When was the last time England were knocked out in the group stage of a major tournament?

Georgia Stanway, Grace Clinton, Keira Walsh, Alessia Russo, Hannah Hampton of England look dejected after the teams defeat in during the UEFA Women's EURO 2025 Group D match between France and England at Stadion Letzigrund on July 05, 2025 in Zurich, Switzerland.
England lost their opening game 2-1 (Image credit: Getty Images)

England will be knocked out of Euro 2025 on Wednesday if they lose to the Netherlands and France beat Wales.

The Lionesses, who are defending champions, lost to France in their opening game which has made their second game all the more crucial.

England have had good runs at recent major tournaments, reaching the 2023 World Cup final, and so when was the last time they were knocked out at a major tournament in the group stage? Find out all you need to know below.

England: When did they not make the knockout stage?

Leah Williamson with her hand on her head

Leah Williamson will captain the side against the Netherlands (Image credit: Getty Images)

England's late runs into major tournaments did not start when Sarina Wiegman took over.

Of course the Dutchwoman led the Lionesses to Euros glory and the World Cup final but England had been build over the previous tournaments.

Lucy Bronze looking frustrated

Lucy Bronze is an experienced player in the England side (Image credit: Getty Images)

Under Phil Neville they reached the 2019 World Cup they reached the semi-final but were knocked out 2-1 by eventual winners USWNT.

At the 2017 Euros Mark Sampson guided the team to the semi-finals where the Netherlands beat them 3-0.

Sampson was also in charge for the 2015 World Cup where England finished third after being beaten 2-1 by Japan.

The 2015 tournament was what sparked the great run at major tournaments with the last one where the team were knocked out at the group stage coming in 2013.

Lionesses celebrate Jess Park's goal against Spain

The team look to bounce back against the Netherlands (Image credit: Getty Images)

At that Euros, led by Hope Powell, England finished bottom of the group after losing to 3-2 to Spain, drawing 1-1 with Russia and losing 3-0 to France.

A narrow loss is how England started the 2025 Euros with a 2-1 loss to France. But the team will be hoping the trend does not follow the same path at 2013.

A loss to the Netherlands will see England's departure confirmed tonight, if France also beat Wales. But if they get at least a point their campaign will be decided in the final group match.

England's last group opponents will be Wales on Sunday.

Sarah Rendell
Women's football editor

Sarah joined the FourFourTwo team in September 2024 in a freelance role. She also writes for The Guardian, BBC and Rugby World where she specialises in women's football and rugby. Sarah has a bachelors degree in English and a master's in newspaper journalism.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.