BASEL, Switzerland (AP) — A title game between defending champion England and World Cup winner Spain is the Women’s European Championship final that many wanted.
How they got to Basel on Sunday is a whole other story.
Spain has mostly cruised through its five games except for a late scare in a tense semifinal against Germany. England has trailed for long periods of three games and survived being on the brink of elimination in both knockout games.
Spain is a supremely technical team with a dream midfield pairing two-time Ballon d’Or winners Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmatí. England has incredible will to win and has called a pair of dramatic game-changers off the bench, Michelle Agyemang and Chloe Kelly.
“We always have the confidence that in terms of positioning and having possession, we tend to be very precise and it’s difficult to take the ball off us,” Putellas said. "So we’re ready for anything.″
England captain Leah Williamson praised Spain on Saturday as “the best at what they do, we are well aware of that. We think we are pretty good in some areas.”
It looks like an ideal final of contrasting styles. One made possible only because England’s humbling opening 2-1 loss to France ultimately kept the title holder out of Spain’s side of the knockout bracket.
Leaders and trailers
Four vs. 219. That's the number of minutes Spain has trailed at Euro 2025 games compared to England.
Spain fell behind between the 10th and 14th minutes of a group-stage game against Italy when some starters were rested because the team was likely to finish top.
England gave up two first-half goals against France in their group, again to Sweden in the quarterfinals and one more to Italy in the semifinals. England’s equalizing goals by Agyemang in the knockout games came in, respectively, the 81st and then the sixth minute of stoppage time.
“I think we’ve nearly killed her twice this tournament!” England’s Ella Toone said of coach Sarina Wiegman. “She says we’ve definitely aged her.”
Spain midfielder Patri Guijarro said of England's resolve: ″There’s no fragility. And I think that above all, their competitiveness, is what has got them this far. But what they’re doing is not easy.″
Trading wins
Spain and England each beat the other when winning their recent titles, and they traded wins in a UEFA Nations League group this year.
England eliminated Spain 2-1 after extra time in the quarterfinals of its home Euro 2022. Does this sound familiar? England trailed into the 84th that day before two substitutes — Alessia Russo and Toone — assisted and scored to force extra time.
Spain got a deserved 1-0 win in the 2023 World Cup final played in Sydney, Australia.
Spain is now on a run of 13 wins in 14 games and the blip was a 1-0 loss to England at Wembley in February. Spain won the return game 2-1 on June 3, rallying with two Clàudia Pina goals in the second half.
Winning women coaches
For the eighth straight edition, the title-winning coach will be a woman.
England’s Wiegman and Spain’s Montse Tomé were in a minority of seven female head coaches with the 16 teams that started in Euro 2025.
They are the last coaches standing to extend a winning run started in 1997.
Wiegman won the past two, with England in 2022 and her native Netherlands in 2017. Germany coaches Silvia Neid and Tina Theune won the previous five. Spain never reached the final in 13 previous editions since 1984.
Penalty shootouts
That first final 41 years ago is the only one decided by a penalty shootout.
Sweden beat England in a rain-soaked, near-empty stadium in Luton after a two-leg final ended 1-1. The scorer of Sweden’s decisive penalty, and its goal in the first leg, was Pia Sundhage, who coached Switzerland to the quarterfinals here, losing 2-0 to Spain.
England’s second shootout in Women’s Euros history also was against Sweden, last week in the quarterfinals. A madcap affair saw only five of 14 spot kicks scored and Sweden fail twice when scoring would have sent England home.
Spain was involved in just one Women’s Euros shootout, losing to Austria in the 2017 quarterfinals.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Graham Dunbar, The Associated Press
