Aston Villa’s Lionesses react to heartbreaking World Cup final defeat against Spain

England’s women’s team suffered heartache on Sunday (20 August) losing the World Cup final 1-0 to Spain.

Spain’s Olga Carmona’s strike in the first half was enough to see off Sarina Wiegman’s team as the Lionesses were unable to make a breakthrough in Sydney.

Mary Earps’ superb penalty save gave England fans something to cheer about midway through the second half, but the Lionesses were unable to capitalise. Team players were seen crying and looking in despair on the pitch after the final whistle blew and the dreams of England winning the World Cup came to an end.

The women’s team won their first UEFA Women’s Championship title by beating Germany 2–1 after extra time last year at Wembley Stadium in London. But this year at the World Cup in Australia, the Lionesses have been defeated in the final. Three Aston Villa players were included in the England squad for this summer’s World Cup. They included Jordan Nobbs and Rachel Daly.

Hannah Hampton, who played for Villa between 2021 and 2023, also featured at the tournament. She joined Chelsea from Villa just last month. The Birmingham-born goalkeeper also played for Blues between 2017 and 2021. Following the final, Hampton took to Instagram to praise her teammates for their efforts in Australia.

She wrote: “We came so close and gave it our all, proud to be apart of this inspiring team! we all had the same dream but second in the world is still a remarkable achievement!

“To the fans thankyou so much for all the support back home and to those who travelled! this team has so much more to give and we will keep creating history and memories.”

Supporters across Birmingham had flocked to local pubs and bars for the 11am kick-off, with the game tipped to give a £185 million boost to the UK economy.

Despite their defeat, Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall said on BBC One that the future of women’s football in England is “very bright” and the Lionesses will “continue to break records and inspire generations of footballers”.

Former England striker, Ellen White, told the BBC: “This England side can be so proud of what they have done for this tournament, what they’ve done for women’s football, what they’ve done for our sport back home as well, inspiring a generation and inspiring and empowering women as well. England will be in finals again for sure.”