Swiatek routs Paolini in Hamburg for her first grass final. Pegula awaits
HAMBURG, Germany — Five-time major champion Iga Swiatek reached her first final on grass and first final in more than a year at the Bad Homburg Open on Friday.
World No. 8 Swiatek beat No. 4 Jasmine Paolini 6-1, 6-3 in the semifinals and improved her record against the 2024 Wimbledon finalist to 5-0.
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2025 Wimbledon: Stearns [35th] vs. Siegemund [103rd] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview
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New York Times
28 minutes ago
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Euro 2025: France team guide – will drastic changes transform their fortunes?
France — always in the mix in the major tournaments of the women's game, yet still without a trophy. As the 2019 World Cup's hosts, they lost to eventual champions the United States in the quarter-finals and failed to build a legacy from that tournament. Corinne Diacre managed them to a Euro 2022 semi-final but was sacked the following March after the French Football Federation (FFF) said the 'fracture' between players and hierarchy seemed 'irreversible'. Herve Renard brought fresh hope, but left his post last summer after back-to-back quarter-final exits from the 2023 World Cup and 2024 Olympics, which were also staged in France. Laurent Bonadei, who has previously Renard's assistant, is a man prepared to shake things up, having chosen not to select French legends Wendie Renard (168 caps) and Eugenie Le Sommer (200) for Euro 2025. More on that below. The 55-year-old stepped up to the top job following the Olympics in August, signing a contract until 2027, with France's FA saying it wanted a coach familiar with the French national team and women's football. This is his first senior managerial position, having worked under Renard with the Saudi Arabia men's national team and then France's women. He previously coached youth and reserve sides in the men's game at Paris Saint-Germain and Nice respectively. Now, his aim is delivering major-tournament success for his country. France set up most often in a 4-3-3 but can also play with a back three. Bonadei wants them to be comfortable in both systems. At times, Sandie Toletti drops deeper as the single 'pivot' (holding midfielder), with creative players Grace Geyoro and Sakina Karchaoui pushing forward as the two 'No 8s' (central midfielders). 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Consecutive quarter-final exits at the World Cup and the Olympics (making it eight defeats at that stage of tournaments for France's women since 2009) raise the question: can they handle the pressure? Despite an abundance of talent, the French have consistently failed to get the job done. New captain Mbock must create a collective greater than the sum of its parts. Oh, yes! Bonadei surprisingly omitted former captain Renard, France women's all-time top goalscorer Le Sommer and San Diego Wave's Kenza Dali even before their Nations League games a month ago against Switzerland and Iceland. These 'historic' players, in the coach's words, have 444 caps between them. 'As Einstein said, 'Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result',' Bonadei told a news conference in May. 'I want different results for this team, so I have gone with a different selection.' After a disappointing performance at their home Olympics under Renard, Bonadei kicked off his tenure with some patchy results: two wins and two defeats, with eight goals scored but seven conceded, including a 4-2 loss to world champions Spain. Since the turn of the year, they have performed very well, winning all six of their Nations League matches. France conceded just two goals and topped their group, qualifying for a semi-final against Germany in October with two games to spare. The absences of Renard, Le Sommer and Dali did not seem to rock the boat, and there have been convincing wins in the run-up to the tournament, albeit against a mixed standard of opposition — Switzerland (4-0), Iceland (2-0), Belgium (5-0) and Brazil (3-2). When Renard was appointed, he and the FFF agreed on two key objectives: to reach at least the semi-finals at the 2023 World Cup and last year's Paris-hosted Olympics. Neither happened. 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New York Times
28 minutes ago
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Euro 2025: Netherlands team guide – a stellar squad with injury issues and a daunting task
As former European champions, having won this competition on home soil when managed by Sarina Wiegman in 2017, the Netherlands know what it takes to win. But this summer looks to be one of their toughest challenges yet on the big stage. They have struggled of late, affected by injuries to key players, including top scorer Vivianne Miedema, and being drawn into the tournament's most difficult group alongside title holders England and Euro 2022 semi-finalists France makes for plenty of jeopardy. Euro 2025 is a finale of sorts for Andries Jonker. The 62-year-old former Barcelona assistant manager's contract expires following this tournament and it was announced in January he would be leaving the role after three years, with Arjan Veurink — Wiegman's current assistant with England — succeeding him. Advertisement Jonker's legacy is complicated. After the Euro 2022 debacle that ended in a quarter-finals exit under Mark Parsons, he became a salvation figure, reinvigorating a team and a nation that once threatened to dominate the global game. That Jonker did so is unsurprising. His CV includes being on Louis van Gaal's coaching staff at Barca and Bayern Munich, roles at FC Volendam, MVV Maastricht, Willem II and Wolfsburg, as well as being director of the academy at Arsenal for three years. However, some uninspired performances and constant rotations over the past year have led some fans to question whether his magic touch might be deserting him. Jonker has been known to use various formations, switching from a 5-3-2 to a more familiar 4-3-3 depending on the opposition. Dominance in possession is still the ideal and, in both tactical setups, the defenders are asked to push high up the pitch in order to pressure the opposition quickly, particularly in the centre, to force turnovers. The Netherlands are not short of candidates here, but a player growing in stature for Jonker's side is Wieke Kaptein. The 19-year-old Chelsea midfielder has had a breakthrough year with the serial Women's Super League champions and has consistently shown a work ethic, composure and intelligence beyond her years in the centre of the pitch. Equally important is Wolfsburg forward Lineth Beerensteyn. The 28-year-old was the Netherlands' top scorer during the qualification campaign for Euro 2025 and her 17 league goals in 20 appearances this season will inspire confidence. And of course, no list would be accurate without including Miedema. The Manchester City striker is one of the global game's most ferocious and intelligent goalscorers. All of this is to say: fitness is the biggest influential player for the Dutch. In their final round of Nations League matches a month ago, they were without first-choice goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar, as well as attacking totems Beerensteyn and Miedema. The Netherlands' quality on the ball is inarguable and young talents such as Kaptein and Barcelona's Esmee Brugts are complementing more established players such as Danielle van de Donk, Beerensteyn and Miedema well. Even these young players already have major tournament experience — a huge strength given their tough group. Getting to the knockout phase will take guile as much as craft, something the Dutch boast in abundance. The Netherlands head into the European Championship without an established starting XI. That is not inherently bad and tactical flexibility, particularly during a major tournament, is usually a boon. But with recurring injuries to key players such as Jill Roord, Miedema and Victoria Pelova — and regular rotations in defence — chemistry has been hard to hone. Often, players look unsure of team-mates' positions and can consequently concede possession in dangerous situations. They have not had good luck when it comes to fitness. Beerensteyn, Miedema and Van Domselaar were the most recent names on the injury list and the impact was clear as the Dutch were thumped 4-0 away to Germany in the Nations League at the end of May. Beerensteyn is said to be ready to return to competitive play ahead of the summer and Miedema left their training camp altogether before that international break finished due to fitness issues but returned to action and scored twice in a 2-1 friendly win over Finland on Thursday. The Netherlands have quietly gone about their business since the start of 2024, losing five of their 18 matches. Yet performances have not always been convincing and results have begun to suffer. Draws with Finland and Italy were disappointing, but not as damaging as that heavy defeat in Germany, who finished top of their Nations League group. There was also a dull 1-1 draw with Scotland in their final Nations League game a few days later. Ask a Netherlands supporter what the likelihood is of their team going far in Switzerland this summer and the answer is textbook: let's make it out of the group first. True enough, Group D is not for the weak of heart: France and England, plus a Wales side making their major tournament debut. Conclusion? At least one big hitter is going home early. The Dutch boast an elite squad and have nous in stepping up on the big stage (you don't win a European Championship and then reach the final of a World Cup two years later by fluke). Yet, recent performances have been shaky and without an established starting XI, they remain a bit of a mystery. Get through the group, however, and this lot could go far. The Netherlands announced in April that England women's assistant head coach Veurink will replace Jonker after Euro 2025. Veurink served as an assistant under Wiegman when she was in charge of the Dutch women's side from 2017 to 2021, winning Euro 2017 and reaching the 2019 World Cup final. GO DEEPER Arjan Veurink, England's 'tactical genius' who is Sarina Wiegman's right-hand man The 38-year-old then followed Wiegman to England in 2021 and helped them win the Euros on home soil the following year. He is considered a 'tactical genius' by some in the English squad.
