England seize Euro 2025 glory over Spain after Chloe Kelly settles dramatic penalty shootout
The Lionesses stormed back in Basel after going behind in the first half through Mariona Caldentey's opener, with Alessia Russo's towering header levelling the match and forcing extra-time.
And despite a scare in extra-time after Salma Paralluelo's miss from close range, Sarina Wiegman's side, playing their third successive major final, gained revenge on Spain after World Cup heartache in 2023 in Sydney.
Hannah Hampton emerged as the player of the match after two spectacular saves in the shootout before Kelly, who had clinched glory at Wembley three years ago in extra time, held her nerve to blast past Cata Coll at St Jakob Park.
"I am so proud of this team. So grateful to wear this badge. So proud to be English,' said the Arsenal star, who was only on the pitch after Lauren James hobbled off before half-time with an ankle issue. "I was cool, I was composed. I knew I was going to hit the back of the net. I don't miss penalties twice.
"Unbelievable. All the staff behind us and Sarina Wiegman - she has done it again! Unbelievable. It is going to be crazy. I hope the whole of England comes out to support us and shows their love to these girls as they deserve it."
England have started slowly throughout the tournament, but hit Spain hard early on and could have lead through Russo, whose shot from a narrow angle down the right forced Coll into a save, with James unable to connect with the rebound.
Hampton was also in top form, denying Esther Gonzalez, before Laia Aleixandri's mistake allowed Lauren Hemp to intercept inside the penalty area, only for Coll to miraculously deny the Lionesses once again.
After Kelly replaced James before the break, Hampton was forced into action to deny the reigning Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmati and Caldentey, before Russo left her mark on goal to equalise.
Both sides navigated a tense period of extra-time before Beth Mead missed first in the shootout with a retaken spot kick, only for Hampton to haul England back into the contest by denying Caldentey and Bonmati.
Captain Leah Williamson missed immediately afterwards, with England only leading 2-1, but Salma Paralluelo missed the target, guiding her shot wide of the post to set up Kelly for a shot at glory once again.
And her penalty landed in the roof of the net to spark wild scenes of celebration with Wiegman left stunned at a personal third successive European title after a spell with Netherlands before taking over England.
She said: "No, I can't believe it! 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.
"I just can't believe it. I have a medal around my neck and we have a trophy. 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."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
5 minutes ago
- The Independent
Jess Carter admits she was ‘scared' to play Euro 2025 final after racist abuse
England defender Jess Carter admitted she was 'scared' to play in the Euro 2025 final after suffering racist abuse during the tournament as she thanked her teammates for their support. Carter returned to Sarina Wiegman 's starting line-up for the final against Spain and was the only change the England manager decided to make before the Euro 2025 final in Basel. The 27-year-old Carter revealed after England's quarter-final win over Sweden that she had received racist abuse on social media throughout the tournament. She dropped to the bench for the semi-final against Italy, even though Wiegman said Carter was ready to play if needed, but she returned to start the final against Spain. And while Carter was excellent alongside Leah Williamson in defence, as the Lionesses won their second major trophy, Carter revealed she had been apprehensive to play in the final. Carter told ITV: "I was super scared to play today for the first time in my life, but when I woke up and I saw my team, and the support I had and the belief I had from my team-mates, my family and my manager. I knew I could just come out and give it my all. That's all you can do." Carter thanked the support she had received from the England fans and said it gave her the 'courage' to play after suffering racist abuse during the tournament. 'The support I felt from the fans was incredible,' Carter explained. 'I can't thank them enough because without the fans, my team-mates and my family, I don't know if I'd have every had the courage to back on the pitch and play again. 'I'm not normally someone who struggles with the hate they received because everyone is going to have their opinion. But this tournament has been tough and I wasn't sure I'd be able to get back on the pitch and do me. "Everyone of those fans, I'm not ever going to be able to show my thanks enough, but they have been incredible, and I hope they will continue to cheer on the Lionesses every single day." England manager Wiegman explained that starting Carter over Esme Morgan, who had also impressed during the semi-final win over Italy, was a tactical decision but said she had 'belief' in Carter to deliver the performance required. 'Well, first of all, it says something about the team that we can make tactical decision,' Wiegman said. 'I've said a couple of times now that I was really happy, before the tournament, with my squad, and that we had players in the same position that can bring different things, and that was true with Esme and Jess. 'Italy was a different game than Spain and we felt we needed Jess now in the starting line-up, exactly for the reasons that you said, the fight and the duels, she can play, and she showed of course that she is a great personality. 'She was ready to perform, also against Italy, but that was a tactical decision and now we've made a tactical decision. I had all the belief in her and she had the belief in herself, that's the most important thing, that she could contribute to the team and you can tell that the team trusted her too.'
Reuters
36 minutes ago
- Reuters
Agency: 49ers signing veteran CB Eli Apple
July 28 - Veteran cornerback Eli Apple will have a chance to play for his seventh NFL team after agreeing to a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers, his agency said on social media Sunday. The 49ers had not made an announcement as of Sunday night. Apple, who turns 30 on Aug. 9, was limited by a hamstring injury last season and played in only four regular-season games and one playoff appearance for the Los Angeles Chargers, making two tackles. He has 383 career tackles, six interceptions, 61 passes defended, three forced fumbles and seven fumble recoveries in 102 regular-season games (82 starts) for the New York Giants (2016-18), New Orleans Saints (2018-19), Carolina Panthers (2020), Cincinnati Bengals (2021-22), Miami Dolphins (2023) and Chargers. The Giants selected Apple with the 10th overall pick of the 2016 NFL Draft. --Field Level Media
Daily Mail
36 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
San Francisco 49ers star Tarron Jackson rushed to the hospital after 'scary' collapse
San Francisco defensive lineman Tarron Jackson was taken to the hospital after collapsing on the field during 49ers training camp. The 27-year-old went down after he was blocked on a play late in practice. He remained on the ground for several minutes before being taken off on a stretcher. An ambulance then rushed Jackson to the hospital but coach Kyle Shanahan later revealed that he was conscious, able to communicate and feel all his extremities. 'So hopefully, we cleared the real scary stuff, and hopefully we´ll get some good news on his neck,' Shanahan said. The 49ers were able to finish practice after Jackson was taken off the field. 'It's always hard... especially when guys watch that,' Shanahan said. 'We were close to him, so we could hear him talking, we could see everything moving, so I just told the guys that, which I think eases them up a little bit for the biggest fears and asked them if they're OK to continue to go. They all yelled "yes," and then we finished our last period and a half.' The 27-year-old Jackson was a sixth-round pick by Philadelphia in 2021 and has played 24 career games for the Eagles and Carolina. He signed with San Francisco in the offseason. The 49ers activated second-year receiver Ricky Pearsall from the physically unable to perform list earlier in the day and he practiced for the first time this summer. 'It was nice,' Shanahan said. 'His rep count was really low. I think he got like eight reps today, but we´ll see how he did with recovery and stuff. But I didn´t hear any complaints and good first day back.' Pearsall had been out since injuring his hamstring during the offseason program. The Niners are counting on a big season from the 2024 first-round pick after trading away Deebo Samuel and with Brandon Aiyuk expected to miss the start of the season recovering from knee surgery. Pearsall had a difficult rookie season, missing almost all of camp with injuries to his hamstring and shoulder and then sitting out the first half of the season after being shot in a robbery attempt in San Francisco. Pearsall returned in Week 7 and finished the season with 31 catches for 400 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games. Pearsall had a strong finish to the season with 14 catches for 210 yards and two touchdowns in the final two games. Cornerback Renardo Green was out after hurting his hamstring in practice on Friday. Shanahan said that he will likely miss a couple of weeks but could return the week of Aug. 11 when the Niners prepare for their second exhibition game against the Raiders. Veteran cornerback Eli Apple agreed to a deal with San Francisco on Sunday, according to his agency Universal Sports Management. The 29-year-old Apple has played 102 games, including four with the Chargers last season. Receiver Jacob Cowing has a similar timeline to Green after hurting his hamstring on the first day of practice last Wednesday. Receiver Jauan Jennings left practice early with a calf injury but quarterback Brock Purdy returned to practice Sunday after missing a session on Friday for personal reasons. 'Brock had some family stuff yesterday, all good news,' Shanahan said. 'I'm sure he'll tell you guys when he talks to you guys next. But Brock was back and didn't miss a beat and it was a good day off for him.'
