Euro 2025 tournament favourites, key players, TV channels, kick off times and how to watch

As the Lionesses interaction down with hopes to support their crown and Wales swap the mountains of Snowdonia for the Swiss Alps, kick-off looms for Euro 2025.

England were fixed a rousing send-off successful Leicester connected Sunday and duly delivered with a 7-0 triumph implicit Jamaica successful their last crippled earlier the tournament.

It means that some British nations’ adjacent lucifer volition correspond their opener successful Group D though some get successful Switzerland with wholly antithetic narratives.

Here is each you request to cognize up of the tourney that gets underway connected Wednesday .

Tournament favourites

Entering a tourney arsenic reigning satellite champions automatically focuses each eyes connected Spain who get successful Switzerland with a squad afloat of satellite people talent.

While it is choky astatine the top, they volition surely beryllium the ones to bushed having topped their Nations League group, a contention they won successful 2024, and boasting Ballon D’Or winners Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmatí successful their ranks.

The second is inactive expected to diagnostic contempt contracting viral meningitis conscionable six days earlier Spain look Portugal successful their opening match.

La Roja defeated Japan 3-1 successful their last affable earlier the tournament, having besides beaten England 2-1 successful their last competitory match, but their outing astatine the Olympics past summertime proves they are not invincible.

Notably, having mislaid to Brazil successful the semi-finals, Spain were defeated 1-0 by Germany successful the bronze medal match, a foe who volition besides marque a beardown bid for the rubric successful Switzerland.

The Euro 2022 finalists person been successful scintillating signifier successful their 2025 Nations League matches having scored 26 goals and conceded conscionable 4 crossed their six games.

With Lea Schüller starring the line, having contributed 5 goals successful the Nations League campaign, Germany volition correspond a threatening imaginable successful Switzerland arsenic they bid for revenge aft that 2-1 extra-time nonaccomplishment successful the last astatine Wembley successful 2022.

It is their opponents connected that day, England, who volition besides beryllium firmly among those touted arsenic imaginable winners erstwhile the tourney gets underway connected 2 July.

Despite finishing 2nd to Spain successful a mixed Nations League run this year, the Lionesses person consistently shown their tourney pedigree.

Their 7-0 triumph implicit Jamaica astatine the King Power Stadium was a showcase of the endowment they person astatine their disposal with six antithetic scorers connected the time and 5 reigning Champions League winners successful the squad.

It was Ella Toone who bagged a brace successful Leicester, but possibly astir breathtaking was her replacement disconnected the seat arsenic Lauren James showed precisely what she tin adhd to Wiegman’s squad with an assistance connected her instrumentality from injury.

England’s chances

The defending champions volition beryllium aiming to marque much past successful Switzerland and go the lone federation to support their European Championship crown.

Any little volition correspond a disappointment for Sarina Wiegman’s side, whose consistency successful large tournaments has acceptable expectations entity high.

But contempt winning successful 2022 and reaching the World Cup last conscionable a twelvemonth later, the Lionesses look stiff contention if Wiegman is to triumph a 3rd consecutive Euros (having won successful 2017 with the Netherlands).

It volition beryllium a situation that starts from the radical stages wherever England conscionable France and the Netherlands, arsenic good arsenic neighbours Wales, successful what is touted arsenic ‘the radical of death’.

But Wiegman, who is yet to suffer a radical crippled arsenic caput manager astatine a large tournament, volition not beryllium perturbed by the seemingly tricky start.

In 2017, she faced a radical with an mean satellite ranking of 16 and won each her matches, this twelvemonth England’s radical has an mean ranking of 17.

But should the Lionesses advancement beyond the radical stage, they volition person to navigate done what is apt the strongest Euros tract yet, with Spain, Germany and Sweden among those queuing up to person their crook successful the spotlight.

It is apt a clash against 1 of the second 2 awaits successful the quarter-finals with Group C and Group D pitted against each other.

But large wins volition beryllium expected, and necessary, if England are to bash what nary 1 other has done earlier and support their title.

Wales’ chances

Wales get successful Switzerland for their first-ever large tourney and without the anticipation that volition measurement dense connected the Lionesses’ shoulders.

But Rhian Wilkinson’s broadside should not beryllium underestimated arsenic they find themselves successful ‘the radical of death’ with a constituent to prove.

A squad announcement dissimilar immoderate other, astatine the acme of Yr Wyddfa (or Snowdon), demonstrates the Dragons volition beryllium astatine location successful the mountains and portion an opening lucifer against the Netherlands is nary casual prospect, Wales person shown they tin vie with the best.

Two 1-1 draws against Sweden successful the Nations League proved highlights of their run this twelvemonth but showed what resilience tin produce.

They besides lone narrowly mislaid by 1 extremity margins to Italy and Denmark but a 4-1 decision astatine location to Italy successful their last lucifer shows determination is inactive a agelong mode to go.

A substance of experienced endowment successful the signifier of Jess Fishlock, Angharad James-Turner and Sophie Ingle is paired with an breathtaking premix of younker successful Carrie Jones and Elise Hughes successful a squad that Wilkinson is looking to finely tune earlier the tourney kicks off.

Wales volition person to propulsion disconnected thing bonzer to get retired of their radical but place them for a daze triumph to shingle up Group D astatine your peril.

Players to watch

Sometimes apical endowment emerges from places you would not expect and that is the lawsuit for Poland’s Ewa Pajor.

The Barcelona striker is 1 of the world’s finest successful beforehand of extremity and volition beryllium cardinal to Polish hopes of making it retired of the radical successful their archetypal large tournament.

She volition caput to Euro 2025 with a period of caps and arsenic her country’s grounds extremity scorer. She scored 4 times successful the play-offs to guarantee qualification.

Over successful Group A, Norway’s Caroline Graham Hansen volition beryllium eyeing up a extremity fest arsenic she prepares for radical games against Finland, Iceland and hosts Switzerland.

Operating connected the planetary signifier since she was 16, the winger has truthful often been the 1 to assistance others shine, successful portion owed to the outrageous prime of her passes.

In 2019, she became the archetypal Norwegian ever to play for Barcelona arsenic they began their tally of dominance successful Liga F and was nominated for the Ballon d’Or successful 2024, finishing second.

While Norway person struggled to unrecorded up to their committedness connected the satellite signifier Graham Hansen volition beryllium key, a concern acquainted to France and Sandy Baltimore.

After a scintillating play with Chelsea, which included 2 FA Cup last goals successful a twelvemonth that saw her cement herself arsenic Sonia Bompastor’s left-back prime successful an invincible treble-winning side, Baltimore is acceptable to marque amends for a perennially underperforming French side.

Naturally a winger, Baltimore has shown her versatility portion retaining her spot arsenic a originative outlet and volition beryllium important to France if she continues specified form.

The output of her rival successful the Women’s Super League, and present successful Euro 2025 Group D, Alessia Russo volition supply a bully marker of England’s performance.

Graduating from super-sub to a definite starter, Russo has go pivotal to England’s success.

Moving to Arsenal has helped her to enactment connected her all-round game, with her quality to clasp disconnected defenders a cardinal skill.

Fresh disconnected Champions League success, Russo has a aureate glint that could beryllium cardinal for the Lionesses.

A subordinate to ticker database would not beryllium implicit without Ballon d’Or victor Aitana Bonmatí.

Arguably the champion subordinate successful the satellite close now, Bonmatí has been dominating shot for the past fewer seasons and pulls the strings for a world-beating Spain side.

Her occurrence with La Roja is undeniable – astatine property people she won the U-17 and U-19 Euros, besides reaching the last of the U-17 and U-20 World Cups.

As a elder player, Bonmati was a cardinal subordinate of their World Cup triumph successful 2023, winning the Golden Ball.

Best radical signifier games

Group A - Switzerland v Norway (2nd July - 8pm)

On the opening time of the tourney hosts Switzerland invited a perennially underachieving Norway side.

Not lone volition the curtain raiser supply a spectacle for the location assemblage but volition besides pit 2 sides with a batch to beryllium against each different successful 1 of the astir unfastened groups of the tournament.

While Norway volition beryllium favourites they person struggled successful the past and though Switzerland are yet to triumph a competitory crippled this year, they volition privation to acceptable that close for their fans from the off.

Group C - Sweden v Germany (12th July - 8pm)

This bluish European clash has the imaginable to determine who progresses apical of the radical and brings 2 high-performing teams unneurotic successful the radical stage.

Sweden person traditionally played a highly effectual antiaircraft benignant successful tournaments, portion Germany person proven their scoring signifier successful the Nations League this season.

It sets up a fascinating clash aboriginal connected successful the tourney betwixt 2 sides who volition person their sights firmly acceptable connected silverware from the outset.

Group D - England v Wales (13th July - 8pm)

Any gathering betwixt 2 location nations ever promises a fiery brushwood and Wales volition cognize conscionable however impactful a effect against the Lionesses could be, not lone for their ain chances but to disrupt their opponents’ hopes of progressing from a pugnacious group.

While England volition beryllium expected to contention distant with victory, the added unit of rivalry and the tone of the Welsh ‘red wall’ volition marque this an brushwood to relish.

Group D - Netherlands v France (13th July - 8pm)

In specified a highly competitory group, it is hard to ideate this last radical crippled volition not person thing resting connected it.

Whether it is progression to the adjacent circular oregon placing successful the apical 2 of the radical the brushwood volition surely nutrient fireworks.

As 2 of Europe’s apical teams clash truthful aboriginal connected with truthful overmuch astatine stake, it is surely worthy split-screening this lucifer with England’s radical finale.

Where to watch

In the United Kingdom afloat tourney sum volition beryllium shared betwixt BBC and ITV, making each games free-to-air.

For England’s and Wales’ radical signifier games the TV docket is arsenic follows:

5th July - 5pm - Wales v Netherlands - BBC One & iPlayer

5th July - 8pm - France v England - ITV1 & ITVX

9th July - 5pm - England v Netherlands - BBC One & iPlayer

9th July - 8pm - France v Wales - ITV1, ITVX & S4C

13th July - 8pm - England v Wales - ITV1, ITVX & S4C