Chelsea: Erin Cuthbert adamant women’s team new home will be Stamford Bridge | OneFootball

Chelsea midfielder Erin Cuthbert is determined to see the women's team play all of their fixtures at Stamford Bridge, and she believes this isn't far off becoming a reality.

Thanks to the growth of women's football over recent years, more matches are being held at the men's stadiums.

Some clubs, including Leicester and Reading, share the main ground between the men's and women's sides.

For many others though, the opportunities to play in front of high-capacity crowds are still very limited.

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What did Erin Cuthbert say?

Cuthbert believes Chelsea Women, who boast the record amounts of Women's Super League titles, have outgrown their current ground and are ready to push into a new chapter.

At the moment, the Blues play their home fixtures at Kingsmeadow in Kingston upon Thames, 9.5 miles away from Stamford Bridge.

Kingsmeadow currently only hosts Chelsea's women's side, and the men's U21s, but it used to be home to AFC Wimbledon and semi-professional side Kingstonian FC.

The ground can hold 4,850 people, with 2,265 seats available, in comparison to the Bridge's capacity of more than 40,000.

"We are only a couple of years away from being able to play at Stamford Bridge every game," Cuthbert said while on BBC Radio 5 Live.

"We want to play 15 games there next year, then 20. We have to keep pushing the standards. Growth never comes from comfort zones."

Chelsea Women have played at the Bridge before and are scheduled to host European giants Lyon there in the Champions League quarter-final next month.

"We have outgrown Kingsmeadow. England won the Euros, it's grown the profile of the game and everything has changed," Cuthbert continued.

Impact of Euro 2022

Indeed, the summer of Euro 2022 was a real game-changer for women's football.

Not only did the Lionesses make history by bringing home England's first trophy since 1966, but the tournament set a new attendance record.

A whopping 87,192 fans packed out Wembley to watch England beat Germany to lift the cup, setting a new all-time high for any European Championship final.

Arsenal hold the current WSL attendance record after their North London Derby clash with Spurs last September welcomed 47,367 fans to the Emirates.

The demand is certainly there. If women's matches are hosted at bigger venues, the supporters will flock.

Which women's teams play at men's stadiums?

Every club in the WSL has hosted a match at the main stadium, apart from West Ham.

However, the Irons have enjoyed playing under the lights of Wembley. They reached the FA Cup final in 2019, where they took on Manchester City in front of a 43,264 strong crowd.

Reading and Leicester currently lead by example with their stadium sharing but there are plenty more teams waiting for more chances to play on the bigger stages.

With the rate in which women's football is growing in popularity, will more clubs start to split the main ground between the men’s and women’s teams?

Could Chelsea be the next to achieve this milestone?