England LionessesTeam·England Lionesses forward Lauren Hemp has voiced her belief that the team will rebound from their recent 4-0 loss to Spain in a FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 qualifying fixture. The defeat, which occurred on Friday, June 5, 2026, marks England's heaviest under coach Sarina WiegmanCoach·Sarina Wiegman and their most substantial in 17 years, casting doubt on their automatic qualification for the tournament.
Spain's dominant performance has propelled them to the top of their qualifying group, League A, Group 3, ending England's previously perfect record of three wins from three matches. The result means Spain now holds the sole automatic qualification spot for the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil, largely due to their superior head-to-head record against England.
Lauren Hemp addressed the team's response to the setback, emphasizing the learning opportunity it presents.
"It's a disappointing result for us as players. But in games like that, you probably learn the most. And it's obviously not very nice losing how we did and by as much as we did, but it's important for us to then look back and review it and that's what we did."— Lauren Hemp
She highlighted the squad's unity in the face of adversity. "As a group, we've got together, we've come together and stuck together and I think that's the most important thing about this team. It's how we come together, especially after a tough result like that." Hemp remains optimistic about the team's capacity for recovery, stating, "But we've shown in the past that when we've had results like that, we've been able to come back and bounce back and that's what we plan on doing tomorrow.”
Reflecting on the nature of professional sport, Hemp added, "It's not nice being on the end of a defeat but it's important for us not to panic because we've been in these situations before - we've lost games - and as professional players you're always going to lose games but it's where you get the biggest learning and it's always looking forward and onto the next and making sure we put those wrongs right."
The recent encounter with Spain adds another chapter to a competitive rivalry. Earlier in the 2025/26 season, England secured a crucial 1-0 victory over Spain at WembleyVenue·Wembley in April 2026, with Lauren Hemp scoring the decisive early goal in a World Cup qualifier. However, Spain had previously defeated England 2-1 in a Nations League fixture in June 2025. Notably, England had triumphed over Spain in the Euro 2025Competition·Euro 2025 final, winning on penalties after a 1-1 draw to secure their second consecutive European Championship title.
England's head coach Sarina WiegmanCoach·Sarina Wiegman acknowledged the difficulty of the recent defeat but indicated her team has already shifted focus to their upcoming match. Wiegman is keen for her players to concentrate on controllable aspects in their next fixture against UkraineTeam·Ukraine.
With automatic qualification now a challenging prospect, England faces the likelihood of navigating a play-off route in October to secure their place in Brazil, which would involve an additional four matches. Their final group stage match is scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2026, against UkraineTeam·Ukraine at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Lauren Hemp scores for England against the Netherlands at Wembley Stadium, December 2023. Credit: Pro Sports Images/IMAGO
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