As Sembrant smashed home the loose ball in the Belgium penalty area to give Sweden a last minute winner in their quarter final, a groan could be heard from certain corners of England, those who knew what this would mean. England would, once again, have to play Sweden. A fixture etched into the rock of tournaments past, a fixture sewn into the fabric of Women’s Football. And a fixture that has only ever gone one way.
A newcomer to the sport may find it very easy to underestimate Sweden, as it is instinctive to map your expectations of the men’s game onto their female counterparts. But to do so would overlook the success of Scandinavia on the women’s international stage, through the likes of Denmark, Norway, and of course, Sweden. It was they, on a muddy pitch in Luton, who won the first ever ‘official’ Women’s Euros, back in 1984. And to do so, they defeated England in the Final, on penalties. It triggered a parting of the ways, as whilst England faded into the background, Sweden, and by extension, the rest of Scandinavia, developed into a women’s football powerhouse. Sweden contested the final again in 1987 (after beating England in the Semis), losing to Norway. In every single Euros tournament, at least one of Sweden, Denmark, or Norway has made it to the Final Four.
When England finally started to back their side, they knew that Scandinavia and Germany would stand between them and success. Euro 2001 saw them play both Sweden and Germany in the group stage, and both ended disastrously. A comprehensive 5-0 dismantling by Sweden, followed by a 3-0 mauling by Germany, left them bottom of their group. 4 years later, at their home Euros, they faced Finland, Denmark and Sweden in their group stage. Whilst they were able to just scrape past the Fins 3-2, a 2-1 defeat to the Danes left their hopes riding on a showdown with Sweden. Again, just as in 1984, Sweden triumphed, winning 1-0 thanks to an early goal from Sjöström, knocking England out of their own tournament, leaving them again, bottom of their group.
Euro 2009 was hailed as the tournament where the Lionesses finally laid that ghost to rest. But whilst their 1-1 draw with Sweden was credible, the reality was that it enabled them to ‘game the system’, as England qualified from their group via the back door of a third-place finish and found themselves on the side of the draw which acted as an express ride to the final. Sweden went out to Norway, whilst England were given the luxury of beating Finland and the Netherlands. Yet despite that glorious run (a run that ended with a chastening 6-2 defeat by Germany in the final) and despite all of the improvements and investment in the team since, Sweden still maintain a grip over England that they have been unable to shake off. Even at the 2019 World Cup, after they lost to the USA in the Semi Finals, a still shaken England fell 2-1 to Sweden in the Bronze play-off, another Swedish setback to add to the ever expanding back-catalogue.
Whenever England have tried to better themselves, to progress further, Sweden have always been there to slam the door in their face, to knock them down a peg or two. England have never beaten Sweden at a major tournament, a record that is long overdue a termination. Yet this is an England side who are starting to make a habit of overcoming their ‘bogey’ sides, exorcizing demons from their past. At the 2015 World Cup, they finally defeated Germany to win Bronze. At Euro 2017, they overcame France to reach the Semi Finals. Sweden is next on their list, and what a glorious opportunity they now face to end that hoodoo. Twice at home, the Swedes have snuck in and stolen the family silver.
England now have a chance to avenge those losses and write their own piece of history. If the Lionesses triumph in Sheffield tomorrow, not only will they have made it to their third ever European Final, they will have also finally ended a curse spanning almost 4 decades and added more weight to the convincing argument that this will be their summer. Lose, and it will be yet another chapter of Swedish heartbreak to add to England’s past. Let us hope, this time, the Lionesses finally get their long-awaited happy ending, and bring a resolution to this tragic saga.
Written by Adam Salter.
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