Spain set sights on England as they chase elusive European crown

Spain's remarkable run in international competitions reaches another high on Sunday when they take on England in the final at the Women's Euros in Basel, playing in their first European decider in only their fifth appearance at the tournament.

The reigning world and Nations League champions will be looking for a repeat of their defeat of England in the 2023 World Cup final as they seek to add the European crown to their trophy cabinet.

"Now we’ll start looking at England more closely, although our analysts have already been watching them live and studying their performance in this Euro," Spain coach Montse Tome told reporters after her side's 1-0 semi-final win over Germany on Wednesday.

"We’re going to dive deeper into their game, and we’re going all-in."

For all their dominance in recent years, Spain are still relative newcomers at the top table in women's soccer, and their only previous visit to the semifinals at the Euros was in 1997.

They followed that up with quarter-final exits in 2013, 2017 and 2022.

By contrast, Germany, whom they had never beaten at a major tournament before Wednesday, won the tournament five times since 1997.

"It’s an incredible joy to be in the final, to have beaten Germany for the first time — a great team. I think we knew how to compete in this match. I’m very happy for the players, the staff, and everything we are building here in Switzerland," Torme said.

For long-serving captain Irene Paredes, success at the Euros is another welcome milestone in her side's progress towards being the kind of dominant team the Germans once were.

"It’s incredible. We’re making history," she told reporters. "This is what we wanted. It’s been tough, but we’re in the final."