On Tuesday, 22nd July 2025, Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses beat Italy 2-1 after extra time to make it to the third consecutive final of a major tournament. As in their edgy quarter-final victory over Sweden, England didn’t make it easy for themselves, but at least they didn’t leave it to the lottery of penalties this time. As reigning champions, England have the chance to become only the second side to retain the title (although Germany won it six times in a row between 1995 and 2013!).
Even more impressive than it being England’s third big final in a row, it will be five on the bounce for Wiegman. Before leading England to the Euros triumph in 2022 and the subsequent World Cup final the following year, she was in charge of the Netherlands side that lost in the 2019 World Cup final, but won the 2017 UEFA Women’s Championship. So will it be her third and England’s second Euros win? We’ll find out on Sunday when they’ll face Spain or Germany.
Before that, let’s take a look back at how England’s never-say-die women forced their way past an impressively resolute and tactically organised Italy side. And we’ll also recap how they made it to the final, in a tournament that has had plenty of highs and lows for the Lionesses.
England 2-1 (AET) Italy – Lionesses Leave It Very Late
WE’RE IN THE #WEURO2025 FINAL! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/aAIey9IVPE
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 22, 2025
The Lionesses have had a habit of leaving things late in recent times. They had to come back from a two-goal deficit against Sweden to take it to extra time and then edged through in a highly stressful penalty shootout. And England fans feared a similarly nerve-shredding time of things in the semi-final against Italy when the underdogs took the lead after 33 minutes through Juventus forward Barbara Bonansea.
It was against the run of play as England enjoyed the lioness’s share of possession, but the champions had been unable to craft many clear-cut openings. The goal appeared to knock the stuffing out of the side, temporarily, and Wiegman will have been happy to get her team into the dressing room at half time to attempt to gee them up a little.
Things improved from an England perspective in the second period, though Italy defended exceptionally well and the ball simply wouldn’t fall for England in the box. As the clock ticked down, the Lionesses continued to probe and it wasn’t long before Italy began attempting to run down the clock with intermittent bouts of “cramp”.
When things were beginning to look desperate, Wiegman rolled the dice and introduced Chloe Kelly in the 77th minute and teenage sensation Michelle Agyemang in the 85th. It added more energy to the attack and gave England fans hope their side might get the breakthrough before the final whistle. After coming off the bench to score the all-important equaliser against Sweden, Arsenal player Agyemang (who spent the 2024/25 season on loan at Brighton) was in the right place at the right time once again… the right time being the 96th minute! The keeper spilled the ball to her, she controlled well in the box and managed to get a powerful shot away that fizzed through the legs of Italian stopper, Laura Giuliani (no relation to Rudy, as far as we know!).
England Force Matters in Tense Extra Time
That goal took it to extra time, and England looked by far the fresher side and the more likely to get the win. Once again, however, Italy defended stoutly and were not making things easy for the Lionesses. England created some decent chances, including when Agyemang brilliantly lobbed a stranded Giuliani, only to see her fine effort hit the bar. In the end, the ref came to the rescue as England were awarded a penalty with seconds left in extra time as Beth Mead was rugby tackled off the ball by Emma Severini. The Italians may feel it was a little soft but it was a penalty in our (English) eyes!
Up stepped Kelly, who’d been one of the few confident-looking penalty takers in the shootout against Sweden. There was a moment of panic as her spotkick was saved, but Kelly was first to the rebound and slotted it home, following up with a celebration that suggested it was all under control and everyone should remain calm… which has been easier said than done watching the Lionesses at times during this tournament.
But that matters little now. It comes down to one game: the final in Basel on Sunday evening. It’s going to be England’s toughest match of the tournament, but Wiegman and her resilient players might just find a way to win it.
England Route to the Final
Drawn in Group D alongside France, Netherlands and Wales, England were the favourites to finish at the top of the pile. It didn’t turn out like that, however, after Wiegman’s side lost their opening match in Zurich against France. They were 2-0 down by half time after a laboured opening period, and though the Lionesses found a consolation goal late on, the 2-1 defeat rang alarm bells.
Things got back on script in the next match, thankfully, as England hammered Netherlands 4-0, thanks to a brace from Lauren James and goals from Georgia Stanway and Ella Toone. The Lionesses found their rhythm against Wales in their final group game, hammering their neighbours 6-1. With six different scorers, it gave the whole team a big boost ahead of the quarters. And finishing second turned into something of a blessing as it meant the Lionesses would avoid the other tournament favourites, Spain and Germany, until the final.
As mentioned, things didn’t go perfectly to plan in the quarters against Sweden, who qualified as group winners after battering Germany 4-1 in their final Group C match. England made the worst possible start as the Swedes got their noses ahead after just two minutes, Kosovare Asllani drilling home after England’s defensive sloppiness. Arsenal’s Stina Blackstenius doubled the Sweden lead after 25 minutes, after she latched onto a deft through ball and held her nerve to slot it past Hannah Hampton.
England looked dead and buried as the time dwindled away in the second half, but, as so often is the case, Wiegman used her subs to great effect. She introduced Beth Mead, Esme Morgan and Agyemang on 70 minutes, and, eight minutes later, Kelly. It was Kelly who made an immediate impact, putting in a deep cross that defender Lucy Bronze headed home. Substitutes combined again two minutes later to get the equaliser, as Kelly’s cross rebounded off Mead and fell for Agyemang, who smashed in from close range.
Both sides had chances to win it in extra time, but neither could find the winner. The subsequent penalty shootout was a tough watch for fans of both sides as a total of nine spotkicks were either saved or missed. Thankfully for England, they did just about enough to edge it 3-2, to put them through to the semi.
