By OkayGoal 
In July 2025, we got to see a final between two of the best national teams out there: Spain and England. The 2025 Euro final wasn’t just a game where players faced off against each other. It was one where coaches also did the same. Sarina Weigman and Montse Tomé, facing off in the final, show their individual qualities and the effort they made to reach this stage. Each of them have their elite qualities, and each one’s coaching style led them to the final. It’s not an exaggeration when we say that Sarina Weigman and Montse Tome are two trailblazing characters in women’s soccer.
Sarina Weigman’s Legacy
Sarina Weigman doesn’t need an introduction; everyone knows her. At this moment, Sarina Weigman has appeared in five consecutive major tournament finals. This is a record that no other coach, whether male or female, has managed to achieve. Weigman has certainly set a lot of records. She began to turn heads when she led the Netherlands to the Euro 2017 title. This wasn’t just a personal achievement, but it was one for Dutch women’s football as a whole. It was the first major international title for them.
This title later led Weigman to be named Best FIFA Women’s Coach. She was also given a knighthood in the Order of Orange-Nassau. Her story with the Netherlands didn’t end yet. She also managed to lead them to the 2019 Women’s World Cup final. They may have lost, but reaching this stage showed that success was in Sarina Weigman’s blood. The success continued when she made the transition to England.
In 2021, Sarina Weigman took charge of England, and since then, she has been their savior. She managed to lead them to a win in the 2022 Women’s Euro. This was the first major trophy won by an English senior team, whether the men’s or women’s team. So she brought joy to an entire nation. The success didn’t stop here. Weigman then led England to the Women’s World Cup final in 2023. She may have lost against Spain, but she quickly got her revenge. When the two teams faced each other again in the 2025 Euro final, England came out as the winner. The penalty-shootout victory is another achievement written in Weigman’s legacy.
The Way Sarina Weigman Leads Teams
Sarina Weigman’s character isn’t the only thing that helps her achieve success; there is also her tactical approach. Her approach is one where you can clearly see mental strength and preparation for the unexpected. She might have high expectations of her players, but she still has this calm sense of leadership; this is a recipe for greatness. This calm leadership makes her players feel supported even when they are under pressure. She doesn’t add to their worry, but she helps them play through it.
“She’s such a calming presence at halftime. She just reinforced the things that we needed to tweak and do slightly differently,” said Esme Morgan, according to ESPN. Keira Walsh also said, “It makes a massive difference in the 95th minute when you’re losing 1-0, and you look to the side and she’s very calm. That speaks volumes of her as a manager.”
This way of leading is one reason why Sarina Weigman’s win rate with England exceeds 70%. While her tournament win rate in general is 84% according to ESPN. So she deserves to be named FIFA’s Best Women’s Coach and UEFA’s Woman Coach of the Year on several occasions. If there is one thing that Weigman chases, it would be excellence. According to The Sun, she believes that sometimes you need to give up your need to be liked in order to be successful. She is still liked despite all of this.
The Beginning of Montse Tomé’s Career
On the other hand, we have Spain’s Montse Tomé, who has proved herself on several occasions despite losing the final. As a player, Montse Tomé was a midfielder for several clubs, including Oviedo Moderno, Levante, and Barcelona. She won the league title while she was in the last two. Her coaching career’s beginning can be highlighted by her joining Spain’s staff as an assistant coach. She was part of the staff even when Spain managed to win the 2023 Women’s World Cup.
Montse Tomé Leading Spain
The last move in Montse Tomé’s career was becoming Spain’s head coach late in 2023. This made her the first woman to hold this position, and she immediately made an impact. She managed to win the inaugural Women’s Nations League Cup after defeating France in the final. Tome also led the national team to a fourth-place finish at the Paris Olympics. This is definitely impressive since it was their first appearance at the tournament. “Of course, we wanted to improve on the fourth place, but it was positive to be there and to compete against the very best,” said Tome, according to RFEF. So far, Tomé has won more games than she has lost.
Unfortunately, Montse Tomé’s success was put to a halt after she lost the Euro title. She still managed to lead them to the final after beating Germany in the semi-final; this was the team’s first win against Germany, as reported by AS. While Spain’s fans are surely upset about the loss, we can’t ignore that this is the best stage Spain has reached in the Euro. Their prior best was reaching the semi-final in 1997.
The Way Montse Tomé Leads Teams
Just like Sarina Weigman, Montse Tomé also has her own approach to games. Her tactics usually depend on possession, and this proved successful several times. “I also like to think about what spaces we can take advantage of, so I always think about the players, because they each have their own characteristics,” she told Coaches’ Voice about her playing style.
“I am a coach who believes firmly in comprehensive preparation before games. My coaching staff and I analyse how to approach each game to get it right. I really enjoy those moments before the game, and the training camps with the players,” Tomé also said.
Montse Tome Saying Goodbye to Spain
After Spain lost the Euro final, Montse Tome’s position wasn’t guaranteed anymore. Her contract with the Spanish Federation has been put in jeopardy since the final. Marca confirmed that the Spanish Federation will let go of the head coach. She could have done more if given the chance, but her effort is always going to be appreciated. After all, you don’t reach the Euros final if you are not a good coach.
Two Great Coaches
Despite Spain being prepared to let go of Montse Tomé, there is no doubt that she and Sarina Weigman are two great coaches. They gave us a grand final where we saw two female coaches going head-to-head. There is still a lack of women coaches in the game, but the Euro final signifies that things are changing. It shows everyone that we have great female coaches who bring their own playing style to the game. It will only be a matter of time before we see more female coaches leaving their impact on the game.
“I really love the medals but what I’m proud of most is that now young girls have perspective, young girls can play football and young girls can wear shirts [with players’ names on]. When you go to the grocery store and people tell you, ‘My daughter was wearing that shirt but my son is wearing that shirt now too’, we’ve changed society. That’s the change I’m proud of the most. I didn’t have opportunities. I have two daughters, they played football in mixed teams when they were younger, and it was normal. Things are changing, but there is still a long way to go,” Weigman said, according to The Sun. No matter what happens next in both coaches’ career, they have already changed a part of women’s soccer.
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