Spain beats Germany to retain Women's Nations League title

MADRID (AP) — Clàudia Pina scored twice and Germany crumbled as Spain won the Women’s Nations League final with a 3-0 victory in the second leg Tuesday.

Vicky López also scored after Pina finally broke the deadlock after an hour played with Germany stubbornly hanging on as Spain had done in the first leg, a 0-0 draw in Kaiserslautern on Friday.

Spain was without three-time Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmatí, who broke her leg in training on Sunday and will be out for five months.

López took Bonmatí’s place and Spain dominated from the start. Esther González swept the ball just past the post and Mariona Caldentey forced a save from Ann-Katrin Berger early on as the fans roared encouragement.

Nearly 56,000 flag-waving supporters attended the match at Atlético Madrid’s Metropolitano Stadium, easily a record for the Spanish team at home. Many children were also present on a cold night in the Spanish capital. None of the supporters seemed to mind the cold with most staying in their seats long after the final whistle.

González tried her luck with an acrobatic scissors kick as Spain maintained its dominance. Mariona, López, and Mariona again all had good chances before the break, with Berger doing well to deny the latter.

Nicole Anyomi had a rare chance for Germany in a one-on-one with Cata Coll before the halftime whistle, only to drag her shot wide of the right post.

“That has to go in, and she had another one in the box in the second half,” Germany coach Christian Wuck said. “That’s the difference between us and the technically gifted Spanish players.”

Pina got the party underway in the 61st when she breezed past a German defender and played a one-two with Mariona before beating Berger with a low shot. Berger got her hand to the ball but couldn’t stop its progress inside the right post.

The 19-year-old López scored seven minutes later when she cut in from the right and unleashed a curling shot inside the far post.

Pina sealed the win in the 74th after getting a gift of the ball from Germany’s Janina Minge. The Barcelona forward set off for goal and let fly from around 20 meters (yards) past the despairing Berger.

It was only Spain’s second win over old foe Germany. The previous came at the European Championship last summer when Bonmatí scored in extra time for a 1-0 win in the semifinals. Spain went on to lose to England on penalties in the final.

That was the only disappointment after reaching the finals of the last four major tournaments. Spain beat England in the 2023 Women’s World Cup and bettered France in the 2024 Women’s Nations League. Tuesday’s win over Germany makes it three wins from four finals.

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AP Sports Writer Ciarán Fahey contributed from Berlin.

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