The European lion (Panthera leo europaea or Panthera leo tartarica) could be an extinct subspecies of lion that inhabited southern Europe until historic times. This population is generally considered part of the Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica), but others consider it a separate subspecies, the European lion (Panthera leo europaea). They also could possibly have been the last remnants of the cave lion (Panthera leo spelaea).

Two prehistoric lions lived in Europe, namely the Early Middle Pleistocene European cave lion, Panthera leo fossilis, and the Upper Pleistocene European cave lion, Panthera leo spelaea.

The lion is reported by Herodotus to have inhabited northern Greece in historic times. This was the northernmost of the subspecies of lion until its extinction. Its habitat was the Mediterranean and temperate forests of the area, with prey that included the wisent, elk, aurochs, deer, and other European ungulates.^{[citation needed]}

The European Lion was similar in size to the African Lion, standing about 4 feet (1.2 m) at the shoulder. Males ranged in weight between 180kg and 200kg , while females were smaller.

The white lion is occasionally found in wildlife reserves in South Africa and is a rare colour mutation of the Kruger subspecies of lion (Panthera leo krugeri). It has been perpetuated by selective breeding in zoos around the world. White lions are not yet a separate subspecies and they have been said to be indigenous to the Timbavati region of South Africa for centuries, although the earliest recorded sighting in this region was 1938. Regarded as divine by locals, white lions first came to public attention in the 1970s in Chris McBride's book The White Lions of Timbavati. Up until 2009, when the first pride of white lions was reintroduced to the wild, it was widely believed that the white lion could not survive in the wild. It is for this reason that, now, a large part of the population of white lions are in zoos. Another large part, however, are bred in camps, for canned hunting trophies.

It is hard to determine exactly how many white lions there are today, because they are held in captive breeding and hunting operations which don't keep adequate records. Based on available evidence, The Global White Lion Protection Trust estimate there are 500 White Lions world-wide.