England at the World Cup 2026: Squad, fixtures, group and history

England's hopes of winning a second major title 60 years after their first at FIFA World Cup 2026 ended with a 2-1 defeat by Argentina in the semi-finals. Thomas Tuchel's side, led by captain Harry Kane, won their group and beat DR Congo, Mexico and Norway before missing out on the final. They defeated France in a thrilling match to finish third.

Below you will find everything you need to know about England at the 2026 World Cup: their fixtures, squad, qualifying record, key players, coach and tournament history.

England at the World Cup 2026: At a glance

Coach: Thomas Tuchel
Captain: Harry Kane
World Cup appearances: 17
Best finish: Winners (1966)

England's World Cup matches

Group L: Winners

17 June: England 4-2 Croatia (Dallas)
23 June: England 0-0 Ghana (Boston)
27 June: Panama 0-2 England (New York)

Knockout stage

1 July – round of 32: England 2-1 DR Congo (Atlanta)
6 July – round of 16: Mexico 2-3 England (Mexico City)
11 July – quarter-finals: Norway 1-2 England, aet (Miami)
15 July – semi-finals: England 1-2 Argentina (Atlanta)
18 July – third place play-off: France 4-6 England (Miami)

England's World Cup squad

Harry Kane has been a revelation at Bayern and provided more goals and creative support in England's 26-man World Cup squad. The Three Lions also boasted a wealth of elite talent in Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice, the latter pair having reached the UEFA Champions League final and won the Premier League with Arsenal this year.

How England qualified for the World Cup

First place in Group K: W8 D0 L0 F22 A0

England 2-0 Albania
England 3-0 Latvia
Andorra 0-1 England
England 2-0 Andorra
Serbia 0-5 England
Latvia 0-5 England
England 2-0 Serbia
Albania 0-2 England

Top scorer: Harry Kane (8 goals)

England coach: Thomas Tuchel

A defender with Stuttgarter Kickers and Ulm, Tuchel switched to youth team and reserve coaching after a knee injury ended his playing career at 25. Given his first senior job at Mainz, Tuchel won the German Cup as Borussia Dortmund boss in 2016/17, then took two French league titles (and a French Cup) at Paris Saint-Germain before leading Chelsea to UEFA Champions League glory in 2020/21. He steered Bayern München to the German title in 2022/23 before taking over as England boss in January 2025.

England captain: Harry Kane

The hard-working striker turns 33 ten days after the World Cup final. With 280 goals, Kane became Tottenham Hotspur's all-time top scorer before leaving in 2023 for a new adventure in Germany. Since joining Bayern, his extraordinary goalscoring record (98 in 94 Bundesliga games) and commitment to team play have earned him the first silverware of his career: two league titles, one German Cup. Kane came to the World Cup with a record 78 England goals and wasted no time in adding to that tally.

England's World Cup history 

Most appearances: Jordan Pickford (19)
Top scorer: Harry Kane (14)
Best performance: Winners (1966)
World Cup 2022: Quarter-finals

England's finest hour came on home soil at Wembley in 1966, a 4-2 defeat of West Germany after extra time sealing their only major trophy. West Germany took revenge in the 1990 semi-finals and it was not until 2018 that England made it as far again, Croatia this time preventing Southgate's side from reaching the showpiece.

England's UEFA Nations League fixtures: Group A3

26 September: England vs Spain (20:45)
29 September: Czechia vs England (20:45)
3 October: Croatia vs England (18:00)
6 October: England vs Czechia (20:45)
12 November: England vs Croatia (20:45)
15 November: Spain vs England (20:45)

All times CET.