claudia Pina
FW: Jennifer Hermoso, Mariona Caldentey, Lucia Garcia, Esther Gonzalez, Marta Cardona, Nerea Eizagirre, Amaiur Sarriegi

One to watch:
Alexia Putellas is a player that captures your attention and refuses to let it go. Her sheer grace in operating the midfield is mesmerising and is made all the more striking by her ability to generate chance after chance with a vision and technical ability that can only be marvelled at. The midfielder is undoubtably one of the best players in the world right now has recently won the presitgious Ballon d’Or.


Tournament schedule:
Please note timings are true to the UK (GMT)

17th Feb 2.30pm Germany vs Spain
17th Feb 7.30pm England vs Canada
20th Feb 3:15pm England vs Spain
20th Feb 8:15pm Canada vs Germany
23rd Feb 2.30pm Spain vs Canada
23rd Feb 7.30pm England vs Germany


Television broadcasting:
UK – ITV4
USA – CBS
Mexica, Brazil, Central and South America – ESPN
Canada – TSN
Spain – rtve
Germany – ARD1 / ZDF
Sub Subharan Africa – W-Sport