Decision to play Chelsea forward left England outnumbered in midfield during damaging opening defeat at Euro 2025 The hour mark was approaching when Sarina Wiegman rolled the dice or, perhaps more accurately, reached for the comfort blanket. A salvage operation of this scale had not been part of anyone’s masterplan, but at least Ella Toone and Chloe Kelly knew exactly how to move the dial at a European Championship. They were the history makers at Wembley in England’s most recent appearance on this stage; if it was going to be anyone, it surely had to be them. There were to be no heroics this time, even if Selma Bacha’s late clearance was ultimately all that came between Wiegman’s players and a draw. That statement is, in itself, illusory because the manager must face questions about her selection here. She had plumped for Lauren James’s explosive gifts in the No 10 position, sticking to the claim that the Chelsea forward was ready to ramp up her recovery from injury, but the call backfired badly. England were misshapen and leggy where it mattered; the game simply got away from them and so, with another ill-conceived step against the Netherlands, could their Euro 2025 campaign. Continue reading...

Vivianne Miedema reflects on her 100th international goal and what the winning their opening match means for Netherlands in Euro 2025.

Sometimes it really is better to travel than to arrive. After a thoroughly enjoyable journey to their first major tournament Wales collided with the 2017 European Champions and were left bruised, battered and bewildered. During an instructive encounter in the shadow of Lucerne’s Mount Pilatus, Vivianne Miedema scored her 100th international goal. Perhaps even more significantly Andries Jonker’s side did enough to suggest it would be unwise to assume that England and France are destined to fill Group D’s top two places. Continue reading...

Wales women were well beaten in their first major tournament match as Vivianne Miedema's brilliant goal, her 100th for her country, helped the Netherlands to a 3-0 win in Lucerne.

Captain Vivianne Miedema gives Netherlands the lead against Wales in their Group D opening match against Wales at Euro 2025 in Lucerne.

Euro 2025 updates from the 5pm BST kick-off in Lucerne Player guide | David Squires’s wallchart | Mail Emillia If you’re checking out our Wales page, you might as well also look at our Netherlands team guide to read up on Andries Jonker’s squad. As we edge closer to kick-off, be sure to check out our Wales team guide to become acquainted with Rhian Wilkinson and her team. Continue reading...

Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson among mourners Portugal forward Jota and his brother died in car crash Liverpool players and staff have joined family and friends in Gondomar to pay their final respects to Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva. The funerals are taking place in the brothers’ hometown in Portugal where they were revered with mourners travelling from over the globe to say goodbye. Jota’s widow, Rute Cardoso, who the footballer had been married to for 11 days before his death, was greeted by family on Saturday morning before the event. The Liverpool head coach, Arne Slot, the captain, Virgil van Dijk, the defender Andrew Robertson, the midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, former teammates Jordan Henderson and James Milner, and Manchester City’s Rúben Dias are all in Portugal for the service. Continue reading...

Group D at Euro 2025 includes England, France, the Netherlands and Wales and has been called the "toughest group of all".

Amid the mountain metaphors, head coach Rhian Wilkinson says her players are ready for opener against the Netherlands Lucerne is noted primarily for its majestic lake and gorgeous medieval city centre, but it is also a part of central Switzerland where gently rolling hills give way to jagged Alpine peaks. For Wales, this tourist magnet marks the potentially awkward junction between the heady optimism of an exhilarating journey towards their first major tournament and the reality of the formidable challenge posed by Saturday’s opening match against the Netherlands. Perhaps appropriately, Mount Pilatus towers above Stadion Allmend where Wales kick-off their Group D campaign. But the good news for their fans is that Rhian Wilkinson, the head coach, believes mountains are there for climbing. Indeed, Wilkinson clambered up Snowdon before announcing her squad for the tournament on the mountain’s summit last month. Continue reading...

Head coach Rhian Wilkinson wants Wales to "show the world who we are" as they prepare to face Netherlands at Euro 2025.

In her first BBC Sport column, Wales defender Josie Green lifts the lid on life in the Wales camp ahead of their Euro debut against the Netherlands.

Deal could rise to £35m and includes buy-back clause Liverpool still keen on signing Guéhi as a replacement Jarell Quansah has completed his move from Liverpool to Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth up to £35m. The 22-year-old enjoyed an impressive European Under-21 Championship campaign as part of Lee Carsley’s triumphant England side but found opportunities limited at club level under Arne Slot last season. The homegrown central defender started four Premier League games, 13 in all competitions, as Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté established a title-winning partnership. Continue reading...

The narrative arc of women’s football in Switzerland is a familiar one: from apathy to hostility to mockery to inertia to change. And now one of the biggest sporting events held in the country In 1957 the Swiss newspaper Sport published a short editorial under the headline “Women’s Football?” Furious that a women’s friendly between Germany and the Netherlands was being hosted in Basel, the writer mocked: “This event is not about football, but rather should be classified as an exhibition or circus performance.” On Wednesday evening, in front of a sell-out crowd, Switzerland will play their opening game of a home European Championship that will be one of the biggest sporting events held in the country. Sport newspaper, sadly, will be unable to chronicle the event, having folded in 1999. Life moves on you pretty fast. Continue reading...

A lack of goals while narrowly avoiding a qualifying playoff shows they are not at their best, but Vivianne Miedema will surely make an impact This article is part of the Guardian’s Euro 2025 Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 16 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from two teams each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 2 July. Continue reading...