England and Harry Kane take on Argentina and Lionel Messi in the 2026 FIFA World Cup semifinals on Tuesday, in Atlanta Stadium. It's a battle between the defending champion and a team that has tried again and again to reach the top of the mountain – Messi and Argentina won the tournament in 2022 in Qatar, while it's been much longer than that since it came home for England. When Was England's Last Semifinal?
England first participated in the World Cup in 1950, after becoming a member of FIFA. It has been a part of 19 World Cup tournaments since that initial entry, failing to qualify for it just three times – in 1974, 1978 and 1994. England has also missed advancing to the knockout stage three times: in its first World Cup in 1950, as well as 1958 and 2014.
It has reached the semifinals on four occasions: first in 1966, then in 1990, 2014 and now, in 2026. When Did England Last Win The World Cup? England failed to make it out of the semifinals in both 1990 and 2014, and lost the third-place match on both occasions, as well, finishing fourth among the final four squads.
In 1966, however, England not only advanced to the World Cup final, but came away victorious. England was the host nation for the '66 World Cup, and defeated West Germany in the final, doing so at Wembley Stadium – every match England played during this tournament was at Wembley. An 0-0 draw against Uruguay opened the tournament for England, then wins against France and Mexico to advance out of the group stage.
England would defeat Argentina and then Portugal – it gave up its first goal of the entire tournament late against Portugal, but advanced to face West Germany in the final. West Germany went up 1-0 in the 12th minute, before England equalized and left the game tied for most of the rest of regulation, only taking a lead with 12 minutes left. West Germany tied it 2-2 in the 89th minute, however, forcing extra time, where Geoff Hurst would score another two goals and earn the first hat trick in World Cup final history to give England its first – and only – title.
How to Watch England vs. Argentina
