Why one extra day could be secret to a Wiegman triumph

History and science show playing their semi-final one day before Spain's should be a key advantage for England

- Tom Garry

What do the past three Women's World Cups, the past three men's World Cups and the past four men's European Championships have in common with this summer's men's Club World Cup? The answer may give England fans an extra glimmer of hope for Sunday's Euro 2025 final because all of those competitions were won by the team who contested the first semi-final, 24 hours earlier than their opponents in the final.

Most women's football tournaments used to schedule the semi-finals for the same day but, since that began to change about 20 years ago, it has been a trend in international tournaments for the winners to have come from the first semi-final. As the Lionesses prepare to meet Spain, who came through their semi-final against Germany a day later than England's comeback win over Italy, it begs the question: how much of an advantage could it offer to Sarina Wiegman's team?

Darren Robinson, a performance specialist and accredited sports psychologist who holds the Uefa pro licence coaching qualification, told the Guardian: "Having that extra time, from a physiology point of view, helps with muscle recovery; you'll have a reduction in soreness with an extra 24 hours. Particularly in a multi-sprint sport like football, you do generally have a lot of muscle soreness; it's multi-sprint, multi-turn, jumping, landing and all of these things create extension forces that cause muscle soreness, so that extra 24 hours helps a team be a bit fresher.