England Falls to France in Euro 2025 Opener

ZURICH, Switzerland — Defending champions England suffered a disappointing defeat against France in their Euro 2025 opener on Saturday. The match ended 2-1 in favor of the French team, leaving England needing to win their next game to stay in the tournament.

England started strong, with a goal from a player in the 13th minute, but it was disallowed due to a toe offside. From that point on, France took control of the match.

France’s first goal came from Eugenie Le Sommer in the 36th minute, who capitalized on a defensive error by England. Just three minutes later, Selma Bacha added a second goal, further extending the French lead.

Despite some tactical changes made by England coach Sarina Wiegman, France remained dominant throughout most of the match. England managed to pull one back late in the game when Keira Walsh scored in the 85th minute, but it was not enough to secure a draw.

“We made mistake after mistake,” England forward Lauren Hemp said post-match. “We need to improve the quality of our possession if we want to compete.”

England now faces a must-win match against the Netherlands on Wednesday. Wiegman acknowledged the errors made by her team and emphasized the need to adapt ahead of the critical game.

“We caused our own problems with wayward passing,” Wiegman said. “We need to learn from this to perform better.”

The defeat marks a worrying start for the Lionesses, who aimed to make a statement as defenders of their title. The pressure is on as they aim to advance past the group stage and reclaim their winning form.