A look at the big talking points ahead of England's Euro 2025 opener vs France
Can the Lionesses stay cool, both literally and figuratively?
This is the first time England have entered a major tournament as the defending champions after securing the European title on home soil. Sarina Wiegman's much-changed side enter this tournament in Switzerland with huge expectations to bring the trophy home again.
The worst of the heat wave in Zurich – where it hit 34 degrees on Wednesday – has subsided, but the mercury is still set to hover around 26 degrees even at the 9pm local (8pm UK) kick-off.
Chelsea forward Lauren James marked her return from three months out of action with an assist in England's 7-0 send-off victory over Jamaica in Leicester after coming on as a 63rd-minute substitute.
Lauren James is BACK! 🙏 pic.twitter.com/wojRYHUzKz
— (C)helsea FC Women 🏆🏆🏆 (@ChelseaFCW) June 29, 2025
When she is fit, the 23-year-old, who scored three goals and added the same number of assists at the 2023 World Cup, is one of the most potent weapons in Wiegman's arsenal, and successfully managing her return – as well as how best to employ her – could be key to England's success.
Group D is arguably the tournament's Group of Death, with 10th-ranked side France and 2017 champions the Netherlands one place below them, as well as newcomers Wales keen to prove they will not be satisfied with a participation ribbon.
Our #WEURO2025 campaign begins TOMORROW 🤩 pic.twitter.com/XpWza23R4j
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 4, 2025
Unlike the World Cup, when England got off to an uneven start in a group comprised of much lower-ranked opposition in China and Haiti, there will be little margin for error here, if any.
Arsenal forward Beth Mead started every game of England's 2022 triumph, and was that Championship's Golden Boot winner as well as the player of the tournament.
But much has changed since, including the ascendance of her Arsenal team-mate and this season's Women's Super League Golden Boot winner Alessia Russo, who will be itching to assert herself early at Euro 2025.
Former France captain Wendie Renard's omission from Laurent Bonadei's side came as a shock to many – including former Lyon team-mate and England defender Lucy Bronze – and it now remains to be seen whether or not that decision was correct.
Centre-back Renard, 34, has played 168 times for France, scoring 39 goals, and was left out alongside France's top goalscorer Eugenie le Sommer, 36. While both have had tremendous success with Lyon, France's best result at the Euros was in 2022, when they reached the semi-finals.
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Update: Date: 16:16 BST 4 July Title: England to win? Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) I keep changing my mind about how this game might work out for England, and I am sure that will continue right up until kick-off. I feel like the Lionesses will probably need to be a little conservative if they are to start the defence of their title with a win, but I can see them keeping a clean sheet if they get things right at the back. England lost two key defensive players, goalkeeper Mary Earps and centre-back Millie Bright, in the run-up to the tournament and while our backline is still at world-class level without them, replacing them has caused some disruption to our defensive unit. So, I am sure there will still be a few issues that will need to be ironed out as this tournament progresses, but hopefully that won't cost England any goals or points here. The key for England winning this game will be them being tight at the back - maintaining possession, controlling the game and reducing the number of mistakes. If they can do that and also create some chances for our forward line then our attackers are so ruthless, they will take care of the rest. Prediction: France 0-1 England. Update: Date: 16:16 BST 4 July Title: Post Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) Right, the news conference has finished and England are continuing their final preparations before their first game at Euro 2025. Will England get off to a winning start? We'll leave you with a prediction from former England goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis. Update: Date: 16:13 BST 4 July Title: 'Her talent speaks for itself' Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) Keira Walsh on the possibility of lining up against her Chelsea team-mate Sandy Baltimore on Saturday: 'Her talent speaks for itself, you've seen some of the goals she has scored. Seeing her in training – that's when you see the best of someone when you see them every single day. "She's got an incredibly gifted left-foot. For the size of her as well, I think she's super strong and can hold the ball up really well because she is quite small. "She plays left-back most of the time for Chelsea and with the French team she plays a little bit further forward. I think Lucy [Bronze] will have played against her a lot in training [for Chelsea]. Hopefully Lucy knows how to get the better of her.' Update: Date: 16:11 BST 4 July Title: 'I held anxiety up until this moment' Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England More from Leah Williamson on her feelings after missing the World Cup through injury: "I've probably held some anxiety up until this moment just because I wanted to be here and I wanted to be with the team and experience another tournament for England. "Being away from home - it's special when you come to another country to represent your country. So I'm just to take everything in - it's a bit different to England in 2022. "I am very excited but also so much has changed, so I am intrigued to come back and enjoy tournament football [again]." Update: Date: 16:06 BST 4 July Title: 'Greenwood a player you don't want to let down' - Williamson Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England England captain Leah Williamson on playing alongside 'best mate' Alex Greenwood: "Alex is an exceptional ball player. She sees things that not many do. She is always at such a high performance. When you play next to someone like Alex she demands so much of herself and naturally of you too. She is one of my best mates so I have a good time playing [with her] but she is also one of those players that you don't want to let down because her level is so consistently high." On differences between Greenwood and previous centre-back partner Millie Bright: "There are loads of differences. Mostly the physicality of it. Millie is blessed in ways that people like me and Alex are probably not. She has those strengths, I think maybe we have to do our talking in a different way." Update: Date: 16:02 BST 4 July Title: Wiegman on asking Hemp to 'give her opinion' Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England On asking Lauren Hemp to be more vocal on the pitch, Sarina Wiegman says: "She is a very introverted person but she does have an opinion and we ask her a little bit more to give her opinion. She has grown so much in football but also as a person and that's what we see too." Update: Date: 16:00 BST 4 July Title: Will James start? Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England Wiegman is asked whether Lauren James could start against France. "We are not going to give you the line-up. She played 30 minutes last week and she can play more than that." Update: Date: 15:58 BST 4 July Title: James 'ready to get more minutes' Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England Sarina Wiegman, speaking about Lauren James, who injured her hamstring in April: "She is in a good place. As you noticed, she came on the pitch against Jamaica last week and she is ready to get more minutes tomorrow." Update: Date: 15:57 BST 4 July Title: Post Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) What sort of tournament will Lauren James have? Update: Date: 15:55 BST 4 July Title: 'We're very well prepared' - Wiegman Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England England head coach Sarina Wiegman: "The team looks really good, I think we are ready, we had our last session this morning and everyone came through well. I think we had some good weeks where we trained, we could do some tactics and I think we are very well prepared. "You see the bonding. We have worked really, really hard and I definitely think we are ready to go tomorrow." Update: Date: 15:53 BST 4 July Title: 'We are ready to defend our title' Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) Sarina Wiegman says the Lionesses are "ready" for Euro 2025 and are excited to get their group campaign under way. Update: Date: 15:52 BST 4 July Title: Watch live: England news conference Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England Sarina Wiegman and Leah Williamson have arrived. Remember, you can watch what they have to say at the top of the page. Update: Date: 15:49 BST 4 July Title: Post Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) Emma SandersBBC Sport women's football news reporter with the England team Uefa have confirmed that Euro 2025 matches played tomorrow - including England v France - and on Sunday will also hold a moment of silence in memory of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva. Update: Date: 15:46 BST 4 July Title: Post Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) BBC Radio 5 Live A reminder that you can listen to Saturday's match on BBC Radio 5 Live. Former England midfielder Izzy Christiansen will be alongside Vicki Sparks at Stadion Letzigrund in Zurich. Build-up starts at 19:00 BST and don't forget there is a Women's Euros 606 at 22:30 when Natalie Pike and former England forward Toni Duggan will be taking your calls. Update: Date: 15:43 BST 4 July Title: Post Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) As we wait for Sarina Wiegman and Leah Williamson to appear, here's some content to get you in the mood for tomorrow's game: This video can not be played 'I'm really happy where we are right now' This video can not be played 'I was worried I wasn't going to make it' - Hemp This video can not be played 'I went in shaking!' - Jill Scott on Reality TV-style England Euro squad selection Update: Date: 15:39 BST 4 July Title: Drinks breaks during England game? Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) It looks like another hot day in Switzerland and several England players have been pictured cooling down with drinks at training this week. According to the weather forecast, temperatures could reach as high as 30C (86F) in Zurich on Saturday although they are likely to fall to 26C (78F) by kick-off. That's still pretty hot and there could be stoppages in play for drinks breaks. Read more: Sweltering Switzerland - how hot is Euro 2025 going to be? Update: Date: 15:36 BST 4 July Title: Oh no, Russo! Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) We all know about Alessia Russo. But what about Russo the eight-year-old African pygmy goat, who loves predicting football results? Russo, from All Things Wild in Worcestershire, was presented with two feeding stations - one adorned with an England flag, the other, which she ate from, bearing France's colours. "Russo really is 'the GOAT' when it comes to making it would not surprise me in the slightest if her predictions turned out to be correct," said Matt Parker, manager of the Honeybourne zoo. "But we're all rooting for the Lionesses to retain their European title - even if Russo isn't convinced about the opening game." Read more here. Update: Date: 15:34 BST 4 July Title: Watch: Wiegman & Williamson news conference Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England Remember, this will be a final chance to hear from Sarina Wiegman before England's opening game of Euro 2025 against France on Saturday. The Lionesses head coach will be joined in today's news conference by captain Leah Williamson. We will bring you their quotes, but you can also follow them by clicking on the 'Watch Live' play icon at the top of this page. The news conference is due to begin around 15:45 BST. Update: Date: 15:31 BST 4 July Title: Inspiring a nation Content: France v England (Sat, 20:00 BST) England Remember the joyous scenes in 2022 when the Lionesses won the Euros in front of their own fans? The impact of winning a home Euros three years ago was huge, with FA figures showing that 129,000 more girls have become involved in school football in the host cities alone. There will be millions watching England on TV this summer hoping one day to follow in the footsteps of Leah Williamson, Lucy Bronze and Lauren James. Update: Date: 15:28 BST 4 July Title: Get Involved: Will England defend title? Content: #bbcfootball, WhatsApp on 03301231826 or text 81111 (UK only, standard message rates apply) The_gym_instructor: England aren't playing too well. I predict we will lose against France, draw with the Dutch and beat Wales, but finish third on goal difference. Sarina will quit and England will stagnate. The rest of Europe have caught up. Spain or Germany to win it.
