England vs Brazil LIVE: Result, final score and reaction as Lionesses win Finalissima via penalty shootout
England 1-1 Brazil (England win 4-2 on penalties): Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses triumph in first ever Women’s Finalissima
A tale of two halves created a wonderful showpiece at Wembley for the inaugural Women’s Finalissima. The champions of Europe and the champions of South America clashed in front of a packed house in a game that had excitement, goals and late drama before ultimately being decided via a penalty shootout.
England dominated the first half after Brazil set up with a low block to keep them quiet. The Lionesses controlled possession and set the tempo of the game. Lucy Bronze was exceptional on the right side and proved to be a vital part of England’s attacking play. She was fed the ball by Lauren James before setting up Ella Toone in the box to create the opening goal.
At half-time it seemed as though England would run away with the match but Brazil rallied perfectly. A change of shape and personnel gave the visitors more control in midfield and they came flying out of the blocks for the second half. An aggressive press put the Lionesses under intense pressure and Brazil were rewarded in stoppage time when Andressa Alves turned a dropped ball from Mary Earps into the back of the net.
That forced a penalty shootout but Earps redeemed herself by keeping Tamires’ effort wide of the post and tipping Rafaelle’s strike onto the crossbar. Chloe Kelly - England’s Euros hero - then stepped up for the deciding spot kick and powered it home to give England victory.
Relive all the action as England take on Brazil in the Women’s Finalissima:
England line-up
England XI: Earps; Bronze, Carter, Williamson, Greenwood; Walsh, Stanway, Toone; James, Russo, Hemp
England vs Brazil
England will start the game tonight as favourites at Wembley.
Ranked fourth in the world, Sarina Wiegman’s side are unbeaten since April 2021 - a run of 29 fixtures - and have not suffered defeat under their Dutch coach. This includes victory at Euro 2022 and a win over world champions United States at Wembley last October.
In contrast Brazil come into the game on the back of consecutive defeats, having lost to the United States and Canada at the SheBelieves Cup in February.
A Finalissima to show England how far they’ve come
A sold out Wembley and silverware on the line: England have been here before. So, ahead of the inaugural Women’s Finalissima, it came down to Pia Sundhage, the experienced head coach of Brazil, to provide some context. A legendary striker for Sweden, Sundhage is credited with scoring the first goal in a women’s match at Wembley in what was a 2-0 win against England in 1989. Things, though, were a little different then.
“We didn’t have crowds,” Sundhage chuckled, as the 63-year-old returned to the new Wembley, where tonight the Lionesses will play in front of almost 90,000 for the third time in under a year. “It’s a fantastic journey for women’s football, the time of my life,” said Sundhage, a little struck by what the Lionesses have built under Wiegman, who she called the “best coach in the world”.
It is England’s victory at the European Championships which has led to this match against Brazil, the champions of South America. The Finalissma, a symbol of the political and strategic partnership between Uefa and Conmebol, is a welcomed test for England to have at this stage of their World Cup preparations, with kick off in Australia and New Zealand a little more than three months away.
A Finalissima to show England how far they’ve come
European champions England face South American champions Brazil in the inaugural Women’s Finalissima, in what is a key stage for Sarina Wiegman’s side ahead of the World Cup
‘We will experiment’ says Wiegman
England play two matches during this international call-up and will face Australia after taking on Brazil tonight. Sarina Wiegman says she will use both games to experiment with different players and tactics ahead of the World Cup this summer.
"We will experiment a little less because we have two games and are at a different stage but loads on players are high so we will try to manage that too," she said.
"We will play to win but also to develop. Then we will see what we still want to see and how players come out of the game."
‘It’s going to be a special night’ says Souza
Brazil defender Rafaelle Souza, who plays for Arsenal and is the only England-based player in Brazil’s squad, spoke about her excitement for tonight’s Finalissima.
She said: "It is going to be a special night with all these people here. I feel special to have this opportunity. I played in the Olympics with 70,000 people and it was amazing.
"This game will be important not just for women’s football but for me as a player. I will tell my child I played at Wembley in front of 90,000 and it will be special for me."
‘This is the time of my life’ says Sundhage
Pia Sundhage was the first women to score an international goal at the old Wembley Stadium, having scoreed for Sweden against England in 1989.
The head coach of Brazil women’s team then led the USA to the 2012 Olympic title in front of 80,203 supporters at Wembley, in a tournament which was widely considered a watershed moment for women’s football in this country.
Sundhage has journeyed a long road to get to this stage and is excited for tonight’s 90,000 sell out at Wembley.
“I am feeling old and young at the same time! Can you imagine?” Sundhage said, “Back then we didn’t have any crowds at all. Press conferences? Nada. And here we are.
“It is a fantastic journey women’s football has taken and I just want to emphasise how important it is because we have spoken about having women in positions [of power] – when I was young, we didn’t even have women’s players to look up to. It was Cruyff, Pele and Beckenbauer.
“Now today you can mention a lot of great [women’s] players and role models and also great coaches. So this is the time of my life.”
Lauren Hemp praises decision to remove white shorts from England kit
Lauren Hemp praised the decision to change England’s new kit from white to blue shorts as a “massive step in the right direction".
“I really like it,” said the Manchester City forward, “It’s a nice change. I like different kits with bright colours which is obviously what we’ve got. I’m excited to play in it.
“It’s really important to us as players. It’s been in discussions for years and it’s important we feel confident when we’re playing.
“This is a massive step in the right direction and Nike have taken a lot from our discussions in the past to make it real now and now we can feel comfortable when sometimes we might not have been if it was your time of the month.
“It’s great to move away from the white shorts, not having that worry and focusing on the game in hand.”
Lionesses switch to blue shorts for Women’s World Cup after players voice period concerns
The Lionesses will wear blue shorts at the Women’s World Cup this summer after players voiced concerns over the impracticalities of wearing white shorts when they are on their period.
England wore all-white as they won the European Championships on home soil last year but Nike have unveiled significant changes to the kit’s design for the World Cup. The home kit features dark blue shorts, mirroring the trim on the white shirt, while the away kit is based around a lighter blue shade with patterned design.
England players revealed during the Euros last summer that discussions had taken place with Nike around changing the colour of home kit’s shorts, with forward Beth Mead saying that the squad were “hopeful for change” ahead of the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Lionesses switch to blue shorts after players voice period concerns
Nike’s World Cup kits won’t feature white shorts after England players held discussions with the manufacturer
What is the Finalissima?
Finalissima is a newly re-introduced competition played between the winners of the Copa America and the Euros.
The men’s game has been held on three occasions, 1985 and 1993 under the name of the ‘Intercontinental Cup’ before being relaunched in 2022 under the ‘Finalissima’ name.
Argentina were victorious in the tournament last year winning 3-0 against Italy thanks to goals from Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paolo Dybala at Wembley.
Today’s fixture is the first time that a women’s version of the fixture will take place. Wembley once again hosts the match and it’s another sell out crowd to see the Lionesses play.
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