England sweep Greece aside as Lauren James brace sets up Ukraine playoff

Published: 2026-10-13

England booked a Women’s World Cup qualifying playoff final against Ukraine with a commanding victory over Greece, turning the second leg into a showcase of their attacking quality after a more difficult first meeting.

Alessia Russo opened the scoring in the third minute, finishing after Lauren James drove forward and supplied the pass. James then struck twice in the first half, either side of Georgia Stanway’s header from a Lauren Hemp cross, as England converted four of their six first-half shots on target.

James’s first goal came from a controlled touch and a rising left-footed finish; her second was a close-range conversion of another Hemp delivery. She was substituted at half-time, while Russo completed her brace late on after running onto Keira Walsh’s pass, rounding goalkeeper Styliani Katergiannaki and rolling the ball into an empty net.

England controlled the contest after the break, with a Stanway finish ruled out following a narrow offside check. Lexi Potter also had a goal disallowed in the first half after a foul was called on Stanway. The result completed an 8-1 aggregate win over Greece, following England’s 3-1 first-leg victory, and sent Sarina Wiegman’s side through to face Ukraine in the next playoff round in November and December.

Ukraine advanced after beating Slovakia 4-1 on aggregate. England had already defeated Ukraine 9-1 on aggregate in their qualifying group earlier in the year, but the playoff final will determine which side reaches the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.