Hosts England made a winning start to their Women's Euro 2022 campaign with a narrow 1-0 win over Austria in front of a tournament record crowd of 68,871 at Old Trafford in Manchester, England, on Wednesday.

Beth Mead grabbed the decisive goal in the 16th minute for the Lionesses, which are currently in the charge of Dutch footballer manager Sarina Wiegman.

Austria were on the back foot for much of the game but came close to a leveler in the 78th minute. England goalkeeper Mary Earps did well to keep out a curling effort from Barbara Dunst.

England gained three points in the opener and their other Group A rivals, Northern Ireland and Norway, will face each other on Thursday in Southampton.

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Women's Euro 2022 runs from July 6 to 31 in England. The Netherlands are the defending champions and North Ireland participate in the tournament for the first time.

"When you're first walking out and you hear that atmosphere and screaming and the announcer saying here comes England it was just that roar of excitement... I think that was the moment when we were like 'we've done something special here today,'" England defender Lucy Bronze said about the atmosphere after their opener victory.

"It was incredible. Something really special," said Ellen White, England defender, "We were really pleased that we were able to get the win for the crowd. We feel so lucky that everyone came out and wanted to support us."

(With input from agencies)