The UEFA Women’s European Championship kicked off Wednesday with two drama-filled matches in Group A, beginning the highly anticipated continental tournament with a bang. Finland upset a 10-player Iceland, while Norway came back to defeat hosts Switzerland 2-1, setting up more drama to come.
The day’s marquee matchup featured the hosts, Switzerland, taking on Norway at St. Jakob-Park in Basel, Switzerland. It’s a good sign for the rest of the tournament that the home fans turned up in massive numbers for Switzerland’s first match — the crowd of 34,063 was a record for a women’s game in Switzerland inside the stadium with a capacity of 34,250.
“It was a goosebump moment; everyone had Swiss jerseys on,” Switzerland midfielder Géraldine Reuteler said. “Everyone was just smiling, just beaming; it was so much pleasure to play here for the fans – they made a great atmosphere.”
“I think these are the moments we’re all playing football for,” Swiss captain Lia Wälti said. “Already, while we were singing the national anthem, I had tears in my eyes. It was something we said that we’re only going to experience once in our lives, and we have to enjoy it. And I think today we did enjoy it over the 90 minutes.”
Both teams exited the past two editions of the EUROs in the group stage and are looking to turn things around this year — Switzerland as the host nation and Norway as the team of talented superstars that has consistently underperformed at major tournaments.
The game began well for Switzerland, who held a 1-0 lead after a dominant first half and a goal from Nadine Riesen.
They seemed to start the second half with the same kind of fire but their fortunes were reversed in minutes. In the 54th minute, Vilde Bøe Risa’s corner kick delivery was met by a powerful header from Ada Hegerberg, tying the game. Just four minutes later, Norway took the lead when Carolina Graham Hansen played in a low ball that was turned into the net by Swiss defender Julia Stierli.
After Hegerberg dragged a penalty kick attempt wide in the 70th minute, Switzerland still had a chance to take a point from the game, but a 90th-minute point-blank block preserved the upset.
“I think it was a very even game. I think we almost had more chances than Norway. We would have, in my opinion, deserved a little bit more tonight,” Wälti said. “So it’s unlucky for us, but I think we got carried by the fans today. It was an unbelievable experience playing in front of a home crowd. I’m proud of the performance, but it’s unlucky with the result.”
The result made Norway the first team to win against a Women’s EURO host in their opening match since the group stage was introduced in 1997. It is also a good sign for Norway that Hegerberg got on the scoresheet as her 50th career international goal was also her first at a Women’s EURO since 2013 — they will need her scoring goals if they hope to make a deep tournament run this summer.
The day began however with Finland, the lowest-ranked team in the group at No. 26, defeating Iceland, the highest-ranked team at No. 14. Finland could’ve scarcely wished for a better start to the tournament, as they were winless in their previous eight Women’s EURO matches.
The first half was slow, but things quickly heated up in the second half. Iceland had their chances but were dealt a devastating blow when Hildur Antonsdóttir received two yellow cards in the span of six minutes, forcing Iceland to play down a player from the 58th minute on. It was a questionable call made by VAR that commentators struggled to identify as a card-worthy foul.
Finland took advantage, and Katariina Kosola scored the opening goal of the 2025 Women’s EURO in the 70th minute with a beautiful strike into the top corner. Her fourth international goal held up as the game winner.
“It’s been 16 years since Finland last won at a major tournament, when the Women’s EURO was played in Finland in 2009,” Finland head coach Marko Saloranta said. “Since then, we’ve had no victories at the 2013 and 2022 tournaments. I’m very satisfied to start with three points.”
It was also a landmark game for Chicago Stars defender Natalia Kuikka who made her 100th international appearance for Finland.
For Iceland, this is a start they will hope to forget and quickly recuperate from. Captain Glódís Viggósdóttir had to be substituted at halftime for what she later confirmed was stomach illness that she’s had for a few days. Iceland will hope she recovers in time for their July 7 matchup against Switzerland. At the very least, Iceland will be without their 29-year-old box-to-box defensive midfielder Antonsdóttir, who is an incessant runner and ball-winner.
The Icelandic player to watch for National Women’s Soccer League fans is Sveindís Jane Jónsdóttir as the 24-year-old versatile attacker is set to join Angel City after this tournament. One of Iceland’s most successful and popular players, the young player has a lot of weight on her shoulders leading the attack.
“We will bounce back – I’m not scared about that,” Jónsdóttir said. “I know we will do better in the next game. We have to.”
