England vs Sweden LIVE: Lionesses latest score and goal updates from Euro 2025 qualifier at Wembley

05/04/2024

LIVE – Updated at 20:00

England take on Sweden at Wembley tonight in the first match of their qualifying campaign to reach the European Championships in 2025.

As the defending champions, England’s route to Euro 2025 will not be as straightforward as their comfortable World Cup qualifying path, that included a 20-0 humiliation of Latvia.

After a change to the qualifying format, the Lionesses will take on France, Sweden and the Republic of Ireland in order to claim one of two automatic qualification spots in Group A3.

England’s Euro defence begins at Wembley, the scene of their historic Euro 2022 victory, and with a rematch against Sweden. The Lionesses thrashed Sweden 4-0 in the Euro 2022 semi-finals, but they can be difficult to beat and finished third at last summer’s World Cup.

The match is live on ITV 1 but follow all the action as the Lionesses return to Wembley in our live blog, below.

England vs Sweden LIVE: Latest Euro 2025 qualifier updates

England host Sweden as road to Euro 2025 gets underway, live on ITV 1
European champions England face Sweden, France and Ireland in tough qualifying group
England XI: Earps; Bronze, Wubben-Moy, Greenwood, Charles; Walsh, Stanway, Clinton; Hemp, Russo, James
Sweden XI: Falk; Lundkvist, Sembrant, Eriksson, Andersson; Angeldal, Asllani, Zigiotti Olme; Rytting Kaneryd, Blackstenius, Rolfo
England team news: Lionesses captain Leah Williamson on bench as Grace Clinton starts

England vs Sweden LIVE

19:58 , Chris Wilson

The anthems are done and the teams are lining up at Wembley. Kick-off is a matter of minutes away.

England vs Sweden LIVE

19:50 , Chris Wilson

We’re edging closer to kick-off in the first game of England’s Euro 2025 qualifying campaign. How important could three points be as England look for a smooth qualification campaign?

Of course, the last meeting between these two sides ended in a 4-0 thrashing, with England getting the win on their way to becoming European champions at Euro 2022.

That game became famous for – among other things – Alessia Russo’s back-heeled goal, which ended up being nominated for the prestigious Puskas Award. Fans will be hoping for a similarly enthralling game tonight.

A reminder of how Euro 2025 qualifying will work

19:43 , Chris Wilson

England begin their European Championship defence as the Euro 2025qualifiers get underway – but the Lionesses face a ‘group of death’ on the road to Switzerland.

And changes to the European Qualifiers format means Sarina Wiegman’s side face a challenge to reach the Euro 2025 finals, at least in comparison to their run of one-sided victories in qualifying for the last World Cup.

England will play each other team in Group A3 twice, once at home and once away, across three international windows. In League A, the top two teams in each group will qualify automatically for the Euro 2025 finals, with the other two teams who finish third and fourth going through to the play-offs – even if they lose every game. It means at least one of France, England or Sweden, all semi-finalists at the last Euros, will be heading through to the play-offs.

Here’s how the Euro 2025 qualifying works…

How does Euro 2025 qualifying work? League format and play-off rounds explained

Is England vs Sweden on TV? Channel, kick-off time and how to watch Lionesses tonight

19:28 , Chris Wilson

Ahead of the coverage starting at 7:30pm, a reminder of how you can watch tonight’s game.

England have managed to land in the ‘group of death’ in qualifying and will compete for two automatic spots along with Sweden, France and the Republic of Ireland.

The match will kick off at 8pm BST at Wembley. It will be shown on ITV 1 and online on ITV X, with coverage starting at 7:30pm.

Is England vs Sweden on TV? Channel, kick-off time and how to watch Lionesses tonight

Team news

19:14 , Chris Wilson

So England have made one change from the team that beat Italy 5-1.

Lauren James come back into the team, and she replaces Chloe Kelly. Grace Clinton retains her midfield spot after an impressive debut, while Leah Williamson is named in a match-day squad for the first time in a year.

ENGLAND SUBS: Carter, Hampton, Toone, Williamson, Kelly, Mead, Kirby, Daly, Park, Rendell, Morgan, Turner.

Sweden line-up

19:04 , Chris Wilson

Here’s how the visitors line-up!

SWEDEN XI: Falk; Lundkvist, Sembrant, Eriksson, Andersson; Angeldahl, Asllani, Olme; Kaneryd, Blackstenius, Rolfo.

England vs Sweden team news

18:58 , Jamie Braidwood

Leah Williamson is not fit enough to start as the captain returns to the bench, with Keira Walsh instead leading the side tonight.

Lotte Wubben-Moy partners Alex Greenwood in defence, while Grace Clinton makes her second England start in midfield.

The front three sees Alessia Russo start up front with Lauren Hemp and Lauren James on the wings.

And there’s lots of attacking firepower on the bench, with Beth Mead, Rachel Daly, Chloe Kelly, Fran Kirby, Ella Toone and Jess Park all options.

england vs sweden live: lionesses latest score and goal updates from euro 2025 qualifier at wembley

(The FA via Getty Images)

Team news! Leah Williamson on the bench

18:52 , Jamie Braidwood

England XI: Earps; Bronze, Wubben-Moy, Greenwood, Charles; Walsh, Stanway, Clinton; Hemp, Russo, James

Lionesses arrive at Wembley

18:50 , Jamie Braidwood

(The FA via Getty Images)

Head-to-head

18:40 , Chris Wilson

England actually have a poor record against Sweden despite the recent high-profile wins.

The two sides have met 16 times throughout their histories, with Sweden winning a remarkable nine of these meetings.

Four have ended in a draw, with the other three, including their most recent, ending in an England win.

Sweden last beat the Lionesses in the third-place match at the Women’s World Cup in 2019.

How the teams are faring

18:25 , Chris Wilson

England come into this game in fine form, having won four of their last five games, including convincing 7-2 and 6-0 wins against Austria and Scotland respectively. Their last loss came against Belgium in the UEFA Nations Women’s League – a shock 3-2 defeat that contributed to the team falling short of the competition’s knockout phases.

Sweden, on the other hand, start their qualifying campaign off the back of some mixed form. They recently beat Bosnia & Herzegovina 5-0 in back-to-back Nations League games, but before that lost 5-3 to Spain and 1-0 to Switzerland after a 1-1 draw with Italy in the same tournament.

Both teams have performed well in recent major tournaments too, with England losing the 2023 Women’s World Cup Final 1-0 to Spain and Sweden losing to the same opposition in the semi-finals. When the two sides met at Euro 2022, England triumphed 4-0 at the semi-final on their way to winning the trophy.

Steph Houghton: An ‘icon’ of the game retires

18:10 , Chris Wilson

Some of the most pertinent recent news surrounding the England team comes from Steph Houghton’s announcement that she will be retiring from football at the end of the season.

The Manchester City defender, who last played for England in 2021, made 121 appearances for her country and captained the side on numerous occasions.

And while the announcement of her decision to retire from football might have been low-key, the impact she has left on the game was not.

The Manchester City centre-back and former England captain deserved the plaudits from all areas of the game for her two-decade long career spanning the course of the growth of women’s football.

She was the sole survivor from City’s first professional team which launched a decade ago and her 20-year career not only spanned four clubs, Sunderland, Leeds, Arsenal and Manchester City, but also the rapid professionalisation of the sport.

“Steph is – without question – an icon of the game,” City manager Gareth Taylor said.

Steph Houghton: The ‘icon’ of the game leaves women’s football in a much better place

Expected England line-up

17:55 , Chris Wilson

England XI: Earps; Bronze, Williamson, Greenwood, Charles; Walsh, Stanway, Clinton; Mead, Hemp, James.

What is the England team news?

17:40 , Chris Wilson

Captain Leah Williamson is set to return to the Lionesses for the first time in a year, with the Arsenal centre-back fit to start at least one of the two games ahead of fixtures against Sweden tonight and Ireland on Tuesday.

Midfielder Grace Clinton impressed in England’s two wins over Italy and Austria in February and could start in midfield.

Goalkeeper Khiara Keating has returned to Manchester City due to a knee injury, while Millie Bright is not in the squad as the centre-back recovers from a knee injury.

Grace Clinton raring to go ahead of England’s European Championship qualifiers

17:20 , Chris Wilson

One player who’s particularly excited about the beginning of the Euros qualifying campaign is Grace Clinton.

The England midfielder is excited to “hit the ground running” as the Lionesses start their European Championship qualifying campaign this week.

The defending European champions kick off against Sweden at Wembley on Friday before facing Republic of Ireland in Dublin four days later.

England then play France at St James’ Park in May and Tottenham loanee Clinton believes the side will need to be on “top form”.

Grace Clinton raring to go ahead of England’s European Championship qualifiers

Sarina Wiegman gives Leah Williamson fitness update on eve of England’s Euro 2025 qualifiers

17:05 , Chris Wilson

England manager Sarina Wiegman has given an update on the fitness of Euros-winning captain Leah Williamson.

Williamson trained on her own on Tuesday after coming off at half-time of Arsenal’s Conti Cup final win over Chelsea on Sunday.

But she trained with the group on Wednesday and if she makes it through Thursday’s session unscathed she will be in contention to make her first international appearance in 12 months as the Lionesses begin their qualification campaign.

She has not featured for her country since suffering an ACL injury last April, having pulled out of a training squad in March with a hamstring strain.

“We need to manage it a little bit. She had a full training session on Wednesday, she will be on the pitch today (Thursday), so that looks really good,” Wiegman said.

Wiegman gives Williamson fitness update on eve of Euro 2025 qualifiers

Euro 2025 hosts Switzerland accused of ‘scandalous’ funding cut

16:50 , Chris Wilson

The Swiss government has been warned it risks stalling the growing momentum of women’s football in Europe following the “scandalous” decision to cut its funding for Euro 2025.

In 2008, Switzerland was supported in its joint-hosting of the men’s European Championships with a package of £71m (82m Swiss Francs) from its Federal Council, but the amount allocated for next summer’s women’s tournament has been dramatically reduced to just £3.5m (4m Swiss Francs).

The staging of Euro 2025 in Switzerland follows the record-breaking Euro 2022 in England, where the Lionesses defeated Germany in the final in front of a sold-out Wembley at the end of a four-week tournament that smashed several attendance records.

But with qualifying for Euro 2025 starting this week ahead of the tournament finals next July, doubt has been cast over Switzerland’s ability to support the growth of women’s football after government funding was reduced due to cost-cutting measures.

Euro 2025 hosts Switzerland accused of ‘scandalous’ funding cut

Lionesses face ‘group of death’ and calendar chaos as road to Euro 2025 begins

16:35 , Chris Wilson

Tonight will be England’s first game in a group that has been branded the ‘group of death’.

England must now face France, Sweden and the Republic of Ireland to even qualify for the Euros. Spare a thought for Ireland, who have drawn three of the world’s top five and will play three of the four semi-finalists from the record-breaking success of Euro 2022.

That, after all, is what the Lionesses are out to emulate. There is sense, though, to Uefa adopting the Nations League model for its European Championship qualifiers. The one-sided, and in the case of the 20-0 against Latvia, record-breaking victories England saw on their way to qualifying for the World Cup aren’t good for anyone. But as England experienced in their Nations League campaign last December, which also worked as qualifiers for the Olympics, the margins are far narrower as the calibre of opposition improves.

Only two teams from England’s group will qualify automatically, though the Lionesses would be assured of a seeded play-off spot even if they finish in the bottom two positions of their group. But, amid the jeopardy, the Lionesses have six good fixtures to look forward to, starting with a rematch against Sweden at Wembley, the Swedes out for revenge following the 4-0 thrashing at the hands of a rampant England side and the heel of Alessia Russo’s boot in the semi-finals of the Euros.

Lionesses face ‘group of death’ and calendar chaos as road to Euro 2025 begins

How does Euro 2025 qualifying work? League format and play-off rounds explained

16:15 , Chris Wilson

England begin their European Championship defence as the Euro 2025 qualifiers get underway – but the Lionesses face a ‘group of death’ on the road to Switzerland.

The Lionesses defeated Germany to win Euro 2022 in front of a sold-out Wembley and will be looking to reach another major tournament showpiece following their run to the Women’s World Cup final last year.

But changes to the European Qualifiers format means Sarina Wiegman’s side face a challenge to reach the Euro 2025 finals, at least in comparison to their run of one-sided victories in qualifying for the last World Cup.

How do England qualify for Euro 2025?

Here’s how the Euro 2025 qualifying works…

How does Euro 2025 qualifying work? League format and play-off rounds explained

Early England team news

16:02 , Jamie Braidwood

Midfielder Grace Clinton impressed in England’s two wins over Italy and Austria in February and could start in midfield.

Goalkeeper Khiara Keating has returned to Manchester City due to a knee injury, while Millie Bright is not in the squad as the centre-back recovers from a knee injury.

Is England vs Sweden on TV? Channel, kick-off time and how to watch Lionesses tonight

16:00 , Chris Wilson

England begin the defence of their European crown as the Lionesses return to Wembley to face Sweden in the opening game of the Euro 2025 qualifiers.

Sarina Wiegman’s side lifted their first major title as they won Euro 2022 in front of a sold-out Wembley with their historic extra-time victory over Germany.

England have managed to land in the ‘group of death’ in qualifying and will compete for two automatic spots along with Sweden, France and the Republic of Ireland.

The match will kick off at 8pm BST at Wembley. It will be shown on ITV 1 and online on ITV X, with coverage starting at 7:30pm.

Is England vs Sweden on TV? Channel, kick-off time and how to watch Lionesses tonight