Why England missed out on automatic World Cup spot

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, England's only defeat was away from home against world champions Spain By Emma Sanders BBC Sport women’s football news reporter at Hill Dickinson Stadium Published 2 minutes ago England beat Ukraine 3-0 on Tuesday night, but it did not matter what they did as automatic qualification for the 2027 Women's World Cup was out of their hands. The Lionesses needed Iceland to do them a favour in the other group match, but Spain showed their superiority in Reykjavik with a thumping 6-1 victory. It means Sarina Wiegman's side are heading for the play-offs, while world champions Spain have booked their place at next year's tournament in Brazil. Spain topped the League A3 group thanks to a better head-to-head record against England, who finished runners-up. They both had home wins against each other, but England's was a 1-0 victory while Spain enjoyed a 4-0 win on Friday against below-par visitors. "The competition in Europe is really high," said Wiegman. "What I'm disappointed about is that we win five games, we have 15 points and we're in a group with the world champions and then you can't qualify. "I'm happy with the performance tonight - but not the result of us having to go into the play-offs. That's just the way it is. We will get ready for it." England bound for World Cup play-offs despite win against Ukraine What happens next for England? England's fate will depend on their success in the play-offs. They must get through two rounds of home and away ties against European opposition. England will be seeded in the first round and drawn against one of the League C group winners, or one of the two best-ranked League C runners-up. England will host the second leg. Possible opponents include Lithuania, Kosovo, Hungary, Greece, Romania, Belarus, Croatia and Kazakhstan. Providing they come through that test, England will then need to progress through a second two-legged tie, with the successful teams assured of places in the World Cup finals. The draws for both play-off rounds are scheduled for Thursday, 18 June, with matches to be played in October, November and December. What it means for England is that they have less time to work on preparations for the World Cup and there will be pressure on them to deliver in October or they could miss out entirely. While they remain heavily favoured to progress from the play-offs, they could have used the autumn international break to play friendly matches and try new things. Players who are fighting for a place in the starting XI may not have as many opportunities to stake a claim, though Wiegman said she is keeping her options open. "We're always following players and we have conversations about that. Of course, players know where they stand and why we would select them or not," she said. "When I think you're the best player, I will pick you. That is what it is all about. I want to pick the best players that I think can compete at the highest level. "If you're a younger pla