Have England ever reached the Women’s World Cup final?

The men have tried. Oh, how they’ve tried. And while Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions have come close to bringing football home, they haven’t quite got over the line.

The Lionesses, on the other hand, accomplished what the Three Lions had been longing to achieve in 2022. It really did come home, as England defeated Germany at Wembley to win the Women’s European Championship.

Sarina Wiegman has worked her magic with the England squad. She knows how to win, and the Dutchwoman is lining up more success down under with the Lionesses edging closer to the World Cup final.

It’d be a stage unfamiliar to England, that’s for sure.

No senior England side, men or women, have played in a World Cup final since Booby Moore hoisted the old Jules Rimet trophy aloft in 1966.

The Women’s World Cup was only established in 1991, and England have failed to qualify for three of the nine tournaments so far. They’ve competed in the previous five and have reached the knockout stages in each of them, however.

The Lionesses were simply well behind the rest of the world in the first years following the Women’s World Cup inauguration. They qualified for just one of the first four tournaments, reaching the quarter-finals once (1995).

England have fared much better since 2007, although they weren’t considered a serious contender until 2019. Their 2015 campaign, where they reached the semi-finals before losing to Japan, did a lot to change the perceptions surrounding the women’s game in the UK.

In France four years ago, the Lionesses impressed and once again reached the last four, but they were edged out in the semis by the almighty USA. So, if England beat Australia in what should really be the Ashes decider, they will progress into the Women’s World Cup final for the very first time.

England’s performances at the Women’s World Cup

The winners of Wednesday’s semi-final will face Spain in the 2023 Women’s World Cup final at Stadium Australia in Sydney on 20 August.

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