England’s Football History :
England’s National Football team represents the country in international football competitions. The team is controlled by “The Football Association”, the governing body responsible for managing football in England.
England and Scotland are the oldest national football teams in the world. The England football team played the world’s first ever international football match against Scotland in the year 1872. England is also one of the UK’s Home Nations* allowed to maintain its own national side permitted by FIFA. The Wembley Stadium serves as the home ground for Britain’s national football team. England started participating in FIFA World Cups in 1954 and since then it has appeared in 13 World Cups. England entered the UEFA European Championship in 1968 and has played eight tournaments till date.
The England national team does not represent the country in the Olympics, then it is a combined entity known as ‘TEAM GB’ governed by the British Olympic Association. Besides this, the England national football team does participate in other minor tournaments and has a successful record in them. Moreover, it has participated in regional championships like the British Home Championship where it has emerged winners 54 times (20 shared), finished runners-up 24 times (7 shared) and was also awarded the respected FIFA Fair Play Trophy twice in the 1990 and 1998 FIFA World Cups.
England Success Story :
England won their first and only FIFA World Cup title in the year 1966. It also significantly finished 4th in the 1990 World Cup and entered the quarter finals six times. It has emerged as one of the successful nations at the UEFA European Championship, being positioned 3rd in 1968 and having entered the semi-finals in 1996. It reached the quarter-finals on two occasions in 2004 and in 2012. England’s success story is further enhanced by superb performances in minor tournaments in which it has earned a total of 6 titles. The all-time record of the team is quite impressive as a whole. The England national football team has also qualified for the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2014 through UEFA qualifying group H.
*Home nations refer to the collection of four countries viz. Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, and Wales that form the United Kingdom.
England squad: |
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| Goalkeepers: | Joe Hart (Manchester City) Ben Foster (West Bromwich Albion) Fraser Forster (Celtic) |
Defenders: | Leighton Baines (Everton) Gary Cahill (Chelsea) Phil Jagielka (Everton) Glen Johnson (Liverpool) Phil Jones (Manchester United) Luke Shaw (Southampton) Chris Smalling (Manchester United) |
| Midfielders: | Ross Barkley (Everton) Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) Jordan Henderson (Liverpool) Adam Lallana (Southampton) Frank Lampard (Chelsea) James Milner (Manchester City) Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal) Raheem Sterling (Liverpool), Jack Wilshere (Arsenal) |
Forwards: | Rickie Lambert (Southampton) Wayne Rooney (Manchester United) Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool) Danny Welbeck (Manchester United) |
| Standby: | John Ruddy (Norwich City) Jon Flanagan (Liverpool) John Stones (Everton) Michael Carrick (Manchester United) Tom Cleverley (Manchester United) Andy Carroll (West Ham United) Jermain Defoe (Toronto FC) |
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England’s performance in all the FIFA World Cups :
| World Cup Year | World Cup Hosting Nation | FIFA Qualification | Quarter Final Birth | Semi Final Birth | Third Place Secured | Reached Final | Title Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | South Africa | Yes | No | – | – | – | – |
| 2006 | Germany | Yes | Yes | No | – | – | – |
| 2002 | South Korea | Yes | Yes | No | – | – | – |
| 1998 | France | Yes | No | – | – | – | – |
| 1994 | United States | No | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1990 | Italy | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | – |
| 1986 | Mexico | Yes | Yes | No | – | – | – |
| 1982 | Spain | Yes | No | – | – | – | – |
| 1978 | Argentina | No | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1974 | West Germany | No | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1970 | Mexico | Yes | Yes | No | – | – | – |
| 1966 | England | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Won |
| 1962 | Chile | Yes | Yes | No | – | – | – |
| 1958 | Sweden | Yes | No | – | – | – | – |
| 1954 | Switzerland | Yes | Yes | No | – | – | – |
| 1950 | Brazil | Yes | No | – | – | – | – |
| 1938 | France | Did Not Enter | Did Not Enter | – | – | – | – |
| 1934 | Italy | Did Not Enter | Did Not Enter | – | – | – | – |
| 1930 | Uruguay | Did Not Enter | Did Not Enter | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 19 World Cups | 13 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
