Chloe Kelly converted the decisive penalty,securing England‘s title defense in a dramatic shootout victory.
The penalty shootout saw an early advantage for Spain when Cata Coll denied Beth Mead‘s attempt. However,England’s goalkeeper Hannah Hampton responded by saving shots from Caldentey and Aitana Bonmatí,shifting the momentum in England’s favor.
Coll kept Spain in contention with another one-handed save, this time thwarting Leah Williamson. Spain’s substitute Salma Paralluelo then sent her penalty kick wide of the post.
This set the stage for Kelly to replicate her 2022 performance, where her extra-time goal against Germany clinched the championship at Wembley. Kelly’s signature run-up preceded a powerful strike into the net, followed by a jubilant celebration with her teammates in front of the england supporters.
“I’m so proud,so proud of this team,so grateful to wear this badge,and I’m so proud to be English … I was cool,I was composed and I knew I was going to hit the back of the net,” Kelly stated after the match.
This final marked the frist time since the inaugural 1984 tournament, which saw England defeated by Sweden, that a championship match was decided by a penalty shootout.
“unbelievable, incredible, showing throughout this tournament we can come back when we go a goal down, and we have that grit,” an elated Hampton commented. “We’ve got English blood in us, so we never say die and we just keep going, and we did that today.”
For Spain’s bonmatí, the outcome was a difficult one. “I don’t have much emotion left to be honest. I have emptied myself of emotion. We are all tired,” she said. “I have to say sorry, because it was my fault but I was not able to score it [the penalty].Congratulations to our opponents. from my personal perspective we were superior in the match, [but] on some occasions, that’s not enough in football.”
