Widely regarded as the “home of football,” England saw the establishment of the world’s first football association, The Football Association (The FA), in 1863. Since then, it has played a central role in the global development of the sport. The establishment of the Dai-Nippon Football Association (now the Japan Football Association) in 1921 was also prompted by the donation of the FA Silver Cup from The FA. The domestic league, which began in 1888, has since evolved into the Premier League, now widely considered one of the finest competitions in world football and home to many of the game’s leading international players.

From these Premier League clubs, outstanding talents continue to emerge, with England’s national teams across all age groups achieving success on the international stage. At senior level, the “Three Lions”—so named after the three lions depicted on the crest—have in recent years begun to rediscover their former stature. England finished fourth at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ and reached the quarter-finals at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. They were also runners-up at both UEFA EURO 2020 (held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) and UEFA EURO 2024.

With such strong foundations in place, expectations are mounting that England can claim their second world title—and first since winning on home soil in 1966—at this year’s FIFA World Cup. Tasked with leading the side is head coach Thomas TUCHEL, whose appointment was announced in October two years ago. The German manager previously coached OKAZAKI Shinji at 1. FSV Mainz 05 and KAGAWA Shinji at Borussia Dortmund, and guided Chelsea to victory in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League.

In last year’s FIFA World Cup qualifiers, England faced Albania, Serbia, Latvia and Andorra, progressing with a perfect record of eight wins from eight matches, scoring 22 goals without conceding. Alongside the talent emerging from the highly competitive Premier League, players based at leading clubs abroad—such as Harry KANE (FC Bayern Munchen/Germany) and Jude BELLINGHAM (Real Madrid CF/Spain)—played key roles. In the group stage of the finals, England are scheduled to face Croatia on 17 June, Ghana on 23 June and Panama on 27 June.

This fixture against SAMURAI BLUE (Japan National Team) will be staged at Wembley Stadium in London, a historic venue that has hosted numerous memorable international matches and domestic cup finals. It was also at Wembley in June 1995 that Japan first faced England. On that occasion, England took the lead before IHARA Masami equalised; however, a late penalty secured a 2–1 victory for the home side.

Ranked fourth in the FIFA World Rankings (as of 20 January 2026), England will host 17th-ranked Uruguay at Wembley Stadium on 27 March, prior to their meeting with 19th-ranked Japan. When these fixtures were announced, head coach Thomas Tuchel was quoted in local media as saying: “We wanted to play two teams ranked in the top 20 in the world, but also to test ourselves against opponents from outside of Europe.” With the match against Japan set to be their final opportunity to assess the squad before the FIFA World Cup, its importance cannot be overstated.

Results of last 5 matches
(H: Home, A: Away, N: Neutral ground, ○: Win, △: Draw, ●: Loss)

Record against Japan

2 wins 1 draw (5 goals for, 3 goals against)

Results at the FIFA World Cup™

Appearances: 16
Titles: 1
※They were not affiliated with FIFA during the first three tournaments (1930–1938)

1950 Group stage (1st Round)
1954 Quarterfinals
1958 Group stage
1962 Quarterfinals
1966 Winners
1970 Quarterfinals
1974 Eliminated in the qualifier
1978 Eliminated in the qualifier
1982 Group stage (2nd Round)
1986 Quarterfinals
1990 4th Place
1994 Eliminated in the qualifier
1998 Round of 16
2002 Quarterfinals
2006 Quarterfinals
2010 Round of 16
2014 Group stage
2018 4th Place
2022 Quarterfinals

Data on the opposing country

◇FIFA Rankings (as of 20 November 2025): 4th
◇Record against Japan: 2 wins 1 draw (5 goals for, 3 goals against)

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