Strictly Winners Crowned in Spectacular Live Finale

This piece covers the outcome of the 2025 Strictly Come Dancing championship.

Ex- England footballer Karen Carney has been crowned this year's Strictly Come Dancing winner, emerging as the first footballer to claim the glitterball trophy.

She beat reality TV star Amber Davies and social media star George Clarke after securing the public vote in Saturday's grand finale.

Carney, who was dancing with pro partner Carlos Gu, remarked: "This is incredible, it's been the greatest privilege," before adding she was "overwhelmed".

It was an emotional night in the studio, as presenters Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly hosted the final for the last time - with the Queen among those paying tribute to the long-running hosts.

In a message presented by judge Craig Revel Horwood, the Queen said Daly and Winkleman's "kindness, empathy and pure joy" had been at the core of the show's success, adding: "On behalf of all viewers when I say you have been utterly fab-u-lous".

Following tradition, one of the dances in the grand finale was selected by the judges, one was their own favourite dance from the series, and the other was a freestyle routine.

The judges gave advisory scores but the public made the ultimate choice.

Carney and Gu executed routines including a freestyle to 'Inner Smile' by Texas, and an tango to 'Red Right Hand' by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.

They also performed a football-themed jive to 'One Way Or Another' by Blondie, garnering them a standing ovation - and their second perfect score of the night.

But the victorious duo faced fierce rivalry from the other remaining couples.

Amber Davies and her partner, Nikita Kuzmin, were the first to grace the dance floor.

The pair performed routines including a show dance to 'Rain On Me' by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, a Spanish-inspired dance to 'Dream On' by Aerosmith, and a jive to 'Proud Mary'.

In another performance, George Clarke and his partner Alexis Warr revisited their dramatic dance to 'Game of Survival' by Ruelle.

They also did their freestyle routine to 'Human' by The Killers, and a Viennese Waltz to 'Somebody to Love' by Queen.

But after weeks of ballroom dances, it was Carney and Gu's night as they won the public vote.

"I just want to say thank you to everybody that has supported our experience, and supported us," said Carney.

Gu told her she had "changed my life," commenting: "To the girls and boys watching at home, aim high and be confident and never give up."

Other memorable moments on the night included the majority of the contestants of 2025 returning for one more performance.

However, social media personality Thomas Skinner did not appear. He had alleged earlier that the vote that saw him leave the show was rigged.

A representative denied the claim, saying the show's audience vote was "externally monitored and verified to ensure complete fairness".

The group Five also performed a selection of their hits during the grand final.

Tess and Claudia's Last Final

Earlier this year, Daly and Winkleman made the shock revelation that they would be stepping down at the end of this year's series.

Daly has hosted since the inaugural series 21 years ago. Winkleman came on board in 2014, having hosted Strictly's companion program It Takes Two since 2004.

This was their final time presenting a Strictly final, and both were full of feeling as they signed off.

During the televised event, as well as the message from the Queen, there were messages from TV cook Mary Berry, members of the crew and fans of the show.

The Queen's message read: "It has often seemed to me that Strictly is not so much a show about dancing as about relationships: the connections forged, the struggles conquered and the joy shared in undertaking a joint challenge.

"Should that be the case, then perhaps yours has been the greatest Strictly partnership of all.

"The kindness, compassion and sheer joy you have projected with and from each other has been at the centre of the show's appeal."

Daly and Winkleman's final show will be the Christmas special, which is broadcast on 25 December.