England have just one major international silverware to their name – the 1966 World Cup – and fell short in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, losing to France.
The Three Lions are the only team to have won the World Cup at senior level, but not their major continental title. They came close in 2021 only to lose the final of the rescheduled European Championship (Euro 2020) to Italy.
The Nations League trophy has also eluded them, and here is a look at how England have performed at the tournament and others they have featured in since becoming an official national team in 1872.
FIFA WORLD CUP
Hosts: Brazil
Year: 1950
Best Performance: First Round
Notable games: United States v England
Spain v England
The fourth edition of the World Cup was the Three Lions’ debut at the tournament, and they were drawn in Group 2 of the first round alongside Chile, Spain and the United States.
A 2-0 win over the South Americans put them in a commanding position in their group, but they suffered a shocking 1-0 defeat at the hands of the North Americans.
The loss to the USA is regarded as one of the biggest upsets of the tournament, and Spain also got the better of Walter Winterbottom-managed England by a lone goal in the last group game, leading to their elimination.
Hosts: Switzerland
Year: 1954
Best Performance: Quarter-final
Notable games: Uruguay v England
England topped Group 4 following a 4-4 draw with Belgium and a 2-0 win over Switzerland.
They did not play against Italy as the World Cup edition did not allow seeded teams in the same group to face each other.
The Three Lions, led again by Winterbottom, met Uruguay in the quarter-finals, succumbing to a 4-2 loss and getting eliminated.
Hosts: Sweden
Year: 1958
Best Performance: Group 4
Notable games: Brazil v England
Winterbottom led England to their third World Cup, and they were drawn alongside Austria, Brazil and the Soviet Union in the same group.
They were held to a 2-2 draw with the Soviet Union and a goalless draw with Brazil.
Their last group game with Austria also ended in a 2-2 draw, and with the Soviet Union also on three points and with the same goal difference having also scored four goals and shipped four, a play-off was needed to decide the second-placed team in the group.
However, the Three Lions lost 1-0, suffering elimination as a result.
Hosts: Chile
Year: 1962
Best Performance: Quarter-finals
Notable games: England v Argentina
Brazil v England
Winterbottom’s England were drawn in Group 4 with Hungary, Argentina and Bulgaria, and they lost 2-0 to Hungary, won 3-1 against the South Americans and drew 0-0 with Bulgaria, finishing second in the group as a result.
The Three Lions met Brazil in the last-eight, suffering a 3-1 defeat that signalled Winterbottom’s last match in charge of the national side.
Hosts: England
Year: 1966
Best Performance: First Place
Notable games: England v Uruguay
England v France
England v Argentina
England v Portugal
England v West Germany
Alf Ramsey took over the Three Lions in 1963 and was instrumental to their only major international success to date.
His side were drawn in Group 1 alongside France, Mexico and Uruguay, and a goalless draw with the South Americans was followed by 2-0 wins over the French and Mexicans. That saw England top their group, and they faced Argentina in the quarterfinals, with Geoff Hurst’s goal helping them to a 1-0 victory and a place in the semifinals against Portugal.
A Bobby Charlton brace put the hosts ahead with 10 minutes left on the clock, but Eusebio pulled one back for the Portuguese from the penalty spot in the 82nd minute. England held on to their lead to set up a meeting in the final with West Germany. Die Mannschaft raced into the lead 12 minutes into the game via Helmut Haller, but Hurst drew the Three Lions level six minutes later.
Martin Peters’ 78th-minute goal put England ahead, but their hearts were broken when Germany equalised through Wolfgang Weber in the 89th minute.
However, Hurst grabbed two more goals in extra-time to guide the country to victory, and his record of a hat-trick in a World Cup final was finally matched by Kylian Mbappe in 2022.
England played all their games at Wembley Stadium.
Hosts: Mexico
Year: 1970
Best Performance: Quarter-finals
Notable games: England v Brazil
West Germany v England
Ramsey also led the Three Lions to their next World Cup and they were drawn in Group 3 alongside Brazil, Romania and Czechoslovakia.
Their title defence started with a 1-0 victory over Romania, but they lost 1-0 to Brazil.
A 1-0 win over Czechoslovakia helped them finish second in the group, and that saw them come up against West Germany in the quarterfinals.
It was a repeat of the 1966 final, and while England raced to a two-goal lead, thanks to goals from Alan Mullery and Martin Peters, Franz Beckenbauer and Uwe Seeler scored for the Germans in the 70th and 81st minutes, respectively to force the game into extra-time.
Gerd Müller grabbed the winner to send England packing, and the game was Charlton’s last for the country, making him the player with the most international caps (106) for the Three Lions to date.
Hosts: Spain
Year: 1982
Best Performance: Quarter-finals
Notable games: England v France
West Germany v England
Spain v England
England returned to the World Cup after missing the last two editions, with Ron Greenwood as manager.
They topped Group 4 following a 3-1 win over France, a 2-0 victory over Czechoslovakia and a 1-0 win over Kuwait.
The Three Lions advanced to the second group stage which also served as the quarter-finals, and they were grouped with West Germany and Spain in Group B.
They drew both games and did not score, and that marked the end of their journey at the tournament, with West Germany progressing to the semifinals after topping the group.
Hosts: Mexico
Year: 1986
Best Performance: Quarter-finals
Notable games: Portugal v England
Argentina v England
Bobby Robson managed England at their next World Cup, helping them finish second in Group F following a 1-0 loss to Portugal, a goalless draw with Morocco and a 3-0 win over Poland.
They met Paraguay in the last-16, securing a 3-0 victory before meeting Argentina in the quarterfinals, where they suffered a 2-1 defeat.
Diego Maradona scored both goals for the South Americans, with the first guided in by his hand when he leapt for a header.
The goal became popularly known as the Hand of God.
The second saw him dribble from inside Argentina’s half and around several English players before scoring.
Hosts: Italy
Year: 1990
Best Performance: Semi-finals
Notable games: England v Belgium
Cameroon v England
West Germany v England
Robson also led the Three Lions to the next World Cup, helping them finish top of Group F following a 1-1 draw with the Republic of Ireland, a goalless draw with the Netherlands and a 1-0 win over Egypt.
They met Belgium in the last-16 and were victorious, running out 1-0 winners after extra-time.
They also won their quarter-finals encounter with Cameroon, running out 3-2 winners after extra-time before meeting West Germany in the semis.
They played out 1-1 and ultimately lost 4-3 through penalty kick-off.
Hosts: France
Year: 1998
Best Performance: Round of 16
Notable games: Argentina v England
Graham Taylor failed to help England qualify for the 1994 World Cup and Glenn Hoddle was tasked with helping them reach the following edition.
England were drawn in Group G alongside Colombia, Romania and Tunisia, and they finished second in the group after a 2-0 win over the Africans, a 2-1 loss to Romania and a 2-0 victory over the South Americans.
They met Argentina in the last-16, losing 4-3 on penalties after playing out a 2-2 draw after extra-time. Full highlights of that game can be seen below:
Hosts: South Korea/Japan
Year: 2002
Best Performance: Quarter-final
Notable games: Argentina v England
England v Brazil
England’s first-ever foreign manager Sven-Göran Eriksson guided the side to a second-place finish in Group F following a 1-1 draw with Sweden, a 1-0 win over Argentina and a goalless draw with Nigeria.
They met Denmark in the last-16, strolling to a 3-0 victory before meeting Brazil in the quarterfinals.
They lost 2-1 despite taking the lead via Michael Owen, with a free-kick from Ronaldinho catching David Seaman off his line and condemning the team to a painful defeat.
Hosts: Germany
Year: 2006
Best Performance: Quarterfinals
Notable games: Sweden v England
England v Portugal
Eriksson also led the Three Lions to the next World Cup, and they topped Group B following a 1-0 win over Paraguay, a 2-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago and a 2-2 draw with Sweden.
England secured a 1-0 win over Ecuador in the last-16 thanks to a free kick from David Beckham, but they lost 3-1 to Portugal in the quarterfinals on penalty after both sides went goalless at the end of 120 minutes.
That was the Swede’s last game in charge of England.
Hosts: South Africa
Year: 2010
Best Performance: Round of 16
Notable games: England v USA
Fabio Capello was in charge of the side at their following World Cup, helping them finish in second place in Group C following a 1-1 draw with the United States, a goalless draw with Algeria and a 1-0 win over Slovenia.
They lost 4-1 to Germany in controversial circumstances in the last-16.
Frank Lampard pulled one back for England while they were 2-0 down, but the goal was not counted despite replays confirming that it had crossed the goal-line before it bounced back and was caught by Manuel Neuer:
FIFA’s refusal to implement goal-line technology ahead of the World Cup was widely criticised.
Hosts: Brazil
Year: 2014
Best Performance: Group Stage
Notable games: England v Italy
Uruguay v England
Roy Hodgson had been in charge for two years by the time England played at their next World Cup, but he failed to get them out of Group D as they finished bottom after 2-1 losses to Italy and Uruguay and a goalless draw with Costa Rica.
It is their worst performance at a World Cup to date.
Hosts: Russia
Year: 2018
Best Performance: Semi-finals
Notable games: England v Belgium
Croatia v England
Belgium v England
Gareth Southgate was in charge of the national team at the following World Cup after they parted with Hodgson in 2016 and Sam Allardyce lasted just a game.
They finished second in Group G after a 2-1 win over Tunisia, a 6-1 victory over Panama and a 1-0 loss to Belgium.
The Three Lions met Colombia in the last-16, running out 4-3 winners on penalty after playing 1-1 at the end of 120 minutes.
They got the better of Sweden in the quarterfinals, winning 2-0 before losing 2-1 to Croatia in the semi-finals after extra-time.
Belgium pipped them to the third-place play-off, winning 2-0.
UEFA EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP
Hosts: Italy
Year: 1968
Best Performance: Third Place
Notable games: England v Spain
Yugoslavia v England
Hosts: Italy
Year: 1980
Best Performance: Group Stage
Notable games: England v Italy
Spain v England
Hosts: West Germany
Year: 1988
Best Performance: Group Stage
Notable games: England v Netherlands
Hosts: Sweden
Year: 1992
Best Performance: Group Stage
Notable games: France v England
Hosts: England
Year: 1996
Best Performance: Semi-finals
Notable games: Scotland v England
Netherlands v England
Spain v England
Germany v England
Hosts: Belgium/Netherlands
Year: 2000
Best Performance: Group stage
Notable games: Portugal v England
England v Germany
Hosts: Portugal
Year: 2004
Best Performance: Quarter-finals
Notable games: France v England
Portugal v England
Hosts: Poland/Ukraine
Year: 2012
Best Performance: Quarter-finals
Notable games: France v England
Sweden v England
England v Italy
Hosts: France
Year: 2016
Best Performance: Round of 16
Notable games: England v Wales
England v Iceland
Hosts: Azerbaijan/Denmark/England/Germany/Hungary/Italy/Netherlands/Romania/Russia/Scotland/Spain
Year: 2020
Best Performance: Second place
Notable games: England v Croatia
England v Scotland
England v Germany
Ukraine v England
England v Denmark
Italy v England
UEFA NATIONS LEAGUE
Hosts: Portugal
Year: 2018-19
Best Performance: Third place
Notable games: England v Spain
England v Croatia
Netherlands v England
Switzerland v England
Hosts: Italy
Year: 2020-21
Best Performance: Group Stage
Notable games: England v Belgium
England v Denmark
Hosts: Netherlands
Year: 2022-23
Best Performance: Relegation to League B
Notable games: Italy v England
Germany v England
England v Hungary