The Spice Girls performed a 47-date world tour

The group, who performed their final reunion concert on Tuesday in Toronto, Canada, paid tribute to "the most loyal fans in the world".

"Our time is up... we've come to the end of the road... there are tears of sadness and joy," their message said.

The farewell comes at the end of a 47-date world tour which kicked off in Vancouver, Canada, in December.

The group gathered on stage at Toronto's Air Canada Centre for a final group hug before leaving under a waterfall of glitter.

"Who would have thought that our reunion could have turned out to be this amazing?" their message continued.

'Mission accomplished'

"Ten years on, you came back still wanting more... you have inspired and ignited us with each show, the 47 that we performed, each time was amazing and it is thanks to you."

They added that their final show would be their last ever, ending their message "mission accomplished".

The Spice Girls' reunion tour was cut short earlier this month, with the group blaming "family and personal commitments".

Planned shows in Beijing, Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires were scrapped amid reports suggesting a lack of interest in some of the cities.

At the peak of their fame in the 1990s, the group sold 55 million albums worldwide and had nine UK number one hit singles.