From Rubiales, sexism and indifference, Spain face England for Euro glory

Al Jazeera

26-07-2025

Who: England vs Spain
What: UEFA Women's Euro 2025 final
Where: St Jakob-Park in Basel, Switzerland
When: Sunday, July 27, at 6pm (16:00 GMT)
How to follow: We'll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 3pm (15:00 GMT) in advance of our live text commentary stream.
If the women's football players of Spain have gone from nobodies to title contenders in less than a decade, it hasn't come easy.
The national team has had to fight for better coaching, decent travel conditions, and modern training facilities.
It paid off with a World Cup title in 2023, the Nations League crown last year, and they face England on Sunday in the European Championship final.
'It has been a constant with the national team that we have had to fight for acceptable work conditions that would allow us to play at our best,' former Spain defender Marta Torrejon said on Friday.
Where did the rise of Spain's women begin?
Torrejon lived through the lean years, the time when playing for her country felt like, in her words, a 'waste of time'.
And she knows from talking with Barcelona teammates who still play for their country how much things have improved.
Torrejon retired from international football after the 2019 World Cup as Spain's then most-capped player with 90 appearances. The 35-year-old has since helped Barcelona win three Champions League titles and a slew of other trophies.
She also played a part in one of the revolts Spain's women have staged to demand more from the men who run the game.
After the 2015 World Cup, Torrejon and other players successfully pushed for the removal of coach Ignacio Quereda, who had run the team for nearly three decades, for his poor preparation before the team's first appearance in the competition.
Quereda was later accused by former players of verbal abuse, an allegation he denied.
'I enjoyed playing for the national team, but the preparation and attention to the player was minimum. It felt, to put it bluntly, like a waste of time,' Torrejon said. 'The level of practice and the level of physical training both plummeted compared to what we had [at Barcelona]. It was like taking a step back.
'I am told that isn't the case now, and I am very glad to hear that.'
Torrejon said she saw steps in the right direction under former Spain coach Jorge Vilda, who replaced Quereda, but felt there was still more untapped potential in the team when she retired.
What was the Rubiales controversy for Spain?
After Torrejon quit the team, some players announced in 2022 that they would no longer play for Vilda unless he ran a more professional operation. He was backed by the federation. Some players returned to play for him, and the team made history by winning the 2023 World Cup.
The celebrations were overshadowed by the behaviour of then-federation President Luis Rubiales, who, without her consent, kissed a player on the lips during the awards ceremony in Sydney.
Vilda supported Rubiales initially, and he was swept away with his boss when the players stood up to force change, from the removal of Rubiales to improving the travel conditions and handling of the team. Vilda is now coaching Morocco, which is playing Nigeria in the Women's Africa Cup of Nations final on Saturday.
Torrejon said she had heard from Alexia Putellas and Irene Paredes, stalwarts of Spain and Barcelona, that things are better since Rubiales and Vilda left.
England wary Rubiales incident may fire Spain
England's Ella Toone admits Spain may have extra motivation going into the final after their World Cup triumph two years ago was overshadowed by the events at the end of the game in Sydney.
Spain beat England 1-0 in 2023 to win the Women's World Cup for the first time, with Olga Carmona scoring the only goal of the game.
However, the headlines later were dominated by the forced kiss by Rubiales on player Jenni Hermoso.
Rubiales was eventually fined 10,800 euros ($11,670) for sexual assault in February this year.
'It was a difficult period for the Spanish players and for what they did in the World Cup, for that to then be the main talking point, was really tough and something they shouldn't have had to go through,' Toone told reporters in Zurich on Friday.
'They should have celebrated what was an amazing tournament for them.'
How did England reach the Euro 2025 final?
England's place as a powerhouse of women's international football has long been established, but the last-four clash with Italy nearly provided an upset.
Barbara Bonansea gave the Italians the lead, and only a 96th-minute equaliser by Michelle Agyemang forced the game to extra time.
Chloe Kelly then left it late to settle the match with penalties looming.
The English also had to come from behind to beat Sweden in their last-eight clash.
How did Spain reach the Euro 2025 final?
New coach Montse Tome has enhanced the training methods. Spain leads the way at the Euros for goals scored, ball possession, passing accuracy and clean sheets.
In Spain's 1-0 semifinal win over Germany, Aitana Bonmati leaned on the team's analysts, who informed her that the opposing goalkeeper tended to leave her near post unprotected. The result was an exquisite winner from a tight angle.
Torrejon said that sort of tactical insight from the staff was unthinkable a decade ago.
How Barcelona played their part in Spain's rise
Spain midfielder Patri Guijarro agrees with Torrejon that the sustained investment Barcelona has provided for the past decade in the women's game has boosted the national team.
'Each and every day, we work well in our clubs and I think that is reflected in the achievements of the clubs, but also in the national team,' Guijarro said at Spain's camp in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Friday.
Guijarro also credits the professionalisation of Spain's women's league in 2021, which allowed players 'to dedicate ourselves fully to football'.
Guijarro is one of 11 Barcelona players on Spain's 23-member squad. The Barcelona contingent includes Bonmati and Putellas, who have split the last four Ballon d'Or awards between them.
Former Barcelona official Xavier Vilajoana oversaw the women's team and the club's training academy from 2015-2020. During that time, the club dramatically increased its funding for women's football and built a training programme for girls.
Vilajoana said one critical decision was having the same coaches train the boys' and girls' teams. That way, the Barcelona style was instilled in all the kids, and that ball-possession, short-passing and pressure became fundamentals of the women's teams as well.
'Let's not fool ourselves, we spent many years in a very sexist society, and that was reflected in women's football. So clearly the change in the mentality of society has helped,' Vilajoana said. 'But I also believe that Barca's style of play has helped us see women players in the same way [as men].'
In the background, Spain's strong feminist movement helped get the public behind the players as they made strides for equality and success.
'There were many of us players who gave it our all for the national team but weren't able to get this far,' Torrejon said. 'The one thing we knew is that we had talent. We just needed more support.'
England team news
Lauren James faces a race to be fit after picking up a knock in the semifinal against Italy.
Beth Mead could take the attacker's place on the wing should James fail to recover.
Esme Morgan was given her first start in tournament football alongside captain Leah Williamson in defence and is set to retain her place.
Spain team news
Laia Aleixandri returns from a one-match ban for yellow card accumulation in the tournament. The defender is set to immediately return to the backline.
Athenea del Castillo is pushing Mariona Caldentey and Claudia Pina for a place on the flanks after a goal and an assist last up.
Predicted England and Spain starting lineups
England: Hampton; Bronze, Williamson, Morgan, Greenwood; Stanway, Walsh, Toone; Kelly, Hemp, Russo
Spain: Coll; Batlle, Paredes, Aleixandri, Carmona; Bonmati, Guijarro, Putellas; Caldentey, Pina, Gonzalez