England beat Germany 2-1 after extra-time to claim their first ever major title in front of a record crowd on home soil, including thousands of children and families; Sarina Wiegman has now won back-to-back European Championships after her 2017 success with the Netherlands
Monday 1 August 2022 18:58, UK
England's hero Chloe Kelly said she was living the dream after firing her country to Euro 2022 glory.
Kelly came off the bench to score a 110th-minute winner and give the Lionesses a 2-1 win against Germany in the final at Wembley.
After Ella Toone's opener had been cancelled out in normal time by Lina Magull, the Manchester City forward poked home from close range to spark euphoric scenes at the national stadium as England Women went on to win a major tournament for the first time.
Kelly was more interested in singing 'Sweet Caroline' than answering questions in her flash TV interview, but did say this was her dream growing up.
"Oh my God, look at them, it is amazing, thank you to every single person that supported us," she said on the BBC, indicating the crowd in the background. "This is unreal... Sweet Caroline!
"It's amazing, thank you everyone, this is what dreams are made of, as a young girl watching women's football. Wow, this is unbelievable."
Kelly's story is made even more memorable by the fact that she only came back from a serious cruciate ligament injury in April.
She added: "Thank you to everyone who played a part in my rehab. I always believed I'd be here, but to be here and score the winner, wow. These girls are amazing.
"This is amazing, I just want to celebrate now."
England's maiden success has been masterminded by Sarina Wiegman, who has now won back-to-back European Championships after her 2017 success with the Netherlands.
The Dutchwoman said: "We won the cup. It is unbelievable. It is incredible.
"If you really want to win and become better every single day, that is what I have noticed, and it is incredible, they want to do it together.
"We agreed on a couple of things about behaviour and they weren't just words, we lived it. The game was so tight, there was a little bit of fight in there, but who cares, we won 2-1. We are European champions.
"We broke through barriers against Spain and we had to do it again. I don't have any secrets. I don't think I have realised what is going on, I need some time."
After the tournament produced record attendances, including the highest ever in a European Championship final, England captain Leah Williamson wants the success to mean something in the future.
She said: "The legacy of this tournament is a change in society, it is everything that we have done, we brought everybody together, we got people at games.
"We want them to come to WSL games, the legacy is this team are winners and that is the start of a journey."
Williamson also described the victory as "the proudest moment of my life".
"I just can't stop crying," she said on BBC One. "Something like this, we talk and we talk and we talk and we finally did it. It's about doing it on the pitch and I'll tell you what, the kids are all right.
"It is the proudest moment of my life until the day I have kids I suppose. I am taking everything in, every piece of advice was take every single second in so I can relive it forever. I'll be reliving that for a long time."
She said: "The legacy of this tournament is a change in society, it is everything that we have done, we brought everybody together, we got people at games."
Sarina Wiegman hailed the support of England's "committed" fanbase in the wake of their momentous Euro 2022 title-winning campaign, admitting how grateful she was that "fans stood behind the team".
Thousands of supporters will be able to celebrate England's Euros win with the players at a central London event being held on Monday, with the Lionesses boss emphasising how proud she was of the team's achievements.
Wiegman herself has now won all 12 of the matches she's overseen at two Women's European Championships - 2017 and 2022 - with her sides scoring 35 goals and conceding just five in the process.
"I have already lost my voice a little bit," Wiegman began. "What we've done is incredible. England have been behind us the whole way. Over the whole tournament we've had so much support. I'm so proud of the team - I need a couple of days to realise what we've done.
"Germany really wanted to win too. There were two teams who wanted to win, that's what made it so tight. We had a hard time to play our game. We didn't get that much rhythm, but the quality of this team is so high, the depth is so good too. We scored the goal, that's what wins it. We won the cup and we're really happy.
"For the first time in years I had a beer - I enjoyed it too."
She also spoke about the togetherness she felt from her squad and staff, praising the unity among camp after only taking the England job on 11 months ago.
"When I took the job, of course you hope on things," the 52-year-old added. "I knew the team had quality and there is so much quality in this squad. You hope things will work out. My challenge was, can I bring people together from another culture? This year is so incredible. It's really nice that it worked out.
"First, we're going to party. We're so proud of our accomplishments. The development of this game has gone so fast, there were so many teams that could have won this tournament. It's not easy to win this tournament. That will be the same at the World Cup. Competition is getting closer and closer, especially in Europe. We're going to celebrate and then we'll have some time off to reflect.
"England has been a little ahead of the Netherlands. The expectations here are higher. England had made it to semi-finals - this team was far in development. But now you saw that the whole country stands committed behind us. We've really made a change. This tournament has done so much for the game, but also for society. Women in society across Europe. It's really nice to see it, how enthusiastic everyone is.
"We all know that the England team in 2009 made the final. They've been building and building from then. The foundations were there already and the game is so developed in this country. So we already had talent but my role was clear. I demand actually. We had agreements with the team - we wanted to win, but how we wanted to win was clear."
Beth Mead won the Golden Boot and was named player of the tournament, 12 months after she was left out of Team GB's Olympic squad for the Tokyo Games.
"I can't believe it, sometimes football puts you down but bouncing back is the best way and that is what we have done," she said.
"I am speechless, I can't take it all in, I am still in shock. I can't believe we've won it, I just can't, it's mad. I am so, so proud of this team. I love this team and I love this country."
Although Mead did not score in the Wembley final, she added two personal accolades to her cabinet, winning the Golden Boot and Player of the Tournament.
The winger had been level with Alexandra Popp on six goals heading into the final, but the Germany captain was injured in the warm-up, seeing Mead take the accolade having notched up five assists during the tournament. Popp had none for her part.
Alessia Russo also finished in third place with four goals - including that stunning backheel against Sweden that will be talked about for years to come.
Mead was also crowned Player of the Tournament by a selected UEFA panel, marking a stunning turnaround after her omission from the Team GB Olympic squad just a year ago.
"I can't believe it, sometimes football puts you down but bouncing back is the best way and that is what we have done," she said.
"I am speechless, I can't take it all in, I am still in shock. I can't believe we've won it, I just can't, it's mad. I am so, so proud of this team. I love this team and I love this country."
Germany's Lena Oberdorf also took home the Young Player of the Tournament trophy, having had a breakout Euro 2022 at the age of just 20 years old.
Tens of thousands of fans draped in the red and white flag of England erupted in joy at Wembley Stadium on Sunday - and at fan parks, homes and pubs across the country.
England's progress through the tournament, just over a year after the men's side lost the final at the same ground, has gripped the country, with members of the royal family, government, sports stars and singers all sending their support.
Their win, over a country that have previously defeated so many England football teams - men and women - marked the first major England victory at a soccer championship for 56 years, and earned a message of congratulations from the Queen.
"Your success goes far beyond the trophy you have so deservedly earned. You have all set an example that will be an inspiration for girls and women today, and for future generations," the Queen wrote.
"It is my hope that you will be as proud of the impact you have had on your sport as you are of the result today."
England's 4-0 thrashing of Sweden in the semi-final drew a peak BBC TV audience of 9.3 million viewers, and that figure was expected to have been broken in the final.
Excitement around the England team has been mounting since some 69,000 supporters gathered at Old Trafford to watch their opening victory over Austria in early July.
By Sunday a Royal Air Force flypast with an all-female crew took to the skies over Wembley, while 87,192 fans gathered in the stadium - the highest total recorded in either the men's or women's editions of the tournament.
Prince William, who had earlier released a short video of support with his seven-year-old daughter Princess Charlotte , handed out the medals before hugging many of the players.
"Huge congratulations to Sarina, Leah (Williamson) and the whole team," Prime Minister Boris Johnson said. "Football pitches across the country will be filled as never before by girls and women inspired by your triumph."
Videos online showed hundreds of fans following the game on big screens in city centres in London, Birmingham and Manchester, cheering as England forward Chloe Kelly scored in the 110th minute before running away in her sports bra.
"Could we ever envisage when we were girls growing up that one day we would have nearly 90,000 people at Wembley supporting the women's football team?" one fan, Emily Taylor, told Reuters before the match. "Come on England".
Germany head coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg:
"Let's differentiate between football and feelings. Let's start with the footballing things, first half ball possession was more on the English side. They put pressure on us. They got a few free-kicks, we lacked courage sometimes.
"We managed to have some attacks which was good. I'm thinking about the situation at 0-0, there was a clear situation in the box which was a clear handball. VAR looked at it but didn't give it. Why didn't the referee look at it? That hurt a little.
"We wanted to play courageously to get the first goal and play with a high press. When we actually had the ball more, we conceded the goal. In extra-time, the 2-1 was just a bit unlucky. Maybe the penalty should have decided it.
"England are deserved champions. They win hard like that and look at the support they have got. If you score two goals against Germany you are deserved champions. Congratulations to them.
"Lots of energy and pride in my team. It was incredibly loud. This will help us in the future. We gave our all on the pitch, not everything worked, but we gave sweat, fight and energy. That's very sad, you can't find the right words to tell the team. I just have to process that. We came to win the game, but we didn't manage that. Maybe tomorrow I will have a different feeling on it.
"Runners-up sounds pretty good, but it hurts a little bit. Only one team could win today, we might need a little more time to digest that.
On Popp's injury: "We tried everything. Yesterday we got surprised, there were some problems after our last training session. The medical staff tried everything.
"This morning it looked better, but it was clear that the decision, she has to agree. I trusted her 100 per cent today. She felt something in the warm-up - high respect to her for saying that. That's great personality. She is a great personality."
