Women's Euro 2025 draw: England to face Wales, France and Netherlands in tough group stage draw
Holders England will face Wales, France and Netherlands at Euro 2025; England will take on Wales on July 13; both sides will open their campaigns on July 5; Lionesses face France in opener while Wales will play Netherlands; tournament takes place in Switzerland from July 2-27
Monday 16 December 2024 20:58, UK
Holders England will face Wales in the group stage of Women's Euro 2025 after a tough draw which will see both sides also face France and Netherlands.
Sarina Wiegman's defending champions will play Euros debutants Wales on July 13 to round off their group campaigns.
In what was a mouth-watering draw for the Lionesses, Wiegman has been handed the challenge of facing her native Netherlands, who she led to European glory in 2017, on July 9, while France await in their tournament opener on July 5.
"It's a tough draw and a very exciting group," Wiegman said. "I always say these are the facts and we have to get ready and be ready for July 5.
"Of course, it's going to be difficult but things are never easy. We have had tough groups in the Nations league and now it is the same in the Euros.
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"Every game in this group is going to be tough, challenging and exciting."
Wiegman handed Netherlands clash
England boss Wiegman became the first coach to win the Women's Euros with two different nations when she led England to glory five years after achieving the same feat with the Netherlands.
France finished top of qualifying Group A3 ahead of the Lionesses by a single point after winning 2-1 at St James' Park in May.
Wales' opener is also on July 5 against Netherlands before they face France on July 9.
Wales, who will be playing at the finals of a major tournament for the first time after beating the Republic of Ireland in a play-off, are the lowest-ranked finalists at 30, and will have their work cut out against the sides currently sitting fourth, 10th and 11th in FIFA's table.
I had a little chuckle to myself. We've played each other a few times now but I do think this will be the biggest and best version of this game ever, and I'm excited.
Head coach Rhian Wilkinson has warned defending champions England not to write off Wales after the sides were pitched into a Battle of Britain at Euro 2025.
She said: "We are a dangerous team. Firstly, we have this underdog mantle, of course, as a first-time participant, but also how well the team is playing and how resilient they are, there's every likelihood we'll be surprising people at the tournament."
Wales and England famously met at the men's Euros in 2016 when the Welsh made it all the way to the semi-finals, and Wilkinson knows the 2022 winners will represent a major hurdle to their hopes of progression when they clash in St Gallen on July 13 in the final round of group matches.
She said: "They're the last winners, another team that with the excitement and growth of the WSL have had a lot of attention, have a lot of talent and a big player pool, so I expect a top England team there as well."
World champions Spain open against Portugal
Both sides did manage to avoid world champions Spain, who were drawn with Portugal, Belgium and Italy.
Meanwhile, Germany, who lost to England in the final of Euro 2022, were paired with former winners Sweden, Denmark and another tournament newcomer in Poland.
Finally, hosts Switzerland will kick off the tournament against Norway in Basel on July 2. The other game in that group on the same day will be Iceland vs Finland in Thun.
The tournament will be played at eight venues - Basel, Bern, Geneva, Zurich, St Gallen, Lucerne, Sion and Thun - between July 2 and 27.
Meanwhile, UEFA has confirmed a huge rise in total prize money for the tournament to €41m, almost £34m.
A statement read: "The UEFA Executive Committee approved €41m in prize money for UEFA Women's Euro 2025, representing a 156 per cent increase on the figure from 2022.
"Participating national associations will now also distribute a guaranteed percentage of the rewards - between 30 per cent and 40 per cent - to their players for the first time."
Women's Euro 2025 groups...
Group A: Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Finland
Group B: Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Italy
Group C: Germany, Poland, Denmark, Sweden
Group D: France, England, Wales, Netherlands
When is Euro 2025?
The Women's Euros kick off on Wednesday July 2, with the final on Sunday July 27.
Euro 2025 key dates
Group stage: July 2-13
Quarter-finals: July 16-19
Semi-finals: July 22-23
Final: July 27 (Basel)
Where are the Euro 2025 host cities?
The 16-team tournament will take place in eight venues across Switzerland. The final will be played in Basel.
- St Jakob-Park, Basel
- Stadion Wankdorf, Bern
- Stade de Geneve, Geneva
- Stadion Letzigrund, Zurich
- Arena St Gallen, St Gallen
- Allmend Stadion Luzern, Lucerne
- Arena Thun, Thun
- Stade de Tourbillon, Sion
Euro 2025 fixtures and match schedule
Group stage
Matchday 1
July 2
Group A: Iceland vs Finland (5pm, Thun)
Group A: Switzerland vs Norway (8pm, Basel)
July 3
Group B: Belgium vs Italy (5pm, Sion)
Group B: Spain vs Portugal (8pm, Bern)
July 4
Group C: Denmark v Sweden (5pm, Geneva)
Group C: Germany vs Poland (8pm, St Gallen)
July 5
Group D: Wales vs Netherlands (5pm, Lucerne)
Group D: France vs England (8pm, Zurich)
Matchday 2
July 6
Group A: Norway vs Finland (5pm, Sion)
Group A: Switzerland vs Iceland (8pm, Bern)
July 7
Group B: Spain vs Belgium (5pm, Thun)
Group B: Portugal vs Italy (8pm, Geneva)
July 8
Group C: Germany vs Denmark (5pm, Basel)
Group C: Poland vs Sweden (8pm, Lucerne)
July 9
Group D: England vs Netherlands (5pm, Zurich)
Group D: France vs Wales (8pm, St Gallen)
Matchday 3
July 10
Group A: Finland vs Switzerland (8pm, Geneva)
Group A: Norway vs Iceland (8pm, Thun)
July 11
Group B: Italy vs Spain (8pm, Bern)
Group B: Portugal vs Belgium (8pm, Sion)
July 12
Group C: Sweden vs Germany (8pm, Zurich)
Group C: Poland vs Denmark (8pm, Lucerne)
July 13
Group D: Netherlands vs France (8pm, Basel)
Group D: England vs Wales (8pm, St Gallen)
Quarter-finals
July 16
QF1: Winner Group A vs Runner-up Group B (Geneva)
July 17
QF3: Winner Group C vs Runner-up Group D (Zurich)
July 18
QF2: Winner Group B vs Runner-up Group A (Bern)
July 19
QF4: Winner Group D vs Runner-up Group C (Basel)
Semi-finals
July 22
SF1: Winner QF3 vs Winner QF1 (Geneva)
July 23
SF2: Winner QF4 vs Winner QF2 (Zurich)
Euro 2025 final
July 27
Winner SF1 vs Winner SF2 (Basel)
