England women's national football team

The success of the men's national football team at the 1966 FIFA World Cup led to an upsurge of interest in football from women within England. The Women's Football Association (WFA) was established in 1969 as an attempt to organise the women's game.[3] That same year, Harry Batt formed an independent English team that competed in the Fédération Internationale Européenne de Football Féminine (FIEFF) European Cup.[4]^: 43 Batt's team also participated in two FIEFF World Cups held in Italy (1970) and Mexico (1971).[5][6]

Following an UEFA recommendation in 1972 for national associations to incorporate the women's game, the Football Association (FA) rescinded its 50-year ban on women playing on English Football League grounds.[7][8] Shortly after, Eric Worthington was tasked by the WFA to assemble an official women's national team. England competed in its first international match against Scotland in Greenock on 18 November 1972, 100 years to the month after the first men's international.[3][9] The team overturned a two-goal deficit to defeat their northern opponents 3–2, with Sylvia Gore scoring England's first international goal.[10] Tom Tranter replaced Worthington as long term manager of the women's national football team and remained in that position for the next six years.[4]^: 94

Martin Reagan was appointed to replace Tranter in 1979.[4]^: 100 England reached the final of the inaugural European Competition for Women's Football, after beating Denmark 3–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals. Despite resolute defending, including a spectacular goal line clearance from captain Carol Thomas, the England team lost the first away leg 1–0 against Sweden, after a header from Pia Sundhage, but won the second home leg by the same margin, with a goal from Linda Curl.[11] England lost the subsequent penalty shootout 4–3. Theresa Wiseman saved Helen Johansson's penalty but both Curl and Lorraine Hanson had their spot kicks saved by Elisabeth Leidinge.[12]

At the 1987 European Competition for Women's Football, England again reached the semi-finals but lost 3–2 after extra time against holders Sweden, in a repeat of the previous final. The team settled for fourth, after losing the third place play-off against Italy 2–1.[13] Reagan was sacked after England's 6–1 quarter-final loss against Germany at UEFA Women's Euro 1991, which left them unable to qualify for the inaugural FIFA Women's World Cup. John Bilton was appointed as head coach in 1991 after Barrie Williams's brief tenure.[4]^{: 103–104}

In 1993, the FA took over the running of women's football in England from the WFA, replacing Bilton with Ted Copeland as national team manager.[4]^: 105 England managed to qualify for UEFA Women's Euro 1995, having previously missed out on the last three editions, but were beaten 6–2 on aggregate over two legs against Germany.[14] Reaching the European semi-finals granted England a place at the World Cup for the first time. The team advanced from the group stage of the 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup in Sweden, but lost out again to Germany 3–0 in the quarter-finals.[15]

Hope Powell became the team's first full-time head coach in June 1998, succeeding her former coach Copeland.[16] The European Championship expanded in 1997 to eight teams and moved from a biennial event to a quadrennial one. England qualified via the play-offs for the 2001 competition held in Germany, despite recording their biggest loss (away against Norway 8–0) during qualification, but did not advance past the group stage.[17] England automatically qualified as hosts in 2005, but again did not make it to the semi-finals.[18]

Qualification for the World Cup changed for the 1999 edition. European qualifiers were introduced, so that teams no longer needed to rely on advancing to the latter stages of the European Championship. England qualified unbeaten for the 2007 World Cup in China, winning Group 5 in the European qualifiers and recording their biggest win (away against Hungary, 13–0) in the process, ending a 12-year hiatus from the competition.[19][20] After coming second in their group, they advanced into the quarter-finals to face the United States but lost 3–0.[21]

In May 2009, central contracts were implemented to help players focus on full-time training without having to fit it around full-time employment.[22][23] Three months later, at the European Championships in Finland, England marked their return to the recently expanded 12-team competition by reaching the final for the first time in 25 years. They advanced from Group C to the quarter-finals by virtue of being the top third-placed team, beating both the hosts and the Netherlands in the knockout stage on the way to the final. There they lost 6–2 to reigning champions Germany.[24]

England reached their third World Cup in 2011, having won Group 5 and their play-off 5–2 over two legs against Switzerland.[25][26] In Germany, they topped Group B – ahead of eventual winners Japan.[27] England were paired with France in the quarter-finals, with the match ending in a 1–1 draw. England had taken the lead with Jill Scott's chip, only to have Élise Bussaglia equalise with two minutes remaining. After extra time ended in stalemate, they lost the ensuing penalty shootout 4–3. Karen Bardsley had saved Camille Abily's initial penalty but misses by Claire Rafferty and Faye White sent England out of the competition.[28]

Powell left the role in August 2013 after a poor showing at the UEFA Women's Euro 2013, with England bowing out after the group stage.[16]

Welshman Mark Sampson succeeded Powell as England manager. England qualified for their third successive World Cup in August 2014 with a game to spare, winning all ten matches and topping Group 6.[29] England played their first international match at the new Wembley Stadium, home to the men's national team, in a friendly against the reigning European champions Germany on 23 November 2014. England had not played Germany since their heavy defeat in the European Championship final five years earlier. They lost the match 3–0, marking the 20th attempt at which England had failed to record an official win over Germany.[30][31]

At the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada, England lost their opening group game to France but won their remaining group games against Mexico and Colombia, easing through to the last 16 to play 1995 champions Norway. A 2–1 win set up a meeting with hosts Canada in the quarter-finals. Despite facing not only a strong Canadian team but a capacity partisan crowd at BC Place in Vancouver, England progressed to the semifinals of the Women's World Cup for the first time in their history with another 2–1 win, which also marked the first semifinal appearance by any England senior team since the men reached the last four of the 1990 World Cup in Italy. Playing reigning World Cup holders Japan in the semi-finals, England conceded a penalty kick, which Aya Miyama converted past Karen Bardsley. Japan then conceded a penalty as Yuki Ogimi clipped Steph Houghton and Fara Williams slotted it past Ayumi Kaihori to level the game. However, in the last minute of the game, Laura Bassett scored an own goal to send Japan through to the final.[32] England eventually finished in third place by beating Germany 1–0 after extra time after a Williams penalty, their first time beating their archrivals in the women's game. It marked the best finish for any England senior team since the men's team famously won the 1966 World Cup as hosts.[33]

England qualified for the UEFA Women's Euro 2017 in the Netherlands and won all three of their group games at the tournament. England beat France 1–0 in the quarter-finals before meeting hosts and eventual champions, the Netherlands. In the semi-finals, England conceded three goals without reply and were knocked out of the tournament.[34]

In September 2017, Sampson was sacked from his role as manager by the FA after evidence of "inappropriate and unacceptable" behaviour was uncovered during his tenure at Bristol Academy.[35] The FA in January 2019 agreed to pay a "significant" financial settlement to Sampson, on the week his claim for unfair dismissal was due to be heard in court.[36] He was replaced by Phil Neville, who had played at Manchester United – including in their 1999 treble winning season – and Everton and been capped by the England men but had never before held a high-profile managing job.

National team during 2019 Women's World Cup.

After being appointed manager, Neville's first games in charge were at the 2018 SheBelieves Cup. In their first game, England defeated France 4–1, then drew 2–2 against Germany. They went into the final game against the United States with the opportunity to win the tournament, but lost 1–0. Second place was the highest England had finished at the SheBelieves Cup.[37]

England continued with World Cup qualification in 2018. On 6 April they drew 0–0 against Wales. After the qualifying games in June, England and Wales were guaranteed the first two spots in qualifying Group 1,[38] and England's 3–0 win against Wales in August 2018 saw them clinch the group and qualify for the World Cup finals.[39]

In the 2019 SheBelieves Cup, England won the tournament for the first time after winning their first match 2–1 against Brazil, drawing 2–2 with the United States and defeating Japan 3–0.[40]

In the 2019 Women's World Cup in France, England won group D, beating local rivals Scotland and archrival Argentina to qualify for the knockout phase, before beating Japan. England beat both Cameroon and then Norway 3–0 to advance to the semifinal against United States in Lyon – the team's third straight major tournament semifinal. However, similar to the previous two tournaments, England once again failed to make the final, losing 2–1. Alex Morgan scored the winner after Ellen White had equalised following Christen Press' opening goal, while White had an equaliser ruled out by VAR and Houghton had a penalty saved by Alyssa Naeher. The team finished in fourth after losing the third place play-off to Sweden 2–1.[41]

In March 2019 Winsford was chosen for the site of the £70m Cheshire FA Centre of Excellence, which will be the new home of the England Women's Football Team. It will also act as a training base for European teams playing in Liverpool and Manchester. The development was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020. In October 2020 the Prime Minister Boris Johnson gave his support for the development to go ahead; planning applications are expected to be submitted to Cheshire West and Chester Council in spring 2021 with a possible opening date of 2023. The site is being designed to revolutionize women's football in England.[42]

In the wake of the World Cup exit, England's form dropped as the Lionesses struggled in a series of friendlies to end the year including a 2–1 defeat by Germany at Wembley Stadium on 9 November 2019. The game set a new record attendance for an England women's match at 77,768, becoming the second-biggest crowd for a women's game on English soil after the 2012 Olympic final which was watched by 80,203 at the same venue.[43] The poor run continued into 2020 as England failed to defend their title at the 2020 SheBelieves Cup in March. Losses to the United States and Spain made it seven defeats in 11 games, the team's worst stretch since 2003, mounting further pressure on Neville who admitted he was personally responsible for England's "unacceptable" form amid increased media scrutiny.[44][45][46][47] In April 2020, Neville announced he would step down as Lionesses manager when his contract expired in July 2021. Originally his tenure would have extended to England's hosting of UEFA Women's Euro 2021, but the tournament was postponed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[48] However, in January 2021, he elected to resign early in order to take up the managerial position at Inter Miami, the Major League Soccer club founded by previous England men's captain David Beckham.[49][50] Having already agreed to appoint incumbent Netherlands manager Sarina Wiegman starting September 2021, Hege Riise was named caretaker manager until then.[51] She oversaw a 6–0 friendly win over Northern Ireland in her first game in charge.[52]

On 14 August 2020, the FA announced it had reached a four-year deal with incumbent Netherlands manager Sarina Wiegman who agreed to take over the team from September 2021, becoming the first non-British permanent Lionesses manager.[53][54] On 30 November 2021, during qualification for the 2023 FIFA World Cup, Ellen White became England's all-time record goals scorer (overtaking Kelly Smith), during a 20–0 demolition of Latvia, in which she scored a hat-trick. The game was a multi-record breaking game as three other players scored a hat-trick (Mead, Hemp (scored 4), and Russo), marking the first time four players had scored a hat-trick in a senior England women's game. The game was also the largest victory for both men's and women's senior England sides, surpassing the women's team's 2005 13–0 win against Hungary and the men's 1882 13–0 win against Ireland.[55]

The England women's national football team has been known or nicknamed as "Three Lionesses" or "The Lionesses".

England matches at selected international tournaments, friendlies, Euro and World Cup finals are now currently broadcast by ITV Sport (exclude Euro and World Cup finals) and BBC respectively.[56][57] Previously, the Euro and World Cup finals were broadcast by Channel 4 (Euro 2017 only) and Eurosport.

As of 10 August 2021

Position	Staff	Ref.
Manager	Sarina Wiegman	[58]
Assistant manager	Arjan Veurink	[59]

Statistics correct as of 12 April 2022

Image	Manager	Tenure	P	W	D	L	Win %	Competitions
	Eric Worthington	1972
	Tom Tranter	1973–1979
	Mike Rawding	1979
	Martin Reagan	1979–1990						UEFA Euro 1984 – Runners Up UEFA Euro 1987 – Fourth Place
	Barrie Williams	1991
	John Bilton	1991–1993
	Ted Copeland	1993–1998						UEFA Euro 1995 – Semi Finalists 1995 FIFA World Cup – Quarter Finalists
	Dick Bate	1998 (Caretaker)
	Hope Powell	1998–2013	169	85	33	51	050.3	UEFA Euro 2001 – Group Stages UEFA Euro 2005 – Group Stages 2007 FIFA World Cup – Quarter Finalists UEFA Euro 2009 – Runners Up 2011 FIFA World Cup – Quarter Finalists UEFA Euro 2013 – Group Stages
	Brent Hills	2006, 2013 (Caretaker)	5	4	0	1	080.0
	Mark Sampson	2013–2017	60	39	8	13	065.0	2015 FIFA World Cup – Third Place UEFA Euro 2017 – Semi Finalists
	Mo Marley	2017–2018 (Caretaker)	3	2	0	1	066.7
	Phil Neville	2018–2021	35	19	5	11	054.3	2019 FIFA World Cup – Fourth Place
	Hege Riise	2021 (Caretaker)	3	1	0	2	033.3
	Sarina Wiegman	2021–	11	9	2	0	081.8

The following 23 players were named to the squad for the 2023 World Cup qualifiers against  North Macedonia and  Northern Ireland in April 2022.[60][61]

Caps and goals are correct as of match played 12 April 2022 against  Northern Ireland.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Mary Earps	(1993-03-07) 7 March 1993	16	0	Manchester United
	1GK	Ellie Roebuck	(1999-09-23) 23 September 1999	8	0	Manchester City
	1GK	Hannah Hampton	(2000-11-16) 16 November 2000	2	0	Aston Villa
	2DF	Lucy Bronze	(1991-10-28) 28 October 1991	88	9	Manchester City
	2DF	Demi Stokes	(1991-12-12) 12 December 1991	66	1	Manchester City
	2DF	Millie Bright	(1993-08-21) 21 August 1993	49	5	Chelsea
	2DF	Rachel Daly	(1991-12-06) 6 December 1991	48	7	Houston Dash
	2DF	Jess Carter	(1997-10-17) 17 October 1997	8	1	Chelsea
	2DF	Niamh Charles	(1999-06-21) 21 June 1999	2	0	Chelsea
	2DF	Gabrielle George	(1997-02-02) 2 February 1997	2	0	Everton
	3MF	Jill Scott	(1987-02-02) 2 February 1987	156	26	Aston Villa
	3MF	Jordan Nobbs	(1992-12-08) 8 December 1992	69	8	Arsenal
	3MF	Keira Walsh	(1997-04-08) 8 April 1997	39	0	Manchester City
	3MF	Georgia Stanway	(1999-01-03) 3 January 1999	31	8	Manchester City
	3MF	Leah Williamson (captain)	(1997-03-29) 29 March 1997	28	2	Arsenal
	3MF	Katie Zelem	(1996-01-20) 20 January 1996	2	0	Manchester United
	4FW	Ellen White	(1989-05-09) 9 May 1989	106	50	Manchester City
	4FW	Nikita Parris	(1994-03-10) 10 March 1994	62	15	Arsenal
	4FW	Beth Mead	(1995-05-09) 9 May 1995	36	20	Arsenal
	4FW	Lauren Hemp	(2000-08-07) 7 August 2000	19	6	Manchester City
	4FW	Bethany England	(1994-06-03) 3 June 1994	16	8	Chelsea
	4FW	Ella Toone	(1999-09-02) 2 September 1999	13	10	Manchester United
	4FW	Alessia Russo	(1999-02-08) 8 February 1999	5	3	Manchester United

The following players have also been called up to the England squad within the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Sandy MacIver	(1998-06-18) 18 June 1998	1	0	Everton	v.  Latvia, 30 November 2021
GK	Carly Telford	(1987-07-07) 7 July 1987	27	0	San Diego Wave	v.  Luxembourg, 21 September 2021
GK	Emily Ramsey	(2000-11-16) 16 November 2000	0	0	Birmingham City	Training camp, June 2021
GK	Karen Bardsley	(1984-10-14) 14 October 1984	82	0	Manchester City	Training camp, June 2021 INJ
DF	Alex Greenwood	(1993-09-07) 7 September 1993	58	5	Manchester City	v.  North Macedonia, 8 April 2022 INJ
DF	Lotte Wubben-Moy	(1999-01-11) 11 January 1999	7	0	Arsenal	v.  North Macedonia, 8 April 2022 INJ
DF	Steph Houghton	(1988-04-23) 23 April 1988	121	13	Manchester City	v.  North Macedonia, 17 September 2021 INJ
DF	Esme Morgan	(2000-10-18) 18 October 2000	0	0	Manchester City	v.  North Macedonia, 17 September 2021 INJ
DF	Millie Turner	(1996-07-07) 7 July 1996	0	0	Manchester United	v.  Canada, 13 April 2021
MF	Fran Kirby	(1993-06-29) 29 June 1993	54	15	Chelsea	v.  Germany, 23 February 2022
MF	Lucy Staniforth	(1992-10-02) 2 October 1992	17	2	Manchester United	v.  Latvia, 26 October 2021
FW	Ebony Salmon	(2001-01-27) 27 January 2001	1	0	Racing Louisville	v.  Luxembourg, 21 September 2021
FW	Chloe Kelly	(1998-01-15) 15 January 1998	7	0	Manchester City	v.  Canada, 13 April 2021
INJ = Withdrew due to injury COV = Withdrew due to COVID-19

Fara Williams is England's most capped player and fourth highest goalscorer with 40 goals in 172 appearances since 2001.

Bold names denote a player still playing or available for selection.

Bold names denote a player still playing or available for selection.

Carol Thomas was the first player to reach 50 caps in 1985, before retiring from representative football later that year, having amassed 56 caps. Fara Williams holds the record for England appearances, having played 172 times since 2001. She overtook previous record holder Rachel Yankey in August 2014, in a friendly against Sweden.[71] Yankey had passed Gillian Coultard's 119 record England women caps in September 2012, in a European qualifying match against Croatia, and Peter Shilton's 125 record England international caps in June 2013, in a friendly against Japan.[72]

Ellen White has scored the most goals for England, with 50. She surpassed Kelly Smith's record on 30 November 2021, scoring a hat-trick against Latvia during a UEFA qualifier for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup where England won 20–0, the biggest ever win for an England football team.

	Date	Opponent	Result F–A	Venue	Attendance	Competition
	9 November 2019	Germany	1–2	Wembley Stadium, London	77,768[73]	Friendly
	27 July 2019	Canada	2–1	BC Place, Vancouver	54,027[74]	2015 FIFA Women's World Cup quarter-final
	2 July 2019	United States	1–2	Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Décines-Charpieu	53,512[75]	2019 FIFA Women's World Cup semi-final

In England only

	Date	Opponent	Result F–A	Venue	Attendance	Competition
	9 November 2019	Germany	1–2	Wembley Stadium, London	77,768[73]	Friendly
	23 November 2014		0–3		45,619[76]
	5 October 2019	Brazil	1–2	Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough	29,238[77]

England have qualified for the FIFA Women's World Cup five times (1995, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019) and failed to qualify for three competitions (1991, 1999, 2003). The England team reached the quarter-finals on three occasions, losing out to Germany in 1995, the United States in 2007 and France on penalties in 2011. In 2015, however, England earned the bronze medal for the first time, under Mark Sampson, by beating Germany in the third place play-off.

FIFA World Cup finals record										Qualification record
Year	Result	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA	GD		GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA	GD
1991	Did not qualify									6	2	3	1	4	2	+2
1995	Quarter-finals	4	2	0	2	6	9	−3		6	4	2	0	29	0	+29
1999	Did not qualify									8	3	0	5	9	12	–3
2003										10	3	3	4	12	10	+2
2007	Quarter-finals	4	1	2	1	8	6	+2		8	6	2	0	29	2	+27
2011	Quarter-finals	4	2	2	0	6	3	+3		10	9	1	0	35	4	+31
2015	Third place	7	5	0	2	10	7	+3		10	10	0	0	52	1	+51
2019	Fourth place	7	5	0	2	13	5	+8		8	7	1	0	29	1	+28
2023	To be determined									To be determined
Total	5/9	26	15	4	7	43	30	+13		66	44	12	10	199	32	+167

*Draws include knockout matches decided by penalty shoot-outs.

FIFA Women's World Cup matches
Year	Round	Date	Opponent	Result	Stadium
1995	Group stage	6 June	Canada	W 3–2	Olympia Stadion, Helsingborg
		8 June	Norway	L 0–2	Tingvallen, Karlstad
		10 June	Nigeria	W 3–2
	Quarter-finals	13 June	Germany	L 0–3	Arosvallen, Västerås
2007	Group stage	11 September	Japan	D 2–2	Hongkou Stadium, Shanghai
		14 September	Germany	D 0–0
		17 September	Argentina	W 6–1	Chengdu Sports Center, Chengdu
	Quarter-finals	22 September	United States	L 0–3	Tianjin Olympic Centre Stadium, Tianjin
2011	Group stage	27 June	Mexico	D 1–1	Volkswagen-Arena, Wolfsburg
		1 July	New Zealand	W 2–1	Rudolf-Harbig-Stadion, Dresden
		5 July	Japan	W 2–0	Impuls Arena, Augsburg
	Quarter-finals	9 July	France	D 1–1 (3–4 p)	BayArena, Leverkusen
2015	Group stage	9 June	France	L 0–1	Moncton Stadium, Moncton
		13 June	Mexico	W 2–1
		17 June	Colombia	W 2–1	Olympic Stadium, Montreal
	Round of 16	22 June	Norway	W 2–1	TD Place, Ottawa
	Quarter-finals	27 June	Canada	W 2–1	BC Place, Vancouver
	Semi-finals	1 July	Japan	L 1–2	Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton
	Third place play-off	4 July	Germany	W 1–0 (aet)
2019	Group stage	9 June	Scotland	W 2–1	Allianz Riviera, Nice
		14 June	Argentina	W 1–0	Stade Océane, Le Havre
		19 June	Japan	W 2–0	Allianz Riviera, Nice
	Round of 16	23 June	Cameroon	W 3–0	Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes
	Quarter-finals	27 June	Norway	W 3–0	Stade Océane, Le Havre
	Semi-finals	2 July	United States	L 1–2	Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Décines-Charpieu
	Third place play-off	6 July	Sweden	L 1–2	Allianz Riviera, Nice

England does not participate in the Women's Olympic Football Tournament, as the country does not have its own National Olympic Committee (NOC). Since England falls under the jurisdiction of the British Olympic Association, remit for an Olympic football team requires support from all four Home Nation associations. The Scottish Football Association (SFA), the Football Association of Wales (FAW) and the Irish Football Association (IFA) have all previously objected to the premise over fears that the team would erode the independence of their individual football associations. However, members of its team have played for the Great Britain women's Olympic football team at London 2012 having been granted automatic qualification as the host nation.[78] The Home Nations once again agreed to a GB Women's team in time for Tokyo 2020 with England's result at the 2019 World Cup counting as the team's attempt to qualify. They qualified as one of the last three remaining European nations.[79]

England first entered the UEFA Women's Championship in 1984, reaching the final that year and in 2009. The team have reached the semi-finals on three other occasions (1987, 1995, 2017), but failed to make it out of the group stage in three other editions (2001, 2005, 2013). England did not qualify in 1989, 1991, 1993 and 1997.

UEFA European Championship record									Qualifying record
Year	Result	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA		GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1984	Runners-up	4	3	0	1	4	2		6	6	0	0	24	1
1987	Fourth place	2	0	0	2	3	5		6	6	0	0	34	2
1989	Did not qualify								6	2	1	3	6	10
1991									8	2	3	3	5	8
1993									6	4	0	2	11	7
1995	Semi-finals	2	0	0	2	2	6		8	6	2	0	33	2
1997	Did not qualify								8	4	2	2	19	6
2001	Group stage	3	0	1	2	1	8		8	5	1	2	12	14
2005	Group stage	3	1	0	2	4	5		Qualified as host
2009	Runners-up	6	3	1	2	12	14		8	6	2	0	24	4
2013	Group stage	3	0	1	2	3	7		8	6	2	0	22	2
2017	Semi-finals	5	4	0	1	11	4		8	7	1	0	23	1
2022	To be determined								Qualified as host
Total	8/13	28	11	3	14	40	51		80	54	14	12	213	57

*Draws include knockout matches decided by penalty shoot-outs.

**Red border colour denotes tournament was held on home soil.