"I come from a place where women's football was born - I don't mean Sweden, I mean Scandinavia," Mr Johansson told uefa.com.

"Many people initially thought it was a gimmick which would never be anything and today we see the standard it has reached at both European and world levels."

"Women's football has developed throughout the continent, from young players to seniors. At all levels the players are now fine athletes - the football is unrecognisable from that played 20 years ago. Women's football lived in the shadow of men's football for a long time, now you only have to look at the coverage in newspapers to see how popular it has become. The number of fans attending has increased dramatically too and all these are positive signs."

As hosts, England have already qualified for UEFA's flagship tournament in 2005, the Women's Championship, while FIFA Women's World Cup winners Germany and runners-up Sweden have claimed their Finals places along with France, leaving four berths to play for.

"I hope that next year's EURO will be the best ever," said Mr Johansson, who smiled when recollecting the first final in 1984.

"It was England against Sweden and was played in really bad weather conditions in Luton," he said.

"However, the play and interest from fans and the media has changed a lot since then. The Football Association knows what hosting a tournament is all about. The Championship will be a very high standard - both the skills and the administrative side."

Euro 2005 will be the first major women’s football event that The FA has hosted. The event will be played between 5-19 June next year in the North West of England. Hope Powell’s side are currently working their way through a tough schedule of friendly fixtures on the Road to Euro 2005.