Who are some of the potential breakout stars of Euro 2025?
This is a list of eight players chosen by us who we think could be potential breakout stars at Women’s Euro 2025.
Women’s Euro 2025 is a few days away now and one element of a major tournament build-up is to look at who could be some of the breakout stars over the next few weeks, with young players looking to shine on the international stage.
Back at Euro 2022, Lena Oberdorf was a star for Germany and went on to be named best young player in the aftermath of that tournament. Now three years on and it is time for more up-and-coming talents to showcase their talents.
In this list, I have written about eight players who could potentially be ones to look out for over the next few weeks.
You can let us know some of your choices for breakout stars at this upcoming tournament in our comments section!
Signe Gaupset
Age: 20
Position: Midfielder
Country: Norway
The young Norwegian midfielder is a player who has turned a few heads before and has been talked about for a while now as someone waiting to breakout and follow in the footsteps of other top international players to have played for Norway.
Gaupset often plays in central areas of the midfield and can operate well both on the defensive side of things and further up the pitch with attacking moments. She scored seven goals for SK Brann in their league campaign last year, and has started 2025 even more impressively with 10 goals in 14 league games, plus five assists to add that stat.
Her chances of starting in Norway’s midfield at these Euros may be low, as she has been somebody who makes appearances from the bench more often than not. She is competing with more established internationals currently in trying to get more minutes, so there is that challenge for Signe Gaupset to prove she is a player who is capable of having more of an impact at this early stage of her career.
Sydney Schertenleib
Age: 18
Position: Midfielder
Country: Switzerland
Swiss fans will be hoping for a very good tournament for their national side. With it, they will be hoping that one of their brightest young players can shine on the big stage. 18-year-old Sydney Schertenleib looks set to be a big part of their team for these Euros and hopefully for the foreseeable future.
She is a rising star who has shown glimpses of her potential already with Barcelona, managing four goal contributions in 18 appearances across Liga F and the Women’s Champions League with the Spanish club in the 2024/25 season. She isn’t a regular starter for Barcelona, but nonetheless it hasn’t stopped her being able to make an impact with them.
Some of her main qualities are her versatility as a midfielder, plus the fact that she can play as a forward if needed too, and there is a chance that could happen at this tournament. She brings good energy to the game and creativity that might be key for Switzerland in being able to progress through Group A.
Cecilía Rán Rúnarsdóttir
Age: 21
Position: Goalkeeper
Country: Iceland
If there’s a goalkeeper at Euro 2025 who has the chance to showcase her qualities it’s Iceland’s Cecilía Rán Rúnarsdóttir after a good season on loan at Serie A Femminile side Inter recently, where she impressed as not just one of the best performing keepers in the league, but also in Europe.
She kept 10 clean sheets in 23 league games as part of the Inter team that finished second and subsequently qualified for Europe. The 21-year-old ranked highly in goals saved per 90 minutes (0.39), more than the likes of Phallon Tullis-Joyce and Daphne Van Domselaar.
The 21-year-old has been shown to have good reflexes when needing to make saves from close range and her height also helps her out a lot as she is 6-foot-2. Having started all of Iceland’s games in the Nations League this year, she feels established as their number one keeper, so now is a chance for her to showcase why that is and prove that she is going to be a top goalkeeper for years to come.
Veerle Buurman
Age: 19
Position: Defender
Country: Netherlands
The centre-back is competing at her first senior international tournament with the Netherlands and is one that many are tipping to be a breakout star after impressing this season at PSV Eindhoven and showing a good level of confidence and composure at such a young age.
She has received praise for being a good player when in possession of the ball, which lends to her levels of confidence when the pressure is on in those defending situations when they need to keep hold of the ball.
She was promoted to the senior side last year after impressing at the U20s World Cup, and in only her second senior appearance, she scored the opening goal of the game against the USA. She’s made five appearances overall for the senior national side and has started the last few games as well, with head coach Andries Jonker putting a lot of faith in Buurman to handle being in from the start and partner Dominique Janssen in a central defensive partnership.
Michelle Agyemang
Age: 19
Position: Forward
Country: England
Having broken into the England senior team in the last international break, Michelle Agyemang will be hoping to make another impact for her national side, especially after doing so in her senior debut by scoring a sublime goal with her first few touches of the ball after coming on off the bench.
The aim she gives herself whenever she plays is to score goals, and she has been praised by ex-professionals who have seen her development first hand. Former Arsenal and Scotland defender Jen Beattie has gone on record describing Agyemang as a ‘natural goalscorer’. Her development has benefited from the growing opportunities she has had in being able to play a lot more consistently this past season on loan at Brighton, and take her opportunities to impress and improve her all-round game too.
The future is bright for the 19-year-old forward and while it would be expected that her game time is limited due to being behind Alessia Russo for a starting spot. But her chance could arise in a scenario where England need someone to come off the bench and make an immediate impact, given the fact that she has proven already that she can do so.
Ellen Wangerheim
Age: 20
Position: Forward
Country: Sweden
Not just a potential breakout star at this tournament, but also a player to watch for Sweden at these European Championships is Hammarby forward Ellen Wangerheim. She has been somebody who has already caught the attention of a few clubs in Europe, having been linked with a move away from the Swedish club after an impressive league campaign with them so far this year.
In 11 appearances this year in the Damallsvenskan, Wangerheim has 10 goals and two assists. Her tally in the previous year was 13 goals in 25 matches, just to show how well she has begun 2025 with Hammarby, so it’s understandable why there is interest in the forward. The hope will be that she can be called upon when needed, if Sweden needs a different kind of threat in trying to score goals over these next few games.
Her main strengths are her movement and pace, plus she has proven to be good at finishing her chances and is also strong in the air, which adds to the different kind of option she could be for Sweden if afforded the chances to play over some of the more experienced forward options that Sweden do have.
Alice Sombath
Age: 21
Position: Defender
Country: France
Sombath is a player with a lot of potential to be France’s next top defender, and what an opportunity it is for her at these European Championships to be able to showcase her talents, plus with France legend Wendie Renard omitted from the squad, it has increased her chances of playing regularly for the national team.
After making her senior professional debut, interestingly enough alongside Renard as her teammate at Lyon in the opening game of a league season, immediately, eyes were on her as someone for the future. She can also play in multiple areas of the defence, with a good versatility in being able to play at right-back as well as in central defence.
She has gained a lot of minutes at such a young age and comes off the back of a good season at Lyon and having totalled up 59 appearances for the French side in her short career so far. She only recently made her debut with the France women’s national team in November last year in a victory over Switzerland. She’s likely to be competing with Maelle Lakrar for the starting place alongside captain Griedge Mbock.
Selina Cerci
Age: 25
Position: Forward
Country: Germany
I’m ending this list with Germany’s Selina Cerci, who at 25-years-old is somebody that we wouldn’t be touting as a player with high potential or as one for the future. But her form in 2025 and this past season as a whole, plus the impact she has quickly had with very few caps for the German national team certainly makes her one who could have a real breakout tournament.
She made her senior debut with Germany back in 2022, but after suffering an ACL injury, she missed the last two major tournaments, which halted her international career. However, with the transition that Germany have undergone in the last year, she has found her way back in, and she has hit the ground running with a hat-trick against Scotland and a goal and assist against Austria.
There’s also the matter of her scoring 16 goals this past season with Hoffenheim in the Frauen Bundesliga being a major part of their frontline. Only Dutch forward Lineth Beerensteyn scored more than Cerci in the German league this season. Her finishing has become a big part of her game and whether she is someone who starts for Germany or not, she will be looking to make an impact.
A reminder again that you can let us know some of your choices for breakout stars at these European Championships in our comments section below!