England players land in London after 'falling short' of Euros win

England players arrive in London after a disappointing Euro final defeat that ended the chances of football coming home.

England footballers have landed at Stansted Airport after they "fell short" in the Euro final in a 2-1 defeat to Spain on Sunday.

Players arrived to grey skies in London after losing their second consecutive Euro final, starting the tournament with unconvincing performances and criticism from fans and pundits.

They were greeted with applause as they left their hotel in Berlin on Monday morning.

England captain Harry Kane wrote on X that England "ultimately" fell short of their target and they "will have to live with that".

"Heartbroken we couldn’t achieve what we worked so hard to. It was a long tough tournament and I’m so proud of the boys and staff for getting to the final," he said.

"Ultimately we fell short of our target and will have to live with that but as we always do we will pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down and be ready to fight again in an England shirt."

Gareth Southgate waved to fans as he left Berlin amid speculation about his future as England manager.

The Three Lions arriving at Stansted Airport

The England boss said after his team's "incredibly tough" loss that "now is not the time" to decide his future as England manager.

It was a slow first half for both sides, but it was clear Spain's clean passes and their control of possession would eventually lead to Nico William's 47th-minute goal assisted by 17-year-old Lamine Yamal.

Cole Palmer had cancelled out Williams’ opener shortly after coming off the bench, only for Mikel Oyarzabal to seal Spain a 2-1 win with a late goal extending England’s 58-year wait for a major trophy.

Southgate said it was "incredibly tough" to lose in another Euro final after starting the tournament with unconvincing performances and criticism from fans and pundits.

"To lose a final is incredibly tough... Firstly, congratulations to Spain. They were the best team in the tournament. They were the best team tonight," Southgate said.

"Our players have been incredible, they’ve given everybody some incredible nights. They couldn’t have given any more in terms of their effort, their desire, their character. “Tonight we fell short, we didn’t keep the ball well enough. We actually defended well in the first half in particular, limited their possibilities, but we couldn’t play through the counter press well enough."

The Prince and Princess of Wales commended the team's "teamwork, grit and determination" on X alongside a photo of Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis wearing personalised England shirts

The England manager has overseen a marked change in fortunes since being pushed into the job in 2016, but he has decisions to make with his contract expiring in December.

“I don’t think now is a good time to make a decision like that,” Southgate told ITV. “I’m going to talk to the right people and, yeah, it’s just not for now.”

In a press conference, he was pushed by reporters to discuss his future as England manager.

He said: "Look, I totally understand the question and understand that you need to ask it. “But I need to have those conversations with important people behind the scenes. I’m obviously not going to discuss that publicly first. “It’s hard to reflect so soon after a defeat like this. Of course, to take England to two finals has never been done but yeah, we came here to win and we haven’t been able to do that.”

Southgate’s side could not get to grips with a focused Spain side at the end of his fourth – and quite possibly final – tournament in charge.

He said: "We actually didn’t really use the ball well until we were a goal down and then we had a decent period in the game. “We got the equaliser but I think the physical toll of the issues we came into the tournament with, the extra-time periods and then tonight, having as little of the ball as we did, ultimately that took a big toll.

“I think was part of the reason why at the end, you know, legs started to go and you start to make mistakes. “But, you know, the players have pushed it till the 85th minute as the final game. They’ve been incredible, really.”

A distraught Southgate will have plenty of time to mull over and learn from this defeat if he stays in charge and leads England into the 2026 World Cup.

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