England women's national football team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
England

Nickname(s)	The Lionesses
Association	The Football Association (The FA)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Sarina Wiegman
Captain	Leah Williamson
Most caps	Fara Williams (172)
Top scorer	Ellen White (58)
Home stadium	Wembley Stadium and others
FIFA code	ENG
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	4 1 (7 December 2018)
Highest	2 (March 2018; March 2024; August 2024)
Lowest	14 (June 2004 – September 2005)
First international
Scotland 2–3 England  (Greenock, Scotland; 18 November 1972)
Biggest win
England 20–0 Latvia  (Doncaster, England; 30 November 2021)
Biggest defeat
Norway 8–0 England  (Moss, Norway; 4 June 2000)
World Cup
Appearances	6 (first in 1995)
Best result	Runners-up (2023)
European Championship
Appearances	9 (first in 1984)
Best result	Champions (2022)
Nations League
Appearances	1 (first in 2023–24)
Best result	5th (2023–24)
Finalissima
Appearances	1 (first in 2023)
Best result	Champions (2023)
Medal record Women's football FIFA Women's World Cup Silver 2023 Australia–New Zealand Team Bronze 2015 Canada Team UEFA Women's Championship Gold 2022 England Team Silver 2009 Finland Team Silver 1984 Europe Team Bronze 2017 Netherlands Team Bronze 1995 Europe Team UEFA–CONMEBOL Women’s Finalissima Gold 2023 England

The England women's national football team, also known as the Lionesses, is the official women's football team for England. The Football Association (FA) has managed the team since 1993. Before that, it was run by the Women's Football Association (WFA). England played its very first international match in November 1972 against Scotland.

Even though most national football teams play for a whole country, England is allowed by FIFA to have its own team. This is because England is one of the "Home Nations" of the United Kingdom. The Lionesses compete in all major tournaments, except for the Women's Olympic Football Tournament.

The Lionesses have played in the FIFA Women's World Cup six times. They reached the quarter-finals in 1995, 2007, and 2011. They finished fourth in 2019 and third in 2015. Their best result was being runners-up in 2023. Since 2019, England's success has also helped the Great Britain Olympic team qualify for the Olympics.

They reached the final of the UEFA Women's Championship in 1984 and 2009. In 2022, they won the tournament, which was a huge achievement! It was the first time an England senior football team had won a major championship since the men's team won the World Cup in 1966. England also plays in the UEFA Women's Nations League, which started in 2023.

History of the Lionesses

How it all started

After the men's team won the 1966 FIFA World Cup in 1966, more women in England became interested in football. To help organize the women's game, the Women's Football Association (WFA) was created in 1969.

In 1972, UEFA (the European football body) suggested that national football groups should include women's football. Later that year, the FA removed its ban on women playing on English Football League grounds. Soon after, Eric Worthington was asked by the WFA to create an official women's national team.

England played its first official international match against Scotland on 18 November 1972. This was in Greenock, Scotland. The team came back from being two goals down to beat Scotland 3–2. Sylvia Gore scored England's first ever international goal.

Early Managers and European Success

Martin Reagan became the team's manager in 1979. Under him, England reached the final of the first ever European Competition for Women's Football in 1984. They beat Denmark in the semi-finals. In the final, they played against Sweden. England lost the first game 1–0 but won the second game by the same score. The match then went to a penalty shootout, which England lost 4–3.

In 1987, England reached the semi-finals of the European Championship again. However, they lost to Sweden once more. Reagan was later removed as manager after England lost badly to Germany in 1991. This meant they could not qualify for the first ever FIFA Women's World Cup.

The FA Takes Over

In 1993, the Football Association (FA) took over running women's football in England from the WFA. Ted Copeland became the new national team manager. England qualified for Euro 1995, after missing the previous three tournaments. They were beaten by Germany in the semi-finals.

Because they reached the European semi-finals, England got a spot in the 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time. They got out of their group but lost to Germany again, 3–0, in the quarter-finals.

Hope Powell's Long Era

Hope Powell became the team's first full-time head coach in June 1998. The European Championship grew bigger in 1997, with eight teams playing every four years. England qualified for the 2001 competition in Germany. They didn't get past the group stage.

England automatically qualified as hosts for the 2005 tournament. But again, they didn't reach the semi-finals.

For the 1999 World Cup, a new qualification system was introduced. England qualified for the 2007 World Cup in China without losing a game. They won their group in the European qualifiers. They also had their biggest win ever, beating Hungary 13–0. This was their first World Cup in 12 years. They reached the quarter-finals but lost 3–0 to the United States.

In 2009, players started getting central contracts. This meant they could train full-time without needing other jobs. At the European Championships in Finland that year, England reached the final for the first time in 25 years. They lost 6–2 to Germany in the final.

England played in their third World Cup in 2011. They won their group, even beating Japan, who went on to win the tournament. In the quarter-finals, they played France. The game was 1–1 after extra time, but England lost 4–3 in a penalty shootout.

Hope Powell left in August 2013 after England had a tough time at UEFA Women's Euro 2013, leaving after the group stage.

Mark Sampson's Time as Manager

England women's team in February 2015

Mark Sampson became England's manager after Hope Powell. England qualified for their third World Cup in a row, the 2015 World Cup, by winning all ten of their qualifying matches. They played their first game at the new Wembley Stadium in November 2014, a friendly against Germany. They lost 3–0.

At the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada, England lost their first group game but won the next two. They beat Norway 2–1 in the last 16. Then, they faced the hosts, Canada, in the quarter-finals. England won 2–1 again, reaching the World Cup semi-finals for the first time ever! This was also the first time any England senior team had reached a semi-final since the men's team in the 1990 World Cup.

In the semi-finals, they played against Japan, who were the World Cup holders. The game was tied 1–1, but in the very last minute, Laura Bassett accidentally scored an own goal, sending Japan to the final. England ended up finishing in third place by beating Germany 1–0 in extra time. This was their first win against Germany in the women's game. It was the best finish for any England senior team since the men's team won the 1966 World Cup.

England also qualified for UEFA Women's Euro 2017 in the Netherlands. They won all their group games and beat France 1–0 in the quarter-finals. However, they lost to the hosts and eventual champions, the Netherlands, 3–0 in the semi-finals.

In September 2017, Mark Sampson was removed from his role. Phil Neville took over as manager in 2018.

Phil Neville's Period

The Lionesses during the 2019 Women's World Cup.

Phil Neville's first games were at the 2018 SheBelieves Cup. England finished second, their highest ever in that tournament. England qualified for the 2019 World Cup by winning their qualifying group.

In the 2019 SheBelieves Cup, England won the tournament for the first time! They beat Brazil and Japan, and drew with the United States.

At the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France, England won their group. They beat Scotland and Argentina, then Japan. They then beat Cameroon and Norway, both 3–0, to reach the semi-finals against the United States. However, England lost 2–1, missing out on the final again. They finished fourth after losing the third-place play-off to Sweden.

After the World Cup, England's performance dropped. They lost several friendly games, including one against Germany at Wembley Stadium in November 2019. That game set a new record for attendance at an England women's match, with 77,768 fans. The team's struggles continued into 2020. Phil Neville announced he would step down in July 2021.

In January 2021, Neville left early. Hege Riise became the temporary manager until Sarina Wiegman took over in September 2021.

Sarina Wiegman's Era: European Champions!

England women's team in October 2022.

On 14 August 2020, the FA announced that Sarina Wiegman, the manager of the Netherlands, would become England's new manager from September 2021. She is the first non-British permanent manager. Wiegman wanted the team to be very strong and win big. They started winning games by large scores.

On 30 November 2021, during qualification for the 2023 World Cup, Ellen White became England's all-time top goal scorer. She scored a hat-trick in a 20–0 win against Latvia. This game set many records, including being the biggest win ever for any senior England football team (men's or women's).

England hosted Women's Euro 2022 and were in Group A. They won all their group games: 1–0 against Austria, a record-breaking 8–0 against Norway, and 5–0 against Northern Ireland. In the quarter-final, England came back from being a goal down to beat Spain 2–1 in extra time. In the semi-final, they defeated Sweden 4–0. Alessia Russo scored an amazing backheel goal in that match!

England being crowned Champions of Europe after winning the Euro 2022 Final.

On 31 July 2022, England beat Germany 2–1 in extra time in the Women's Euro 2022 Final at Wembley. Chloe Kelly scored the winning goal in the 110th minute. This was the team's first ever major trophy! It was also the first major international championship won by an England team (women's or men's) since 1966. The final was watched by 87,192 people, a record for any European Championship final.

After their Euro 2022 win, the England players wrote an open letter to the candidates for Prime Minister. They asked for more investment in girls' football in schools so that every girl could have the chance to play.

The team continued their success in 2022, staying unbeaten for the whole year. Many players and the coach won awards. In February 2023, Mary Earps won Best Women's Goalkeeper, and Sarina Wiegman won Best Women's Coach at FIFA's Best Football Awards.

As European champions, England played against Brazil, the South American champions, in the 2023 Women's Finalissima in April 2023. England won on penalties! A few days later, they lost to Australia, ending their 30-match unbeaten streak under Wiegman.

At the 2023 World Cup, the Lionesses won all three of their group matches. They then beat Nigeria, Colombia, and Australia in the knockout rounds. This meant they reached their first ever World Cup final! They lost 1–0 to Spain in the final.

The Lionesses: Team Identity

Nickname: The Lionesses

The England women's national football team is famously known as the Lionesses. This nickname was created by The Football Association's digital marketing team. They wanted to make the women's team more visible, especially on social media.

The name was first used as a hashtag in June 2012. At that time, the men's team was playing in UEFA Euro 2012. The women's team also had an important game. Using #Lionesses helped people follow the women's team easily, without getting confused with the men's team's #ThreeLions branding. Fans and media started using the name naturally. The FA then made it an official brand identity before the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup.

The name "Lionesses" was also used in a new version of the popular English football song "Three Lions" during their successful Euro 2022 run. The song's original artists, Lightning Seeds and David Baddiel, performed it with former Lionesses players.

In February 2024, one of the London Overground train lines, which goes to Wembley Central, was named the "Lioness Line" in honor of the team.

Media and Promotion

In 2019, a special media campaign was launched to announce the World Cup squad. The goal was to make the players more famous and promote the team and women's football. Celebrities with links to the players announced the squad on social media. This campaign was very successful and increased online interest.

A documentary film called The Lionesses: How Football Came Home was made about their Euro 2022 win. It was released later that year. There are also plans for a documentary about the team's 2023 World Cup journey.

England's matches in big tournaments are shown on TV by ITV Sport and BBC.

Team Awards and Honours

The Lionesses have won many awards as a team:

• In 2015, the World Cup squad won the BT Sport Action Woman Awards Team of the Year.
• In 2019, the World Cup squad won the GQ Men of the Year Inspiration Award.

The 2022 Euro-winning squad and coach Sarina Wiegman received many special honors:

• Freedom of the City of London (for each player)
• Pride of Britain Awards (2022): Inspiration Award
• BT Sport Action Woman Awards: Team of the Year
• Northwest Football Awards: Billy Seymour Impact Award
• Manchester City of Champions Awards: Hall of Fame induction
• Just A Ball Game? LGBT+ inclusion and visibility award
• Sports Journalists' Association Awards: Team of the Year
• BBC Sports Personality of the Year (2022): Team of the Year Award
• Laureus World Sports Awards: Team of the Year nomination

Recent Matches and Schedule

This section shows England's recent match results and upcoming games.

All times are listed in GMT unless otherwise stated.

Legend

      Win       Draw       Lose       Fixture

2024 Matches

Friendly 23 February	England	7–2	Austria	Algeciras, Spain
19:45	Russo  3', 61' Clinton  19' Mead  37', 89' Carter  70' Daly  90+3'	https://www.englandfootball.com/england/womens-senior-team/fixtures-results/2023-24/England-v-Austria-womens-international-23-february-2024	Kirchberger  30', 88'	Stadium: Estadio Nuevo Mirador Attendance: 949 Referee: Ainara Andrea Acevedo Dudley (Spain)

Euro 2025 qualifying 5 April	England	1–1	Sweden	London, England
20:00	Russo  24'	https://www.uefa.com/womenseuropeanqualifiers/match/2040341/	Rolfö  64'	Stadium: Wembley Stadium Attendance: 63,248 Referee: Ivana Projkovska (North Macedonia)

Euro 2025 qualifying 31 May	England	1–2	France	Newcastle, England
20:00	Mead  30'	https://www.uefa.com/womenseuropeanqualifiers/match/2040391/	De Almeida  41' Katoto  69'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 42,561 Referee: Marta Huerta de Aza (Spain)

Euro 2025 qualifying 4 June	France	1–2	England	Saint-Étienne, France
20:00	Diani  72' (pen.)	https://www.uefa.com/womenseuropeanqualifiers/match/2040416/	Stanway  22' Russo  35'	Stadium: Stade Geoffroy-Guichard Attendance: 10,194 Referee: Ivana Martinčić (Croatia)

Friendly 25 October	England	3–4	Germany	London, England
19:30	Stanway  33' (pen.), 36' Bronze  81'	https://www.englandfootball.com/england/womens-senior-team/fixtures-results/2024-25/england-v-germany-womens-international-friday-25-october-wembley	Gwinn  4' (pen.), 11' Bühl  29' Däbritz  72' (pen.)	Stadium: Wembley Stadium Attendance: 47,967 Referee: Marta Huerta de Aza (Spain)

Friendly 30 November	England	v	United States	London, England
17:20				Stadium: Wembley Stadium

Coaching Staff

Current Coaches

Position	Staff	Ref.
Manager	Sarina Wiegman
Assistant manager	Arjan Veurink

Players

Current Squad

The following 24 players were chosen for the friendly matches against the United States and Switzerland in November and December 2024.

Caps (games played) and goals are correct as of the match played on 29 October 2024 against South Africa.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Earps, MaryMary Earps	(1993-03-07) 7 March 1993 (age 32)	51	0	Paris Saint-Germain
	1GK	Hampton, HannahHannah Hampton	(2000-11-16) 16 November 2000 (age 24)	9	0	Chelsea
	1GK	Moorhouse, AnnaAnna Moorhouse	(1995-03-30) 30 March 1995 (age 30)	0	0	Orlando Pride
	2DF	Bronze, LucyLucy Bronze	(1991-10-28) 28 October 1991 (age 33)	126	16	Chelsea
	2DF	Greenwood, AlexAlex Greenwood	(1993-09-07) 7 September 1993 (age 31)	95	7	Manchester City
	2DF	Bright, MillieMillie Bright	(1993-08-21) 21 August 1993 (age 31)	83	5	Chelsea
	2DF	Williamson, LeahLeah Williamson (captain)	(1997-03-29) 29 March 1997 (age 28)	50	5	Arsenal
	2DF	Carter, JessJess Carter	(1997-10-27) 27 October 1997 (age 27)	37	2	NJ/NY Gotham FC
	2DF	Morgan, EsmeEsme Morgan	(2000-10-18) 18 October 2000 (age 24)	9	0	Washington Spirit
	2DF	Le Tissier, MayaMaya Le Tissier	(2002-04-18) 18 April 2002 (age 23)	6	0	Manchester United
	2DF	George, GabbyGabby George	(1997-02-02) 2 February 1997 (age 28)	2	0	Manchester United
	2DF	Turner, MillieMillie Turner	(1996-07-07) 7 July 1996 (age 28)	1	0	Manchester United
	3MF	Walsh, KeiraKeira Walsh (vice-captain)	(1997-04-08) 8 April 1997 (age 28)	78	0	Barcelona
	3MF	Kirby, FranFran Kirby	(1993-06-29) 29 June 1993 (age 32)	74	19	Brighton & Hove Albion
	3MF	Stanway, GeorgiaGeorgia Stanway	(1999-01-03) 3 January 1999 (age 26)	73	21	Bayern Munich
	3MF	Park, JessJess Park	(2001-10-21) 21 October 2001 (age 23)	11	1	Manchester City
	3MF	Clinton, GraceGrace Clinton	(2003-03-31) 31 March 2003 (age 22)	4	2	Manchester United
	3MF	Blindkilde Brown, LauraLaura Blindkilde Brown	(2003-09-09) 9 September 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Manchester City
	3MF	Mace, RubyRuby Mace	(2003-09-05) 5 September 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Leicester City
	4FW	Mead, BethBeth Mead	(1995-05-09) 9 May 1995 (age 30)	61	33	Arsenal
	4FW	Kelly, ChloeChloe Kelly	(1998-01-15) 15 January 1998 (age 27)	47	7	Manchester City
	4FW	Russo, AlessiaAlessia Russo	(1999-02-08) 8 February 1999 (age 26)	44	20	Arsenal
	4FW	Naz, JessicaJessica Naz	(2000-09-24) 24 September 2000 (age 24)	3	0	Tottenham Hotspur
	4FW	Beever-Jones, AggieAggie Beever-Jones	(2003-07-27) 27 July 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Chelsea

Team Captains

Since 1972, England has had eleven permanent captains.

• Bold means the current captain.
• Italics means the player is still active.

Tenure	Captain		Reserve captains
1972–1976	Parker, SheilaSheila Parker
1976–		Thomas, CarolCarol Thomas (née McCune)
1993: The FA takes over the team
2002–2012		White, FayeFaye White	Phillip, MaryMary Phillip, Smith, KellyKelly Smith, Williams, FaraFara Williams, Stoney, CaseyCasey Stoney, Yankey, RachelRachel Yankey
2014–2022		Houghton, StephSteph Houghton	Williams, FaraFara Williams, Bardsley, KarenKaren Bardsley, Nobbs, JordanJordan Nobbs, Scott, JillJill Scott, White, EllenEllen White, Bassett, LauraLaura Bassett, Bronze, LucyLucy Bronze, Walsh, KeiraKeira Walsh, Duggan, ToniToni Duggan, Bright, MillieMillie Bright, Williamson, LeahLeah Williamson
2022–present		Williamson, LeahLeah Williamson	Bright, MillieMillie Bright, White, EllenEllen White, Houghton, StephSteph Houghton, Greenwood, AlexAlex Greenwood, Earps, MaryMary Earps, Walsh, KeiraKeira Walsh

Team Records

Most Games Played

Fara Williams has played the most games for England.

Bold names mean a player is still playing or can be chosen for the team.

Fara Williams holds the record for the most appearances for England, with 172 games played since 2001. She took over this record from Rachel Yankey in August 2014.

Top Goalscorers

Ellen White is England's top goalscorer.

Bold names mean a player is still playing or can be chosen for the team.

Ellen White has scored the most goals for England, with 52 goals. She broke Kelly Smith's record on 30 November 2021, when she scored three goals against Latvia in a huge 20–0 win.

Highest Attendances

These are the games with the most fans watching:

	Date	Opponent	Result For–Against	Venue	Attendance	Competition
	31 July 2022	Germany	2–1 (aet)	Wembley Stadium, London, England	87,192	UEFA Women's Euro 2022 final
	6 April 2023	Brazil	1–1 (4–2 p)		83,132	2023 Women's Finalissima
	9 November 2019	Germany	1–2		77,768	Friendly
4	7 October 2022	United States	2–1		76,893
5	12 August 2023	Colombia	2–1	Stadium Australia, Sydney, Australia	75,784	2023 FIFA Women's World Cup quarter-final
	16 August 2023	Australia	3–1			2023 FIFA Women's World Cup semi-final
	20 August 2023	Spain	0–1			2023 FIFA Women's World Cup final

Tournament History

FIFA World Cup

England reached the final of the World Cup in 2023.

England has played in the FIFA Women's World Cup six times. They did not qualify for the first three tournaments (1991, 1999, 2003).

• In 1995, 2007, and 2011, they reached the quarter-finals.
• In 2015, they won the bronze medal (third place) by beating Germany. This was their best result at the time.
• In 2019, they finished fourth.
• In 2023, they reached the final for the first time, finishing as runners-up to Spain.

Olympic Games

England does not play directly in the Olympic Games. Instead, players from England can play for the Great Britain women's Olympic football team. This team includes players from England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

• The Great Britain team played at the London 2012 Olympics (as hosts) and the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
• For the Paris 2024 Olympics, England tried to qualify for Great Britain through the 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League, but they did not make it.

UEFA European Championship

England won the Euros in 2022.

England first played in the UEFA Women's Championship in 1984.

• They were runners-up in 1984 and again in 2009.
• In 2022, they won the tournament for the first time, becoming European Champions!
• They have reached the semi-finals three other times (1987, 1995, 2017).
• They did not get out of the group stage in 2001, 2005, and 2013.

UEFA Nations League

England started playing in the UEFA Women's Nations League in its first season, 2023–24. They just missed out on reaching the finals in 2024.

Women's Finalissima

England won the Women's Finalissima in 2023. This was a special match between the European champions (England) and the South American champions (Brazil). England won on penalties.

Honours and Trophies

Major Titles

• FIFA Women's World Cup
  • Runners-up: 2023
  • Third place: 2015
• UEFA Women's Championship
  • Champions: 2022
  • Runners-up: 1984, 2009
• Women's Finalissima
  • Champions: 2023

Other Tournament Wins

• Pony Home Championship
  • Champions: 1976
• Mundialito
  • Champions: 1985, 1988
• Cyprus Cup
  • Champions: 2009, 2013, 2015
• SheBelieves Cup
  • Champions: 2019
• Arnold Clark Cup
  • Champions: 2022, 2023

Images for kids

• 

  England women's team in February 2015

• 

  The Lionesses during the 2019 Women's World Cup.

• 

  England women's team in October 2022.

• 

  England being crowned Champions of Europe after winning the Euro 2022 Final.

• 

  Fara Williams has played the most games for England.

• 

  Ellen White is England's top goalscorer.

• 

  England reached the final of the World Cup in 2023.

• 

  England won the Euros in 2022.

See also

In Spanish: Selección femenina de fútbol de Inglaterra para niños

• Sport in England
  • Football in England
    • Women's football in England
• Great Britain women's Olympic football team
• England national football team, the men's national football team