England have participated six times at theFIFA Women's World Cup: in1995,2007,2011,2015,2019, and2023. They have reached the quarter-finals in each of their participation and the semi-finals three times, reachingthe final in2023.
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England did not qualify for the1991 FIFA Women's World Cup. The European qualification tournament was the same as theEuropean Championship Qualification. England finished second in their bracket at the group stage and qualified for the quarter-finals. In the quarter-final they lost twice toGermany: 1–4 at home, and 0–2 away. As a result, Germany qualified for the World Cup.
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For theWorld Cup in Sweden, England qualified as the semi-finalist of theEuropean Championship 1995. In theQualification, England had four wins against Belgium andSlovenia and two goalless draws againstSpain. In the quarter-finals, England prevailed with two 2-1 victories againstIceland and was thus qualified for the World Cup. In the semi-finals they lost to Germany 1–4 in the first leg and 1–2 in the second leg.
They defeatedCanada 3–2 in their first World Cup match.Gillian Coultard scored in the 51st minute by a converted penalty the first World Cup goal for England. After increasing to 3–0 they conceded two late goals. A 2–0 win over Norway followed by a 3–2 victory over Nigeria put England in the quarter-finals as group winners. Here they again lost to Germany 0–3. The result would have been sufficient for England to have qualified for the first women's football tournament at the1996 Olympic Games in which only the eight best teams of the World Cup could participate. However, because England is not eligible to start at the Olympic Games, Brazil participated as the ninth-best team.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Norway | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | +17 | 9 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 |  England | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | |
| 3 |  Canada | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 13 | −8 | 1 | |
| 4 |  Nigeria | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 14 | −9 | 1 |
For the1999 FIFA Women's World Cup, for the first time, UEFA set up separatequalifiers. England met the two finalists from 1995,Norway and Germany, as well as theNetherlands. England won only the home game against the Dutch women 1–0 and lost all other games. Thus, England was eliminated at the group stage.
In the qualification for the2003 FIFA Women's World Cup England again faced Germany and the Netherlands, as well asPortugal. With two wins and two draws, England qualified as a runner-up behind Germany (which qualified directly for the World Cup) for the relegation matches. There they first met Iceland and after a 2–2 in Iceland earned a 1–0 home win to make the relegation final against France. England lost both games 0–1, and thus did not qualify for the World Cup.
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The2007 FIFA Women's World Cup took place for the second time in China. In thequalification England met France, the Netherlands,Austria andHungary. With six victories – including England's largest ever victory, a 13–0 defeat of Hungary – and two draws, England reached the World Cup for the second time.
In the first game of the finals, they metJapan and had a 2–1 lead in the 5th minute of stoppage time when Japan scored a late equalizer.[1] The second game against Germany was a scoreless tie.[2] In the last match againstArgentina England won 6–1 and qualified for the quarter-finals, as Japan lost to Germany in a parallel game.[3] In the quarter-finals they held theUnited States to a 0–0 tie for 50 minutes, but lost 3–0.[4] Thus, England were eliminated in the quarter-finals, as in 1995. However, they were the only team to not lose to the eventual champion Germany. By making the quarter-finals England had actually secured qualification for the women's football tournament at the2008 Summer Olympics, in which only the three best European teams of the World Cup could participate. However, as England still could not start at the Olympics,Sweden andDenmark, who were both eliminated in the preliminary round, played for this place, and Sweden won.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Germany | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 0 | +13 | 7 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | England | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 3 | +5 | 5 | |
| 3 |  Japan | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 4 | |
| 4 |  Argentina | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 18 | −17 | 0 |
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For the2011 FIFA Women's World Cup in Germanyqualifying, England earned seven wins and a draw playing against Spain, Austria,Turkey andMalta for the playoffs of the group winners. In the playoffs, England defeatedSwitzerland 2–0 and 3–2 to earn a place in the World Cup.
In Germany, England was put into a group with Japan,New Zealand andMexico. In the first game against Mexico, England tied 1:1.[6] England defeated New Zealand 2-1 and Japan 2–0 to take England's first ever group victory at a World Cup.[7][8] In the quarter-finals England playedFrance. England took the lead in the 59th minute after a scoreless first half, but France equalized two minutes before the end of regular time. In the ensuing overtime, neither team scored, leading to apenalty shoot-out. Although the first French shooter failed and the first three English women were successful, all other French women scored and the last two English women,Claire Rafferty and captainFaye White, did not.[9] England were the only team to have defeated the eventual champion Japan.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 7 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | Japan | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 6 | |
| 3 |  Mexico | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 2 | |
| 4 |  New Zealand | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 1 |
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In the qualification for the2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, England prevailed again. Their group includedUkraine,Wales, Turkey,Belarus andMontenegro. England won all 10 games to qualify.
England was assigned to Group F withFrance,Colombia and, like four years earlier, Mexico.[14][15]
In a close game, they lost 1–0 to France, but followed that with four straight 2–1 wins. First against Mexico, then against Colombia with which they qualified as a runner-up for the knockout round, and then in the first-round playoff match against Norway, thus for the first time winning in a knockout game at the World Cup.[16] In the quarter-finals, where England had never before won, they met host Canada and prevailed 2–1.[17] They thus made the semi-finals for the first time, where they met the defending champion, Japan.[18] England lost with an own goal in injury time, but won the match for third place against Germany for their highest ever finish.[19]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  France | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | England | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 6 | |
| 3 |  Colombia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 4 | |
| 4 | Mexico | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 | −6 | 1 |
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In thequalification for the2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in Europe, England metWales,Russia,Bosnia and Herzegovina and, for the first time,Kazakhstan. England only earned a point in the home game against Wales in a goalless draw. Crucial for the qualification then was a 3–0 victory in front of a record 5,053 spectators against Wales on the penultimate match day.
England had started their qualifications underMark Sampson, who led them to third place in 2015 and the semi-finals at the European Championship in 2017. In September 2017, he was released after the first game due to various allegations. Mo Marley initially coached the team until former England internationalPhil Neville took over as coach in January 2018.
At the World Cup, the first game was againstScotland, which England won 2–1. Argentina and Japan followed, with a 1–0 result against Argentina and 2–0 against Japan, making England group winners. In the knockout rounds, England won 3–0 against Cameroon, then won against Norway in the quarter-finals, with Ellen White scoring her sixth World Cup goal. In the semi-final White scored again, but the team lost 1–2 to the United States.[27] It was the first FIFA Women's World Cup in full shown on BBC.[citation needed] The previous times BBC aired the World Cup, they mostly aired England's games.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 9 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 | Japan | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 4 | |
| 3 | Argentina | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 2 | |
| 4 |  Scotland | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 7 | −2 | 1 |
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The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup is the ninth edition of theFIFA Women's World Cup. The tournament is jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand, and is taking place from 20 July 2023 to 20 August 2023.[35]
England were drawn intoGroup D along withHaiti,Denmark andChina.
England played their first group stage match against Haiti on 22 July 2023. They won the match 1–0 thanks to a 29th-minute penalty fromGeorgia Stanway; her original attempt was saved by the goalkeeper, but the penalty was ordered to be retaken after the VAR determined the Haiti goalkeeper had come off her line prior to the kick.[36]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | +7 | 9 | Advance toknockout stage |
| 2 |  Denmark | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 6 | |
| 3 |  China | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | −5 | 3 | |
| 4 |  Haiti | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 0 |
The 2035 FIFA Women's World Cup is set to be the twelfth edition of theFIFA Women's World Cup The tournament will be jointly hosted by England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales (United Kingdom). England will make their seventh appearance and have earned a automatic qualification as co-host.
| World Cup finals | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | GP | W | D* | L | GF | GA | GD | |
| 1991 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
 1995 | Quarter-finals | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 9 | −3 | |
 1999 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
| 2003 | |||||||||
| 2007 | Quarter-finals | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 6 | +2 | |
| 2011 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | +3 | ||
| 2015 | Third place | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | |
| 2019 | Fourth place | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 5 | +8 | |
 2023 | Runners-up | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 4 | +9 | |
 2027 | To be determined | ||||||||
  2031 | |||||||||
 2035 | Qualified as co-host | ||||||||
| Total | 7/12 | 33 | 20 | 5 | 8 | 56 | 34 | +22 | |
| Opponent | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | +6 | 100.00 |
| Australia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 100.00 |
 Cameroon | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 100.00 |
| Canada | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 100.00 |
| China | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 100.00 |
| Colombia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 100.00 |
| Denmark | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 100.00 |
 France | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 000.00 |
| Germany | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 033.33 |
| Haiti | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 100.00 |
| Japan | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 050.00 |
| Mexico | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 050.00 |
| New Zealand | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 100.00 |
| Nigeria | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 050.00 |
| Norway | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 066.67 |
| Scotland | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 100.00 |
 Spain | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 000.00 |
| Sweden | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 000.00 |
| United States | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 000.00 |
| Total | 33 | 20 | 5 | 8 | 56 | 34 | +22 | 060.61 |
| Player | Goals | 1995 | 2007 | 2011 | 2015 | 2019 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ellen White | 7 | 1 | 6 | ||||
| Fara Williams | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |||
| Kelly Smith | 4 | 4 | |||||
| Jill Scott | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | |||
| Lucy Bronze | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||||
| Lauren Hemp | 3 | 3 | |||||
| Lauren James | 3 | 3 | |||||
| Alessia Russo | 3 | 3 | |||||
| Karen Carney | 2 | 2 | |||||
| Gillian Coultard | 2 | 2 | |||||
| Karen Farley | 2 | 2 | |||||
| Jodie Taylor | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Steph Houghton | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Fran Kirby | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Jessica Clarke | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Vicky Exley | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Marieanne Spacey | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Nikita Parris | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Alex Greenwood | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Karen Walker | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Rachel Yankey | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Georgia Stanway | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Chloe Kelly | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Rachel Daly | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Ella Toone | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Own goals | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Total | 56 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 13 |
