King Charles salutes Lionesses after England's historic Euro victory
Sarina Wiegman's side held their nerve to survive a tense penalty shoot-out as Chloe Kelly scored the decisive spot-kick in Basel after two crucial saves from goalkeeper Hannah Hampton.
Alessia Russo's second-half equaliser had revived England's bid to retain the Euro title after Mariona Caldentey's 25th minute opener for Spain.
Kelly's winning kick sparked celebrations across England, while the Prince of Wales and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer joined the party in the stands at St Jakob-Park.
Prince William celebrated with his daughter Princess Charlotte before congratulating England's players on the pitch.
'What a game! Lionesses, you are the champions of Europe and we couldn't be prouder of the whole team. Enjoy this moment England,' William and Charlotte said in a joint statement on X.
England's 3-1 shoot-out victory avenged their 2023 Women's World Cup final loss against Spain in Australia.
King Charles saluted Wiegman's team for their cathartic win, and immediately set their next target as he urged them to win the World Cup in 2027.
'This brings you, your manager and all your support team my most heartfelt congratulations on winning the Euros 2025,' the King wrote on social media.
'For more years than I care to remember, England fans have sung that famous chant 'football's coming home'.
'As you return home with the trophy you won at Wembley three years ago, it is a source of great pride that, through sporting skill and awesome teamwork, the Lionesses have made those words ring true. For this, you have my whole family's warmest appreciation and admiration.
'Well done, Lionesses. The next task is to bring home the World Cup in 2027 if you possibly can!'
Kelly is clutch for Lionesses
Kelly was England's hero again, setting up the equaliser in the final before coolly firing home the winning spot kick in the shoot-out.
The 27-year-old is establishing herself as a player for the big occasions.
'I just came on to the pitch and wanted to make something happen,' Kelly said. 'I actually missed three penalties in training yesterday. I'm really proud to be English right now.'
It was back-to-back European trophies for England and yet another final that Kelly had a huge impact on after coming on as a substitute during the Euro 2022 trophy match and scoring the winner against Germany in extra time to clinch a 2-1 victory.
Kelly has also been one of England's super subs at Euro 2025.
Against Sweden in the quarter-finals, she was brought on in the 78th minute with England trailing 2-0 and had an immediate impact, whipping in two pinpoint crosses for Lucy Bronze and Michelle Agyemang to score and take the match to extra time – with England winning on penalties.
Then came Italy in the semi-finals and another Kelly-inspired England fightback. She scored the decisive goal in the 119th minute, shooting home the rebound after Italy goalkeeper Laura Giuliani saved her penalty kick.
'I was adamant I was not missing two on the bounce,' Kelly said on Sunday.
Wiegman praises 'chaotic' triumph
England coach Wiegman said she was proud of her team's 'incredible' achievement.
Defending champions England made an inauspicious start to Euro 2025 in Switzerland when they lost to France, but bounced back to avenge their 2023 World Cup final defeat to Spain.
'I just can't believe it. I have a medal around my neck and we have a trophy,' Wiegman told the BBC. 'It has been the most chaotic tournament on the pitch – all the challenges we had on the pitch against our opponent.
'From the first game it was chaos. Losing your first game and becoming European champions is incredible. Football is chaos.
'We said we can win by any means and that's what we have shown again today. I am so proud of the team and the staff. It is incredible."
Remarkably, England's Dutch coach has reached the final of all five major tournaments she has managed at, and has now won three Euros in a row, doing so with the Netherlands in 2017 and then with the Lionesses in 2022 and 2025.
Sandwiched in between those successes were World Cup final defeats to the USA, with the Netherlands in 2019, and against Spain with England two years ago.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Khaleej Times
5 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Bumrah not ruled out of fifth Test, says India captain Gill
India captain Shubman Gill has refused to rule pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah out of contention for the fifth Test against England starting at the Oval on Thursday. Bumrah, who is the joint-leading wicket taker in the series with 14, was expected to miss the decisive clash as India's medical staff want to manage his workload. But Gill said any decision would be left late. "We will take a decision (on Bumrah) tomorrow; the wicket looks very green. So we will see how it turns out," Gill told a press conference at the Oval on Wednesday. Bumrah was scheduled to play only three of the five Tests and has already featured in the opener at Headingley and the back-to-back tests at Lord's and Old Trafford. Akash Deep? Or Arshdeep? India need to win the final Test to level the series 2-2. "2-2 will be very significant for this team," Gill said. "Every match we have played, it was difficult to decide the winner after the first four days." Should Bumrah miss out, India would likely select Akash Deep or even hand a debut to Arshdeep Singh. "He has been asked to get ready but we will take a call on the playing eleven after looking at the pitch by this evening," Gill said. "England haven't gone with a frontline spinner. "We have Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, who have done such a good job with the ball and the bat. On that front, it's a no-brainer for us." India are without wicket keeper Rishabh Pant, ruled out by a foot injury in the fourth Test which ended in a draw on Sunday. Dhruv Jurel is set to stand in. 'Absolutely unnecessary' The build-up to the series finale has been overshadowed by a spat on Tuesday between India head coach Gautam Gambhir and the ground staff at the Oval after Gambhir tried to take a close look at the square. Gill said the incident was "absolutely unnecessary". "It's not the first time that we were having a look at the wicket, we have been there for almost two months," he said. "A coach has every right to be able to go close quarters and have a look at the wicket and I didn't think there was anything wrong with that. I actually don't know why the curator would not allow us to go have a look at the wicket. "All of us have played so much cricket, we have gone to the pitches so many times, including the coaches and captain, I don't know what the fuss was about." Gill eyes another record Captaincy appears to be doing wonders for the career of previously inconsistent batsman Gill. The elegant 25-year-old scored his fourth century of an extraordinary debut series as skipper at Old Trafford. He came in with the tourists in dire straits at 0-2 in their second innings, responding with a marathon 103 in 238 balls that laid the foundations for a great escape. Gill has set a new record for the most runs scored by an India batsman in a series against England of 722, surpassing team-mate Yashasvi Jaiswal's tally of 712 in 2023/24. At the Oval he could eclipse Sunil Gavaskar's all-time India series record of 774 runs, set in a four-match campaign against the West Indies in 1971.
Int'l Cricket Council
8 hours ago
- Int'l Cricket Council
Gill reveals Bumrah's status for final Test against England ICC World Test Championship
As Shubman Gill and India prepare for the deciding final Test match against England, all eyes are on star pacer Jasprit Bumrah and his availability at The Oval. Gill remained tight-lipped on the ace pacer's availability, stating that a decision would be made on the morning of the match, set to begin on Thursday, 31 July 'We will take a decision [on Bumrah] tomorrow; the wicket looks very green. So we will see how it turns out,' said Gill in the press conference on the eve of the match. Before the series began, it was expected that Bumrah would feature in only three of the five matches to manage his workload. Now, having already played in three games, it remains to be seen whether he will take the field for a fourth time with the series on the line. Gill's counterpart, Ben Stokes, has been ruled out of the fifth Test, with Ollie Pope set to lead England in his absence. Gill believes Stokes' absence will be a significant loss for the home side. "A big miss for definitely England," Gill added. "I think the way, whenever he comes on to bowl or bat, he always makes things interesting, he always makes something happen. "So from their perspective, I think it is definitely a loss for them.' England have already named their XI, opting for a pace-heavy attack featuring Chris Woakes, Josh Tongue, Gus Atkinson and Jamie Overton, with spin duties likely to be shared between Jacob Bethell and Joe Root. Gill, however, has chosen to keep his cards close to his chest regarding India's playing XI for tomorrow. 'Arshdeep Singh has been asked to get ready but we will take a call on the Playing XI after looking at the pitch by this evening," Gill said. "England haven't gone with a frontline spinner. We have Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, who have done such a good job with the ball and the bat. On that front, it's a no-brainer for us.' All four Tests have gone down to the wire, with each match extending to Day 5. Despite the physical fatigue, Gill believes it has been a valuable learning experience for the young Indian side, and drawing the series would be a commendable achievement. '2-2 will be very significant for this team," Gill noted. "Every match we have played, it was difficult to decide the winner after the first four days. "The series has been a great learning curve. Some things you can learn from experience, hopefully finish on a high." While the series scoreline will be on both teams' minds, England and India will also be eyeing important World Test Championship points as they look to build early momentum in the 2025–27 cycle, where they currently sit third and fourth on the table, respectively.
Khaleej Times
9 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Injured Stokes ruled out of final Test against India, Archer rested
England captain Ben Stokes will miss the fifth and final Test against India at the Oval with a shoulder injury, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said on the eve of the match beginning on Thursday. Stokes was player of the match in the drawn fourth Test in Manchester where the all-rounder smashed 141 and claimed six wickets with the ball. "Captain Ben Stokes is unavailable due to a right shoulder injury," the ECB said in a statement on Wednesday. In his absence, Ollie Pope will lead England, who are 2-1 ahead in the enthralling five-test series. England also rested Archer, who played back-to-back Tests at Lord's and Old Trafford in what is the injury-prone pacer's first Test series in four years. Pacer Brydon Carse and spinner Liam Dawson were dropped as England included the pace trio of Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton and Josh Tongue. Jacob Bethell was recalled to replace Stokes at number six in the batting order. England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue.
