When England step out at Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium on Tuesday night, they'll get the chance to test themselves against one of their fiercest World Cup rivals and further consolidate their impeccable record under Sarina Wiegman.
And their meeting with Australia will be about more than just football. The Lionesses - who have already left an indelible mark on the landscape of women's sport - will hope to shed a light on a subject that continues to devastate lives both inside and outside the realms of football.
England's clash with the Matildas is an Alzheimer's Society International, raising vital funds and awareness for more research into a disease that currently affects an estimated 900,000 people in the UK. Its a disease that sports journalist and presenter Carrie Brown is all too familiar with, having seen both of her parents diagnosed with dementia in the last few years.
"It’s heartbreaking," Brown told Mirror Football. "I think any parent has great pride and is so independent, and then there’s that subtle shift from your parents being your leaders and role models to you becoming their carers. That takes a lot of pride and identity away.
"Those early days are probably the hardest because of that realisation and the fear of what’s coming next and this why raising awareness like the Lionesses are doing is so important.
"At the moment, I think the Lionesses are this country’s greatest role models. They’ve come up against adversity and they’ve triumphed against all the greatest odds.
"When you look at the stark new research that shows one in three people born in the UK today will develop dementia in their lifetime, you can see that this maybe the greatest adversity this country faces and something which needs to be addressed very quickly, so having the Lionesses support us really means the world."
It's not the first time Brown - who has worked in sports media for more than two decades - has been touched by the actions of an England squad. Last November, while covering the World Cup for beIn SPORTS in Qatar, she had an encounter that she admits will live longer in the memory than any event that transpired on the pitch.
"I had been trying to speak to my parents on Zoom for a few days because there was only a small window every day where the care home could get both of my parents together to chat when they were compos mentis," she recalled. "I worked out after the England vs Iran game would be the perfect time and so I called them.
"Mum was really upset when I went to the World Cup so it was really hard and her amazing carer Martha said to me: 'She’s not convinced you’re actually there’. So I walked her out to the pitch and showed her the England dugout and she still wasn’t having it.
"I walked her into the tunnel and some of the players walked into the mixed zone," Brown added. "Raheem [Sterling] just walked past and popped his head over my screen to see who I was talking to and it was the sweetest thing because as soon as he saw it was someone in a care home his first instinct was to try and cheer them up.
"He grabbed Kieran Trippier and they both came and waved and engaged and it was just this wonderful moment, especially for the carers, who went through hell and back in Covid and handled it with such dignity.
"It was incredible and they still can’t believe the day that the England team visited the care home."
Brown's recounting of the anecdote live on beInSports has now been viewed more than 1.3 million times; a fact which has left both her and the players involved stunned.
"Since then, both Raheem and Kieran have pulled me aside and told me how touched they were by the reaction too and took the time to ask me about my mum and dad and how they are," she said. "Dementia now is almost like the big ‘D word’ and people don’t know what to say but initiatives like this help to educate people."
The Football Association's partnership with Alzheimer’s Society dates back to August 2021, with Gareth Southgate's side contesting an international with Switzerland in March 2022. The Three Lions triumphed by two goals to one in front of almost 80,000 fans at Wembley, but perhaps the most powerful moment of the evening came when the players entered the pitch for the second half with no names on the back of their shirts to highlight how people with dementia often experience memory loss.
In addition to next Tuesday's clash in West London, England men will host Australia in an Alzheimer’s Society international at Wembley on October 13. And Brown believes initiatives like this are key to helping break the taboo around dementia and bring the issue into the public consciousness, as well as helping to show those living with the condition that they're not alone.
"My dad no longer has words but a football match is one of his safe spaces. He can sit and watch the England men or the Lionesses like everyone else, and he and my mum will cheer together.
"He won’t need to talk for those 90 minutes but he can enjoy the goals and he can tut at VAR like everyone else. It's about finding those moments where, even at the extremes and towards the end of dementia, you can still find things that they love and ways that they can still continue living in their personality."
She added: "We often describe our England teams as a pride of lions and I’ve never been more proud of our national teams. What the Lionesses did helping to drive the policy to get football in schools for every single girl was such a huge statement and I’m so proud of what they’ve achieved on and off the pitch.
"I’m so immensely proud of everyone who pulls on an England shirt now because they do so to make an impact."
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