The Lionesses landed at Heathrow this morning after their World Cup defeat – but left waiting fans disappointed after leaving through a private exit.
England’s players left Sydney more than 24 hours before landing at Heathrow at around 6.20am on Tuesday morning.
Waiting fans had carried signs and gathered in the airport to greet the Women’s World Cup runners-up, with hopes raised when the team’s bags were wheeled through Terminal 3’s arrivals hall.
BBC commentator and former player Alex Scott was also spotted walking through the airport, but members of the team itself were nowhere to be seen.
Airport staff eventually told waiting fans the team had left already.
Joanne Bruce, 51, travelled from Cambridgeshire at 10.30pm last night with her niece and sister, in the hope of thanking the team for their performance.
“We haven’t slept, we have just laughed and joked,” she said.
“It was just the three of us to start with. My sister was like ‘I really want to go early’.”
She added other fans “didn’t come until about four o’clock this morning”.
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“We have now got a car parking ticket of £70-80, maybe more.”
Image: England fans await the arrival of the England Women’s team at London Heathrow Airport
Image: Airport staff with luggage pass through arrivals
The team lost 1-0 at a packed-out Stadium Australia in Sydney in the World Cup final on Sunday, failing to repeat their success at Euros 2022.
It was Spain’s first major international trophy – and England’s first competitive defeat under manager Sarina Wiegmanin two years.
What’s next for the team?
The squad will regroup next month for its first tilt at the newly-formed UEFA Women’s Nations League – with their first match against Scotland taking place at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland on 22 September.
The final of the league will determine which European nations qualify for the women’s football tournament at the 2024 Paris Olympics, with both the winners and runners-up qualifying for the Games.
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How the world reacted
The Nations League and the return of the Women’s Premier League the following month will provide an early chance to see if there is a World Cup bounce in public interest in the women’s game.
Thousands have rallied to sign a petition calling on Nike to make a replica of Mary Earps’ shirt.
The England goalkeeper was voted the best keeper at the tournament and saved a penalty in the final, and Google Trends found online searches for her shirt rose 257% in a week.
More than 73,000 people have signed a petition after the manufacturer failed to include her kit in its selection of replica shirts printed with the names of the outfield players.
Nike has said it will re-think its approach in the future.
The prime minister and the Prince of Wales, who is president of the Football Association, were both criticised for not flying to Australia to see the squad play in the final.
A minister said Rishi Sunak “would have loved to have been there” but was too busy to go.
Education Minister Claire Coutinho told Sky News there was sufficient high-level representation at the match, as both the foreign secretary and sport secretary were in the stands.
“I know that the prime minister would have loved to have been there but he’s also got a huge amount of work to do,” Ms Coutinho said.
She denied that Mr Sunak would have gone if it had been the men’s team, saying “his schedule is so busy”.
The prime minister said he watched the game at his local pub in Northallerton and praised the Lionesses for leaving “an incredible set of memories” and inspiring “a whole generation of youngsters”.
A man has died after suffering cardiac arrest onboard a boat attempting to reach the UK.
The vessel turned back towards Equihen beach on the French coast yesterday morning.
A nurse tried to resuscitate the man but was unsuccessful.
Image: Pic: PA
French authorities have now launched an investigation into the circumstances.
A spokesperson for Doctors Without Borders, also known as MSF, has criticised authorities on both sides of the Channel.
Jacob Burns said: “Yet again we have a tragedy in the Channel, that is the consequence of the deadly, costly and ineffective security policies implemented by the UK and France.”
Image: Pic: PA
Later on Saturday, a lifeboat carried migrants who have made the voyage into the Port of Dover.
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Photographs showed them huddled under blankets and orange life jackets on board.
“The opportunity of tomorrow and what’s on offer is the best thing in football,” the England captain said. “I think we don’t necessarily carry the weight of it and how much it means to people, but we’re aware of it because it means the same to us.”
So often they were only watching other nations making finals.
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England’s first was the men winning the 1966 World Cup.
Image: England manager Sarina Wiegman reacts to defeat against Spain at the Women’s World Cup final in 2023. Pic: Reuters
Image: Lauren James looks dejected after their World Cup defeat, but is confirmed fit for Sunday’s revenge match against Spain. Pic: Reuters
Now, in Basel, comes the chance for revenge against Spain – even though no one in the England camp is saying that, publicly at least, in Switzerland.
Especially knowing how challenging a task it is coming up again against Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putella – the recent winners of football’s biggest individual honours.
Image: England fans celebrating after England beat Italy to reach the finals. Pic: Reuters
Image: Given England’s history against Spain, it could be a nerve-wracking time for England fans. File pic: Action Images/Reuters
But this is Spain’s first Euros final.
And there is some fear from the world champions at England’s grit and resolve to produce comebacks late in the quarter-finals and semi-finals – with 19-year-old Michelle Agyemang’s goals integral to the fightbacks.
Image: England celebrate their semi-final win against Italy to reach the finals. Pic: Reuters
Image: Michelle Agyemang has propelled England to the Euro 2025 final with two vital goals. Pic: AP
Spain captain Irene Paredes reflected yesterday on how the Lionesses can flip a result late on.
But she was also discussing how their World Cup win was tarnished by the on-pitch kiss that led to former Spanish federation president Luis Rubiales being convicted of a sexual assault on striker Jenni Hermoso.
It sparked a wider clamour in Spain for improved rights and respect for women.
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Spain’s players struggle for respect
“Since then [2023] we took big steps forward,” Paredes said.
“I think this idea is disappearing from society. I still believe we have to continue opening doors… we’re a reference for boys and girls in society, but we still have things to do.”
It is a reminder that while tonight is about collecting silverware, both England and Spain know that emerging as champions can drive further growth in women’s football back home.
Amid it all, they’ll try to savour just what reaching a final means and how rare they are – until recently for English and Spanish women.
A woman who thought she was being injected with Botox was left unable to swallow and doctors thought she had suffered a stroke – after she contracted a life-threatening illness from a potentially illegal product.
Nicola Fairley is one of dozens of people who have developed botulism linked to unlicensed anti-wrinkle injections.
She had the procedure done with her regular beautician after winning a Facebook competition for three areas of “Botox”.
Image: Nicola Fairley
“Within two or three hours my forehead and the sides of my eyes had started to freeze,” Nicola says.
“At first I thought ‘amazing’, that’s what I wanted – then it just carried on.”
Nicola was eventually sent to A&E in Durham, where she met several other patients who all had similar symptoms.
Doctors were stumped. “They thought I’d had a stroke,” she says.
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“We all had problems with our eyes, some of us with our breathing. I couldn’t swallow – they put me on nil by mouth because they were worried I would choke in the waiting room.”
Image: Doctors were worried Nicola could choke after she was injected with a suspected illegal product
It turns out all of the patients had recently had anti-wrinkle injections containing botulinum toxin.
Health officials believe they were imported, illegal products.
Botulism – the disease they caused – is so rare many doctors never see it in their entire careers.
It can cause symptoms including slurred speech and breathing problems, and can be deadly.
The disease is so unusual, and so many cases were coming in, that doctors exhausted their stocks of anti-toxin and had to ask hospitals as far away as London to get more.
The UK Health Security Agency has so far confirmed 38 cases of botulism linked to cosmetic toxin injections, but Sky News has been told of several more.
The outbreak began in the North East but cases have now been seen in the East of England and East Midlands as well.
There are only a handful of legal botulinum toxin products in the UK – of which Botox is one.
But cosmetic treatments are largely unregulated, with anyone allowed to inject products like fillers and toxins without any medical training.
Cheap, illegal products imported from overseas are easily available.
Image: Dr Steven Land
‘It’s the Wild West’
Dr Steven Land runs Novellus Aesthetics clinic in Newcastle upon Tyne. He worked for decades as an emergency medicine doctor before moving into aesthetics.
He says he has been warning health officials of an outbreak for years.
“It’s the Wild West,” Dr Land told Sky News.
“Because anyone can do this, there is a lack of knowledge around what is legal, what’s not legal, what is okay to be injected.
“These illegal toxins could have 50 units, 5,000 units or rat poison – there could be anything in there.”