my-server
← Wiki

England women's national under-20 football team

The England women's national under-20 football team is an association football team that represents England women at under-20 level. It was governed by the Football Association (FA) since 1993, having been previously administered by the Women's Football Association (WFA). Although most national football teams represent a sovereign state, as a member of the United Kingdom's Home Nations, England is permitted by FIFA statutes to maintain its own national side that competes in all major tournaments. The team operated as England Under-21s from 2018 to 2021, followed by England Under-23s, after cancellations of the Under-19 Championship and U-20 World Cup.

Pathway Transitions

Move to U-21 system (2018–2021)

In a bid to better aid the transition between the youth pathway and senior football, the WFA announced in September 2018 that they were scrapping the U23s and U20s format in order to form an Under-21s age group, which would become the top tier of the nation's professional development phase. The move would align England's structure to that used in other European countries, allowing for more age-appropriate games and better manage individual player development post-U20 World Cup for those who have genuine senior team potential. The then U20s manager Mo Marley was announced as head coach.

Move to U-23 team (2021–present)

Under-20 World Cups

2018 Under-20 World Cup

In 2018 they finished third at the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, their best ever finish at the tournament. They won the play-off for third 4–2 on penalties against the host nation France. In the knockout rounds, they overcame tournament debutants the Netherlands 2–1 in the quarter-finals before losing 2–0 to Japan, which was the first time England they had reached the semi-final stage.

2026 Under-20 World Cup

England Women's Under-19s confirmed England's qualification for the 2026 Under-20 World Cup in June 2025, despite finishing 3rd in their group at the 2025 Under-19 European Championship.

A group of Under-19 and Under-20 players were announced for the first Under-20 training camp in over 7 years on 19 November 2025, with games against China PR, USA and Mexico to be played in Murcia, Spain. England Women's Under-19s Head Coach Lauren Smith took control of the Under-20s as they beat Mexico and China, and lost to a strong USA Under-20 side.

Competitive record

FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup

Head-to-head record

The following table shows England's head-to-head record in the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.

Current squad

Interim head coach John Salomon named a 24-player squad, a mixture of under-19s and under-20s, for three international fixtures against Spain, the Netherlands, and Mexico, on the Costa Blanca, in Spain, between February and March 2026. Jessie Gale and Eleanor Klinger were subsequently called up to the under-23 squad, they were replaced by Princess Ademiluyi and Lily Murphy.

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the England under-20 squad within the last twelve months.

  • = Withdrew due to injury
  • = Called up to U23 squad

Recent schedule and results

This list includes match results from the past 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

2025

2026

References