London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Aug 25, 2025

Euro 2020: What to Watch as England Faces Italy

Euro 2020: What to Watch as England Faces Italy

The Euro 2020 final has been a month in the making, and features a showdown of two of Europe’s biggest names: England and Italy.

Italy, seeking its first major championship since the 2006 World Cup, and England, which needs to go back 40 years further for its defining moment, will meet on Sunday in the final of the Euro 2020 soccer championship.

Don’t miss a moment at the Tokyo Olympics: Sign up for our daily email update with the biggest highlights, the latest medal count and the stories you won’t see on TV.

The game, at London’s Wembley Stadium, kicks off at 3 p.m. Eastern. Here’s what you need to know.

How can I watch?

The Euro 2020 final is being broadcast in the United States by ESPN and Univision, and via the ESPN+ and TUDN streaming platforms.

To find out where you can watch in other countries, search this list on UEFA’s website.

Has either team ever won the Euros?

Italy has, but only once, in 1968. It is much prouder of the World Cup section of its trophy case, which includes titles in 1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006. Italy last played in the European Championship final in 2012, a game it would rather forget.

England? It has never reached the European final, or any other major final for that matter, since it lifted the World Cup in 1966.

How did the teams get here?

Expect England to be quite comfortable at Wembley, its national stadium and the site of five of its six games in the Euros. That home-field advantage has been criticized by those who think UEFA, European soccer’s governing body and the tournament’s organizer, had its thumb on the scale for an important tournament partner.

The problem with that theory is that it applied to the three other semifinalists — Italy, Denmark and Spain — who also played their first three games on home soil. Did that lack of travel play a role in their success? Probably. But did they have to win the games on the field to make it this far? Absolutely.

England, in fact, did that quite comfortably, beating Croatia (1-0), tying Scotland (0-0) and then the Czech Republic (1-0) in the group stage. A 2-0 win over Germany in the round of 16 exorcised some demons, and Ukraine, thumped by 4-0, was a mere speed bump in the quarterfinals. Five games, and a place in the semifinals, and the English had yet to allow a goal.

That left Denmark, the neutrals’ favorite and the only team to score against England in the entire tournament, as the last hurdle to the final. But the Danes — dragging badly in extra time after a side trip to Baku, Azerbaijan, in the quarterfinals — were swept aside by a late Harry Kane penalty.

Italy, like England, opened with three group-stage games at home and breezed through them: Turkey (3-0), Switzerland (3-0) and Wales (1-0) proved to be little trouble.

Italy needed extra time to beat Austria in the round of 16, but avoided it while stunning Belgium, the world’s top-ranked team and the tournament favorite, in the quarterfinals in Munich.

In the semifinals on Tuesday, Spain traded punches with the Italians through regulation and two extra-time periods before falling in a penalty-kick shootout.

Tell me something to say so I can sound smart.

“Can you believe that England hadn’t allowed a goal in the entire tournament until the semifinals, a streak of more than 720 minutes without conceding for goalkeeper Jordan Pickford? That broke a record that had stood since the days of Gordon Banks. Gordon Banks!”

“Italy is unbeaten in their last 33 matches in all competitions (27-0-6), its longest such streak ever.”

Are the starting lineups set?

The starting lineups won’t be official until an hour before kickoff, but don’t expect the managers, England’s Gareth Southgate and Italy’s Roberto Mancini, to mess with what’s worked so far.

Here are some projected teams if the coaches, as expected, leave well enough alone:

England: Jordan Pickford; Kyle Walker, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw; Declan Rice, Kalvin Phillips; Bukayo Saka, Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling; Harry Kane.

Italy: Gianluigi Donnarumma; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini, Emerson Palmieri; Nicolò Barella, Jorginho, Marco Verratti; Federico Chiesa, Ciro Immobile, Lorenzo Insigne.

Wasn’t there another big final this weekend?

Yes. That was the Copa América, the South American championship. Argentina beat Brazil, 1-0, in the final on Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro, delivering the first senior title of Lionel Messi’s glittering career. Read more about that match here.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
×