England women's national football team

England
Nickname(s)	Three Lionesses; The Lionesses
Association	The Football Association
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Hege Riise (caretaker)
Captain	Steph Houghton
Most caps	Fara Williams (172)
Top scorer	Kelly Smith (46)
FIFA code	ENG
First colours	Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	6 (18 December 2020)[1]
Highest	2 (March 2018)
Lowest	14 (June 2004)
First international
	Scotland 2–3 England ; (Greenock, Scotland; 18 November 1972)
Biggest win
	Hungary 0–13 England ; (Tapolca, Hungary; 27 October 2005)
Biggest defeat
	Norway 8–0 England ; (Moss, Norway; 4 June 2000)
World Cup
Appearances	5 (first in 1995)
Best result	Third place (2015)
European Championship
Appearances	8 (first in 1984)
Best result	Runners-up (1984, 2009)

The England women's national football team has been governed by the Football Association (FA) since 1993, having been previously administered by the Women's Football Association (WFA). England played its first international match in November 1972 against Scotland. Although most national football teams represent a sovereign state, as a member of the United Kingdom's Home Nations, England is permitted by FIFA statutes to maintain its own national side that competes in all major tournaments, with the exception of the Women's Olympic Football Tournament.

England have qualified for the FIFA Women's World Cup five times, reaching the quarter-finals on three occasions; in 1995, 2007, and 2011, finishing third in 2015 and fourth in 2019. They reached the final of the UEFA Women's Championship in 1984 and 2009.

History

Early years

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.[2] That same year, Harry Batt formed an independent English team that competed in the Fédération Internationale Européenne de Football Féminine (FIEFF) European Cup.[3]^:43 Batt's team also participated in two FIEFF World Cups held in Italy (1970) and Mexico (1971).[4][5]

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an UEFA recommendation in 1972 for national associations to incorporate the women's game, the Football Association (FA) rescinded its 50-year ban on women playing on English Football League grounds.[6][7] Shortly after, Eric Worthington was tasked by the WFA to assemble an official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.[2][8] The team overturned a two-goal deficit to defeat their northern opponents 3–2, with Sylvia Gore scoring England's first international goal.[9] 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.[3]^:94

1979–1993: Progress under Reagan

Martin Reagan was appointed to replace Tranter in 1979.[3]^: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.[10] 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.[11]

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.[12] 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.[3]^:103–104

1993–1998: FA involvement

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.[3]^: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.[13] 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.[14]

1998–2013: Development under Powell

Hope Powell became the team's first full-time head coach in June 1998, succeeding her former coach Copeland.[15] 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.[16] England automatically qualified as hosts in 2005, but again did not make it to the semi-finals.[17]

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.[18][19] After coming second in their group, they advanced into the quarter-finals to face the United States but lost 3–0.[20]

In May 2009, central contracts were implemented to help players focus on full-time training without having to fit it around full-time employment.[21][22] 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.[23]

England reached their third World Cup in 2011, having won Group 5 and their play-off 5–2 over two legs against Switzerland.[24][25] In Germany, they topped Group B – ahead of eventual winners Japan.[26] 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.[27]

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.[15]

2013–2017: Sampson era

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.[28] 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.[29][30]

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.[31] 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.[32]

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.[33]

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.[34] 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.[35] 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.

2018–2021: Neville era

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.[36]

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,[37] and England's 3–0 win against Wales in August 2018 saw them clinch the group and qualify for the World Cup finals.[38]

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.[39]

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.[40]

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.[41] 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.[42][43][44][45] 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.[46]

From 2021: Wiegman era

On 14 August 2020, the FA announced it had reached a four-year deal with incumbent Netherlands manager Sarina Wiegman. Wiegman agreed to take over the team from September 2021, becoming the first non-British Lionesses manager.[47][48]

Media coverage

England matches at selected international tournaments, friendlies, Euro and World Cup finals are currently broadcast by BT Sport (exclude Euro and World Cup finals) and BBC respectively.[49][50] Previously, the Euro and World Cup finals were broadcast by Channel 4 (Euro 2017 only) and Eurosport.

Coaching staff

Current information

As of 19 January 2021

Position	Staff	Ref.
Manager (interim)	Hege Riise	[51]
Assistant coach	Rhian Wilkinson	[51]
Assistant coach (interim)	Kay Cossington	[51]

Managerial history

Statistics correct as of 11 March 2020

Italics indicates a future appointee

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)	0	0	0	0	!—
Sarina Wiegman	From 2021	0	0	0	0	!—

Players

For all past and present players who have appeared for the national team, see List of England women's international footballers

Caps, goals, and recent players may be outdated or incorrect, as the FA does not maintain a database of historical statistics.

Current squad

The following 29 players were named to the squad for the November 2020 training camp.[52][53][54]

Caps and goals are updated as of 13 October 2020.[55]

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1GK	Karen Bardsley	(1984-10-14) 14 October 1984	81	0	Manchester City
1GK	Carly Telford	(1987-07-07) 7 July 1987	26	0	Chelsea
1GK	Ellie Roebuck	(1999-09-23) 23 September 1999	5	0	Manchester City
1GK	Sandy MacIver	(1998-06-18) 18 June 1998	0	0	Everton

2DF	Steph Houghton (captain)	(1988-04-23) 23 April 1988	120	13	Manchester City
2DF	Demi Stokes	(1991-12-12) 12 December 1991	58	1	Manchester City
2DF	Lucy Bronze	(1991-10-28) 28 October 1991	70	8	Manchester City
2DF	Abbie McManus	(1993-01-14) 14 January 1993	18	0	Tottenham Hotspur
2DF	Leah Williamson	(1997-03-29) 29 March 1997	17	1	Arsenal
2DF	Millie Turner	(1996-07-07) 7 July 1996	0	0	Manchester United
2DF	Grace Fisk	(1998-01-05) 5 January 1998	0	0	West Ham United
2DF	Lotte Wubben-Moy	(1999-01-11) 11 January 1999	0	0	Arsenal
2DF	Esme Morgan	(2000-10-18) 18 October 2000	0	0	Manchester City

3MF	Jill Scott	(1987-02-02) 2 February 1987	149	24	Everton
3MF	Jordan Nobbs (vice-captain)	(1992-12-08) 8 December 1992	63	7	Arsenal
3MF	Keira Walsh	(1997-04-08) 8 April 1997	29	0	Manchester City
3MF	Georgia Stanway	(1999-01-03) 3 January 1999	19	2	Manchester City
3MF	Lucy Staniforth	(1992-10-02) 2 October 1992	16	2	Manchester United
3MF	Laura Coombs	(1991-01-29) 29 January 1991	2	0	Manchester City
3MF	Katie Zelem	(1996-01-20) 20 January 1996	0	0	Manchester United
3MF	Niamh Charles	(1999-06-21) 21 June 1999	0	0	Chelsea
3MF	Ella Toone	(1999-09-02) 2 September 1999	0	0	Manchester United

4FW	Ellen White	(1989-05-09) 9 May 1989	92	36	Manchester City
4FW	Nikita Parris	(1994-03-10) 10 March 1994	50	14	Lyon
4FW	Rachel Daly	(1991-12-06) 6 December 1991	35	3	Houston Dash
4FW	Beth Mead	(1995-05-09) 9 May 1995	25	8	Arsenal
4FW	Bethany England	(1994-06-03) 3 June 1994	7	2	Chelsea
4FW	Rinsola Babajide	(1998-06-17) 17 June 1998	0	0	Liverpool
4FW	Lauren James	(2001-09-29) 29 September 2001	0	0	Manchester United

Recent call-ups

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	Hannah Hampton	(2000-11-16) 16 November 2000	0	0	Birmingham City	Training camp, November 2020 ^INJ

DF	Alex Greenwood	(1993-09-07) 7 September 1993	46	3	Manchester City	Training camp, November 2020 ^INJ
DF	Millie Bright	(1993-08-21) 21 August 1993	37	0	Chelsea	v. Germany, 27 October 2020
DF	Anna Patten	(1999-04-20) 20 April 1999	0	0	Arsenal	2020 SheBelieves Cup ^TRA

MF	Izzy Christiansen	(1991-09-20) 20 September 1991	31	5	Everton	v. Germany, 27 October 2020

FW	Chloe Kelly	(1998-01-15) 15 January 1998	4	0	Manchester City	Training camp, November 2020 ^INJ
FW	Fran Kirby	(1993-06-29) 29 June 1993	36	11	Chelsea	v. Germany, 27 October 2020
FW	Alessia Russo	(1999-02-08) 8 February 1999	1	0	Manchester United	v. Germany, 27 October 2020 ^INJ
FW	Toni Duggan	(1991-07-25) 25 July 1991	79	22	Atlético Madrid	2020 SheBelieves Cup
FW	Lauren Hemp	(2000-08-07) 7 August 2000	5	0	Manchester City	2020 SheBelieves Cup
INJ = Withdrew due to injury TRA = Training player

Team captains

Player	England career
Sheila Parker	1972–1976
Carol Thomas (née McCune)	1976–1985
Debbie Bampton	1985–1991
Gillian Coultard	1991–1995
Debbie Bampton	1995–1997
Gillian Coultard	1997–2000
Mo Marley	2000–2001
Tara Proctor	2001
Karen Walker	2002
Faye White	2002–2012
Casey Stoney	2012–2014
Steph Houghton	2014–present

Player records

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.[56] 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.[57]

Kelly Smith has scored the most goals for England, with 46 over a 20-year international career. She surpassed Karen Walker's record of 40 goals in September 2010, in a World Cup qualifying play-off against Switzerland.[58]

Most capped players

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

#	Name	England career	Caps	Goals	Ref
1	Fara Williams	2001–	172	40	[59]
2	Jill Scott	2006–	149	24	[60]
3	Karen Carney	2005–2019	144	32	[61]
4	Alex Scott	2004–2017	140	12	[62]
5	Casey Stoney	2000–2018	130	6	[63]

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

Top goalscorers

#	Name	England career	Caps	Goals	Average	Ref
1	Kelly Smith	1995–2015	117	46	0.39	[64]
2	Kerry Davis	1982–1998	82	44	0.54	[65]
3	Karen Walker	1988–2003	83	40	0.48	[66]
3	Fara Williams	2001–	172	40	0.23	[59]
5	Ellen White	2010–	92	36	0.39	[67]

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

Recent schedule and results

This list includes match results from the past 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

All times are listed in GMT except where noted.

2020

5 March 2020 2020 SheBelieves Cup	United States	2–0	England	Orlando, Florida
19:00 ET	Press 53' Lloyd 55'	Report		Stadium: Exploria Stadium Attendance: 16,531 Referee: Odette Hamilton (Jamaica)

8 March 2020 2020 SheBelieves Cup	Japan	0–1	England	Harrison, New Jersey
17:00 ET	Nakajima 54' Sugita 61'	Report	Kelly 54' White 83'	Stadium: Red Bull Arena Attendance: 14,758 Referee: Katja Koroleva (United States)

11 March 2020 2020 SheBelieves Cup	England	0–1	Spain	Frisco, Texas
16:15 CT	Scott 72' Williamson 78'	Report	Ouahabi 12' Putellas 83'	Stadium: Toyota Stadium Attendance: 10,507 Referee: Danielle Chesky (United States)

27 October 2020 Friendly	Germany	C–C[lower-alpha 1]	England	Wiesbaden, Germany
15:00				Stadium: Brita-Arena

1 December 2020 Friendly	England	C–C[lower-alpha 2]	Norway	Sheffield, England
19:15				Stadium: Bramall Lane

2021

23 February 2021 Friendly	England	v	Northern Ireland	Burton upon Trent, England
12:30				Stadium: St George's Park

13 April 2021 Friendly

England

v

Canada

TBD

Competitive record

England women's team in February 2015

FIFA World Cup

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.

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	Did not qualify
2007	Quarter-finals	4	1	2	1	8	6	+2
2011	Quarter-finals	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	To be determined
Total	5/9	26	15	4	7	43	30	+13

*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	Tingvallen, Karlstad
	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	Hongkou Stadium, Shanghai
		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	Moncton Stadium, Moncton
		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)	Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton
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

Olympic Games

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.[70] 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.[71]

UEFA European Championship

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 (1989, 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.

Year	Result	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1984	Runners-up	4	3	0	1	4	2
1987	Fourth place	2	0	0	2	3	5
1989	Did not qualify
1991
1993
1995	Semi-finals	2	0	0	2	2	6
1997	Did not qualify
2001	Group stage	3	0	1	2	1	8
2005	Group stage	3	1	0	2	4	5
2009	Runners-up	6	3	1	2	12	14
2013	Group stage	3	0	1	2	3	7
2017	Semi-finals	5	4	0	1	11	4
2022	Qualified as hosts
Total	9/13	28	11	3	14	40	51