Which young players could light up Euro 2025?

In July 2022, as Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses were celebrating being crowned champions of Europe, Germany’s Lena Oberdorf was named the inaugural young player of the tournament.

Three years on and a new crop of players, from 16 countries, will arrive in Switzerland hoping to shine at this summer’s Women’s Euros.

Before England’s penultimate Women’s Nations League group game, all of the attention was on Mary Earps’ retirement. After the match, a different name dominated the headlines: Aggie Beever-Jones.

The forward seized her opportunity in the absence of injured duo Alessia Russo and Ella Toone, scoring a 33-minute hat-trick against Portugal.

Tipping her to make an impact at Euro 2025, former England goalkeeper Karen Bardsley praised her versatility, movement and goalscoring prowess.

“She can play on the right, left, and in central areas. She’s constantly on the move, hunting for the right opportunity to pounce on defenders,” she told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“She is rarely offside. She is a true goalscorer, putting herself about, making a nuisance of herself.”

Wales will make history this summer by competing in their first major women’s tournament and Carrie Jones, despite her tender years, is already well established in the squad.

Jones has been an international footballer for six years having made her Wales debut at 15 – before she was eligible to play for club side Cardiff City – and spent four seasons in the WSL with Manchester United, Leicester City and Bristol City followed by a move to Swedish side IFK Norrkoping in 2024.

A versatile forward player, she is commonly deployed on the left flank for Wales but can also play in central midfield or a lone striker.

In 2019, former Wales international Gwennan Harries tipped Jones to be “one of Wales’ best players over the next 10-20 years”.

At 21, Salma Paralluelo already boasts a heavyweight CV.

A member of the 2023 World Cup-winning squad, she started five of Spain’s seven matches, came off the bench to score in the quarter and semi-finals, and earned young player of the tournament honours. That triumph meant she became the first player to hold world titles at Under-17, Under-20 and senior level.

She has also won the 2024 Nations League, while domestically she is a two-time Champions League winner with Barcelona.

In 2024, she was the youngest player in the top 20 of The Guardian’s 100 best female footballers in the world and finished third in the Ballon d’Or standings for the last two seasons.

Paralluelo, who had to choose between football and athletics, is a physical winger who drives hard at defenders and possesses a prolific left foot.

At 19, Wieke Kaptein has already won multiple domestic trophies, first with FC Twente and now with Chelsea.

During the 2024-25 campaign, the central midfielder forced her way into Sonia Bompastor’s star-studded XI, starting seven of their 10 Champions League games, and was identified by BBC Sport as one of the unsung heroes of the Blues’ invincible WSL season thanks to her contributions in the middle of the pitch.

Bompastor has been full of praise for Kaptein’s work rate, stating: “She brings a lot of quality out of possession. She is really confident but also works hard off the ball. She works so hard for the team.”

Team-mate Kadeisha Buchanan added: “She’s a unique player. She’s cool, laid back. She shows that on the field – she’s very composed. She’s a fun, young talent.”

The second-youngest player in the Germany squad and set to play in her first major tournament, Franziska Kett has long been on the radar of national team head coach Christian Wuck, who described her as a dynamic defender.

The left-back made her debut for Bayern Munich in 2022 – one month before her 18th birthday – and has gone on to feature for the German champions in both the Frauen-Bundesliga and Women’s Champions League.

A member of the Under-19s squad which finished as runners-up at the European Championships in 2023, she was handed her senior debut in April 2025.

In a Barcelona squad brimming with top talent, you could be forgiven for not knowing Sydney Schertenleib’s name.

However, since moving to Spain from Grasshopper Zurich last summer, the 18-year-old has quickly established herself as a first-team regular, starting all but two of Barcelona’s league matches since the beginning of March and coming off the bench in both legs of their Champions League quarter-final against Wolfsburg.

Although she typically plays on the left side of a midfield or forward three for Barcelona, Switzerland boss Pia Sundhage has preferred to use her as a right-sided striker, yielding two goals in her first 10 appearances.

Sombath is one of a number of promising young French defenders looking to capitalise on the omission of the previously immovable Wendie Renard from the squad for the Euros.

Born in France to Thai parents, she joined Lyon aged 16 from rivals Paris St-Germain and 12 months later she made her senior debut alongside club legend Renard at centre-back in their opening game of the season.

Former Lyon manager Joe Montemurro said: “I think she’s going to become a special player. She has all the qualities to become a top defender.

“At a big club like Lyon, there are more experienced players, so she needs a little patience. But in the future, I think she’ll be a great player for the French national team.”

Comfortable at right-back or in central defence, Sombath made her France debut in November and was then paired alongside new captain Griedge Mbock in France’s 4-0 win over Switzerland in May.