England’s Lionesses were greeted by jubilant fans on Monday, less than 24 hours after their dramatic penalty shootout victory over world champions Spain secured back-to-back European titles.
Chloe Kelly netted the decisive spot-kick in Basel, sealing England’s successful defence of the crown they first won at Wembley in 2022. Supporters dressed in England kits waved flags outside Southend Airport, where the team’s plane—emblazoned with “Home” in bold red letters—touched down to a water cannon salute.
Captain Leah Williamson, trophy in hand, and manager Sarina Wiegman led the squad off the aircraft. On X, the team posted a photo of the trophy draped in an England flag on a plane seat. Among the crowd were 11-year-old twins Poppy and Daisy Macdonald, holding a sign for a photo with striker Alessia Russo. “They’ve had injuries and setbacks but fought through—it’s amazing,” said Poppy.
The squad went straight to 10 Downing Street, festooned with England flags, where they were hosted by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and Sports Minister Stephanie Peacock in Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s absence. “What a team. What drama. You’ve made the nation proud,” Starmer posted from Scotland, where he met US President Donald Trump.
Rayner praised the team as “a shining example of talent and inspiration for women’s football.” An open-top bus parade will take place Tuesday, ending with celebrations outside Buckingham Palace.
Victory in Switzerland served as revenge for England’s defeat to Spain in the 2023 World Cup final. It also capped a rollercoaster tournament: after losing their opener to France, England beat the Netherlands and Wales, overturned a 2-0 deficit against Sweden in the quarter-finals, edged Italy in extra time in the semi-final, and came from behind again in Sunday’s final.
Player-of-the-match Hannah Hampton’s two penalty saves and a miss by Spain’s Salma Paralluelo set up Kelly’s winning kick—her second Euros final heroics after scoring the winner against Germany in 2022. Remarkably, England led for fewer than five minutes in the knockout rounds.
“This was the most chaotic and ridiculous tournament we’ve ever played,” admitted Wiegman, who has now won three consecutive European titles (Netherlands 2017, England 2022 and 2025). “We win by any means and never give up.”
Wiegman hailed the tournament’s record-breaking levels of intensity and global attention: “The standard keeps rising, and I hope this win helps boost the women’s game worldwide.”
