England lose 2-1 to France in testing first match of Women's Euros 2025
5 July 2025, 22:06 | Updated: 5 July 2025, 22:22
England have been beaten by France in a thrilling 2-1 clash in their first game in this year's Women's Euros.
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England were trailing for most of the game after conceding two goals in the first half scored by France's Marie Antoinette Katoto and Sandy Baltimore.
The Lionesses were given a glimmer of hope when Keira Walsh got one back in the 87th minute.
However, it was not enough to secure England a point in a disappointing opening group match game at the tournament at the Stadion Letzigrund in Zurich, Switzerland.
England failed to register a shot on target for most of the first half, although they did score a disallowed goal in the opening 45 minutes.
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Fans were quick to blast the offside ruling, with one saying on X: “Incredibly harsh to rule out that goal for the Lionesses. If there was an offside, it was very marginal.”
Another wrote: “Offside where?? Show me where ??? #England #Lionesses”.
Head coach Sarina Wiegman will have something to take away from the fact England nearly grabbed a point from a largely disappointing performance.
Defender Leah Williamson told reporters England were "not good enough" on the ball, but said that the positive is that the Lionesses weer able to turn the ball over at a high rate.
"We got better. As they tired we took advantage but not enough in the end."
The defending champions now face an uphill battle in the groups stages.
They will next face the Netherlands on Wednesday July 9, who won their first match against Wales.
