List of England national football team captains

155 people have officially served as captains of the England national football teams. The current captains are Harry Kane (men's) and Leah Williamson (women's).

England's men's and women's captains, Harry Kane (left, pictured in 2023) and Leah Williamson (right, pictured at a 2022 friendly)

The first England captain was Cuthbert Ottaway; he captained England in the first ever international match, against Scotland on 30 November 1872. He went on to captain England on just one further occasion, the third international match, on 7 March 1874, against the same opposition. Alexander Morten captained England in their first international on home soil, 8 March 1873, also against Scotland, and was the first international captain to win a match. Having previously played for Scotland against England,^[1] this was his only international appearance for England. Morten remains England's oldest captain.

The first unofficial women's international match was contested by England and France in 1920, with the Dick, Kerr Ladies "England" side captained by Alice Kell.^[2] The England women's team was authorised in 1972 by the Women's Football Association (WFA), originally unaffiliated with the Football Association (FA), and had Sheila Parker as its first captain. The official England women's first international match was played against Scotland on 18 November 1972, in anticipation of the centenary of the equivalent men's match. Parker remained in her role for four years before being left out of the 1976 British Home Championship; her replacement, Carol Thomas (née McCune), was only 20 when she took the armband,^[3] and retained it for nearly a decade. Women's players between 1972 and 1993 were not all officially recognised until 2022; there were also several prior to 1972, who were not sanctioned and are not recognised. Thomas is England's youngest official captain under the WFA; Keira Walsh is England's youngest official captain under the FA; Carol Wilson and Casey Stoney unofficially served as captains when younger than Thomas and Walsh.^[a]

Billy Wright set the record for most captaincies of his country in 1959, with 90. Bobby Moore, who remains England's youngest men's captain and the only England captain to have lifted the World Cup, reached 90 captaincies in 1973, sharing the record with Wright. Steph Houghton has the record for captaincies of the women's team, and outright fourth-most caps as captain (72) behind Wright and Moore, and Kane. Seven male players were captain in their only international cap, the last of these being in 1925. Williamson is England's only captain to have lifted the Euro, which she has done twice, and the only England captain to win a major trophy outside of England.^[5]

Several women's matches have seen two players start as co-captains.^[6][7] The most players known to wear the captain's armband for England in one match is four, which has happened twice. On 3 June 2003, Michael Owen started as captain with Emile Heskey, Phil Neville, and Jamie Carragher all wearing the armband.^[8][9] On 30 November 2021, Millie Bright started as captain, with Ellen White, Keira Walsh, and Alex Greenwood also wearing the armband.^[10][11]

Men's team

Captain chronology

• Bold indicates current captain
• Italics indicates still-active players
• Source unless specified:^[12]

Tenure	Incumbent		Reserve captains[b]
1872–1874		Cuthbert Ottaway
1873	Alexander Morten
1875		Charles W. Alcock
1876	Hubert Heron
1877	William Rawson
1878–1879	Arthur Cursham
1879	Henry Wace
1880	Charles Wollaston
1880	Francis Sparks
1881	Jack Hunter
1881–1887	Norman Bailey		Charles Bambridge, Jack Hudson, Percy Walters
1888		Tinsley Lindley
1889–1890		Percy Walters	Jack Brodie
1890		Arthur Walters
1891	Tinsley Lindley
1891		John Goodall
1891		Billy Moon
1892	Arthur Dunn
1893	George Cotterill		Bob Holmes
1894		Bob Holmes
1894	John Goodall
1895	Bob Holmes
1895		Charles Wreford-Brown[c]
1895		R. Cunliffe Gosling[c]
1896–1901		G. O. Smith[d][e]	Charles Wreford-Brown, William Oakley, Ernest Needham
1902		R. E. Foster
1902		Frank Forman
1902		Steve Bloomer[f]
1903		Howard Spencer
1903–1904		Bob Crompton
1905	Stan Harris
1905		Howard Spencer
1906	Stan Harris
1907	Bob Crompton
1908–1910		Vivian Woodward	Bob Crompton
1910–1914	Bob Crompton		Vivian Woodward
1914–1918: World War I
1919	Arthur Knight
1920		Jesse Pennington
1920	Joe McCall
1921		Charlie Buchan
1921		Arthur Grimsdell
1921	Ephraim Longworth
1921–1922	George Wilson		Max Woosnam
1922–1923	Arthur Grimsdell
1923–1924	George Wilson		Charlie Buchan, Basil Patchitt, Graham Doggart, Frank Moss
1924	Sam Wadsworth
1924–1925	Alfred Bower
1925–1926	Sam Wadsworth		Billy Walker, Claude Ashton, Tommy Lucas
1927	Alfred Bower
1927	Jack Hill		Fred Kean
1928	Roy Goodall
1928–1929	Willis Edwards
1929	Jack Hill
1929	Willis Edwards
1930		David Jack
1930–1931	Roy Goodall		Alf Strange
1931–1933	Ernie Blenkinsop		David Jack, Billy Walker
1933	Roy Goodall
1934		Tom Cooper
1934–1939		Eddie Hapgood	Jack Barker, George Male, Sam Barkas, Stan Cullis
1939–1945: World War II
1946–1948		George Hardwick	Frank Swift
1948–1959		Billy Wright	Alf Ramsey
1959–1960		Ronnie Clayton
1960–1962		Johnny Haynes	Jimmy Armfield
1962–1964		Jimmy Armfield	Bobby Moore
1964–1973		Bobby Moore	Ron Flowers, Jimmy Armfield, Bobby Charlton, Alan Mullery, Martin Peters, Colin Bell
1974		Emlyn Hughes
1975		Alan Ball
1975–1976	Gerry Francis		Kevin Keegan, Mick Channon
1976–1982		Kevin Keegan	Emlyn Hughes, Mick Mills, Phil Thompson, Trevor Cherry, Ray Clemence, Peter Shilton
1982–1991		Bryan Robson	Ray Wilkins, Peter Shilton, Terry Butcher, Peter Beardsley
1990–1992		Gary Lineker	Mark Wright, Stuart Pearce
1992–1993		Stuart Pearce	Paul Ince, David Platt
1993–1995		David Platt	Paul Ince, Tony Adams
1995–1996		Tony Adams	Alan Shearer
1996–2000		Alan Shearer	Stuart Pearce, Paul Ince, David Seaman, Tony Adams, Sol Campbell
2000	Tony Adams		Sol Campbell, Martin Keown
2000–2006		David Beckham	Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard
2006–2010		John Terry	Rio Ferdinand, Steven Gerrard, David Beckham
2010–2011		Rio Ferdinand	Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry
2011–2012	John Terry		Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Scott Parker
2012–2014		Steven Gerrard	Frank Lampard, Wayne Rooney, Gareth Barry
2014–2017		Wayne Rooney	Gary Cahill, Joe Hart, Phil Jagielka, James Milner, Chris Smalling, Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane
2017–2018		Jordan Henderson	Gary Cahill, Joe Hart, Harry Kane, Eric Dier
2018–present		Harry Kane	Jordan Henderson,[14] Gary Cahill, Eric Dier, Raheem Sterling,[15] Harry Maguire, Kieran Trippier, Marcus Rashford,[16] Kyle Walker,[17] Declan Rice,[18] John Stones[19]

Captains by tournament

• Bold indicates tournament winners
• Italics indicates tournament hosts
• Source:^[20]

Player	Tournament(s)[g]
Billy Wright	1950 FIFA World Cup 1954 FIFA World Cup 1958 FIFA World Cup
Johnny Haynes	1962 FIFA World Cup
Bobby Moore	1966 FIFA World Cup UEFA Euro 1968 1970 FIFA World Cup
Kevin Keegan	UEFA Euro 1980
Mick Mills	1982 FIFA World Cup
Bryan Robson	1986 FIFA World Cup UEFA Euro 1988 1990 FIFA World Cup
Gary Lineker	UEFA Euro 1992
Tony Adams	UEFA Euro 1996
Alan Shearer	1998 FIFA World Cup UEFA Euro 2000
David Beckham	2002 FIFA World Cup UEFA Euro 2004 2006 FIFA World Cup
Steven Gerrard	2010 FIFA World Cup UEFA Euro 2012 2014 FIFA World Cup
Wayne Rooney	UEFA Euro 2016
Harry Kane	2018 FIFA World Cup 2018–19 UEFA Nations League UEFA Euro 2020 2020–21 UEFA Nations League 2022–23 UEFA Nations League 2022 FIFA World Cup UEFA Euro 2024

Women's team

Captain chronology

• Bold indicates current captain
• Italics indicates still-active players
•    indicates player was captain for matches under the Women's Football Association^[h]

Tenure	Incumbent		Reserve captains[b]
1972–1976	Sheila Parker[25]
1976–		Carol Thomas (née McCune)[3]
1983: WFA becomes a "County Association" of The Football Association[26]
–1985	Carol Thomas (née McCune)[3]
1985–		Debbie Bampton[23]
1990–	Gillian Coultard[6][23]
1993: The team becomes incorporated into The Football Association[27]
–1997	Debbie Bampton[6]
–2000	Gillian Coultard[6]
2000–2001	Mo Marley[6][28]
2001–2002		Tara Proctor[29]	Karen Walker,[7] Faye White[7]
2002–2003		Karen Walker[7][30]	Mary Phillip[7]
2002–2012		Faye White[7][31][32]	Mary Phillip,[7] Kelly Smith,[33] Fara Williams,[7][34] Casey Stoney,[7][35] Rachel Yankey[36]
2012–2014		Casey Stoney[37]	Rachel Yankey,[35] Alex Scott,[38] Steph Houghton,[35] Fara Williams,[35] Laura Bassett[35]
2014–2022		Steph Houghton[39]	Fara Williams,[35] Karen Bardsley,[35] Jordan Nobbs,[40][41] Jill Scott,[35] Ellen White,[35] Laura Bassett,[35] Lucy Bronze,[42] Keira Walsh,[43] Toni Duggan,[35] Millie Bright,[44][45] Leah Williamson[44]
2022–present		Leah Williamson	Millie Bright,[46] Ellen White,[47] Steph Houghton,[48][i] Alex Greenwood,[49] Mary Earps,[50] Keira Walsh[51]

Captains by tournament

• Bold indicates tournament winners
• Italics indicates tournament hosts

Player	Tournament(s)[g]
Carol Thomas (née McCune)	1979 European Competition for Women's Football[52] 1981 Mundialito[52] 1984 European Competition for Women's Football[52] 1984 Mundialito 1985 Mundialito[52]
Debbie Bampton	1987 European Competition for Women's Football[52] 1988 Mundialito
Gillian Coultard	UEFA Women's Euro 1995[53][6]
Debbie Bampton	1995 FIFA Women's World Cup[6][54]
Gillian Coultard
Mo Marley	UEFA Women's Euro 2001[28][55]
Tara Proctor
Faye White	UEFA Women's Euro 2005[7] 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup[7] UEFA Women's Euro 2009[7] 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup[35]
Casey Stoney	UEFA Women's Euro 2013[35]
Steph Houghton	2015 FIFA Women's World Cup[35] UEFA Women's Euro 2017[35] 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup[35]
Leah Williamson	UEFA Women's Euro 2022[45] 2023 Women's Finalissima
Millie Bright[j]	2023 FIFA Women's World Cup 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League
Leah Williamson	UEFA Women's Euro 2025

Captains by appearances as captain

Figures include all recognised matches up to match played 27 July 2025. Only confirmed captaincies of named captains are counted.

The default order for this list is by most appearances as captain, then chronological order of first captaincy.

• Bold indicates permanent captain of England
• Italics indicates still-active players
• Sources unless specified:^[k][12]

#	Player	England career	Caps as captain	Total caps	First captaincy
1	Billy Wright	1946–1959	90	105	9 October 1948
1	Bobby Moore	1962–1973	90	108	29 May 1963
3	Harry Kane	2015–present	82	107	10 June 2017
4	Steph Houghton	2007–2022	72[56]	121	17 January 2014
5	Bryan Robson	1980–1991	65	90	17 November 1982
6	David Beckham	1996–2009	59	115	15 November 2000
7	Carol Thomas (née McCune)	1976–1985	49–51[l]	56[l]	22 May 1976
8	Faye White	1997–2012	48[60]	90	7 March 2002
9	Leah Williamson	2018–present	43[61]	64	17 September 2021
10	Gillian Coultard	1981–2000	38+[m]	119	25 November 1990
10	Steven Gerrard	2000–2014	38	114	31 March 2004
12	Alan Shearer	1992–2000	34	63	1 September 1996
12	John Terry	2003–2012	34	78	16 August 2006
14	Kevin Keegan	1972–1982	31	63	24 March 1976
15	Debbie Bampton	1978–1997	26+[m]	95	22 September 1985
16	Wayne Rooney	2003–2018	23	120	14 November 2009
16	Emlyn Hughes	1969–1980	23	62	11 March 1974
18	Bob Crompton	1902–1914	22	41	2 March 1903
18	Johnny Haynes	1954–1962	22	56	15 May 1960
20	Eddie Hapgood	1933–1939	20	30	14 November 1934
20	Millie Bright	2016–present	20	88	13 April 2021
22	David Platt	1989–1996	19	62	17 February 1993
22	Casey Stoney	2000–2017	19	130	7 March 2009[n]
24	Gary Lineker	1984–1992	18	80	12 September 1990
25	Mary Phillip	1995–2008	17+[m]	65	17 May 2003
26	Norman Bailey	1878–1887	15	19	12 March 1881
26	Jimmy Armfield	1959–1966	15	43	28 September 1961
26	Peter Shilton	1970–1990	15	125	25 May 1982
26	Tony Adams	1987–2000	15	66	12 October 1994
30	Viv Woodward	1903–1911	14	23	15 February 1908
31	G. O. Smith	1893–1901	13–16[d][e]	20	4 April 1896
31	George Hardwick	1946–1948	13	13	28 September 1946
33	Roy Goodall	1926–1933	12	25	31 March 1928
34	Sheila Parker	1972–1983	11	33[63]	18 November 1972
34	Fara Williams	2001–2019	11	172	5 March 2009
36	Ray Wilkins	1976–1986	10	84	22 September 1982
36	Stuart Pearce	1987–1999	10	78	8 June 1991
38	Jordan Henderson	2010–present	9	84	8 October 2016
39	Jack Hill	1925–1929	8	11	2 April 1927
39	Gerry Francis	1974–1976	8	12	3 September 1975
39	Mick Mills	1972–1982	8	42	13 May 1978
39	Michael Owen	1998–2008	8	89	17 April 2002
39	Frank Lampard	1999–2014	8	106	9 February 2011
44	George Wilson	1921–1924	7	12	22 October 1921
44	Terry Butcher	1980–1990	7	77	12 November 1986
44	Paul Ince	1992–2000	7	53	9 June 1993
44	Rio Ferdinand	1997–2011	7	81	26 March 2008
44	Eric Dier	2015–2022	7	49	10 November 2017
49	George Male	1934–1939	6	19	18 November 1936
49	Alan Ball	1965–1975	6	72	12 March 1975
49	Phil Thompson	1976–1982	6	42	22 November 1979
52	Percy Walters	1885–1890	5	13	13 March 1886
52	Willis Edwards	1926–1929	5	16	22 October 1928
52	Ronnie Clayton	1955–1960	5	35	17 October 1959
52	Mo Marley	1995–2001	5	41	4 June 2000
52	Gary Cahill	2010–2018	5	61	9 October 2015
52	Jill Scott	2006–2022	5	161	27 October 2015
52	Lucy Bronze	2013–present	5	140	1 March 2018
52	Harry Maguire	2017–present	5	64	7 September 2019
60	Tinsley Lindley	1886–1891	4	13	4 February 1888
60	Stanley Harris	1904–1906	4	6	25 February 1905
60	Sam Wadsworth	1922–1926	4	9	22 October 1924
60	David Jack	1924–1932	4	9	5 April 1930
60	Ernie Blenkinsop	1928–1933	4	26	9 December 1931
60	Thomas Cooper	1927–1934	4	15	14 April 1934
60	Martin Peters	1966–1974	4	67	19 May 1971
60	Tara Proctor	1995–2002	4	20	30 June 2001
60	Kelly Smith	1995–2014	4	117	28 September 2008
69	Robert Holmes	1888–1895	3	7	13 March 1893
69	Howard Spencer	1897–1905	3	6	14 February 1903
69	Arthur Grimsdell	1920–1923	3	6	9 April 1921
69	Alfred Bower[o]	1923–1927	3	5	8 December 1924
69	Billy Walker	1920–1932	3	18	21 May 1925
69	Alfred Strange	1930–1933	3	20	14 May 1931
69	Sam Barkas	1936–1937	3	18	23 October 1937
69	Alf Ramsey	1948–1953	3	32	15 November 1950
69	Ron Flowers	1955–1966	3	49	27 May 1964
69	Bobby Charlton	1958–1970	3	106	15 January 1969
69	David V. Watson	1974–1982	3	65	24 April 1981
69	Sol Campbell	1996–2007	3	73	24 May 1998
69	Karen Walker	1988–2003	3	83	24 February 2002
69	Ellen White	2010–2022	3	113	1 July 2017
69	Keira Walsh	2017–present	3	93	4 September 2018
69	Mary Earps	2017–2025	3	53	1 July 2023
69	Kyle Walker	2011–present	3	96	20 November 2023
86	Cuthbert Ottaway	1872–1874	2	2	30 November 1872
86	Charles Bambridge	1879–1887	2	18	18 February 1882
86	John Goodall	1888–1898	2	14	7 February 1891
86	Arthur Dunn	1883–1892	2	4	15 March 1892
86	George Cotterill	1891–1893	2	4	25 February 1893
86	Charles Wreford-Brown	1889–1898	2 or 3[c]	4	18 March 1895
86	Jesse Pennington	1907–1920	2	25	15 March 1920
86	Charlie Buchan	1913–1924	2	6	14 March 1921
86	Basil Patchitt	1923	2	2	21 May 1923
86	Frank Swift	1946–1949	2	19	16 May 1948
86	Mick Channon	1972–1977	2	46	28 May 1976
86	Rachel Yankey	1997–2013	2	129	29 July 2010[36]
86	Laura Bassett	2003–2017	2	63	7 March 2014
86	Jordan Nobbs	2013–present	2	71	11 March 2015
86	Joe Hart	2008–2017	2	75	13 November 2015
86	Raheem Sterling	2012–2022	2	82	7 June 2019
86	Kieran Trippier	2017–present	2	54	8 October 2020
86	Alex Greenwood	2014–present	2	105	19 February 2023
104	Alexander Morten	1873	1	1	8 March 1873
104	Charles W. Alcock	1875	1	1	6 March 1875[p]
104	Hubert Heron	1873–1878	1	5	4 March 1876
104	William Rawson	1875–1877	1	2	3 March 1877
104	Arthur Cursham	1880–1884	1 or 2[q]	6	2 March 1878
104	Henry Wace	1878–1879	1 or 2[q]	3	5 April 1879
104	Charles Wollaston	1874–1880	1	4	13 March 1880
104	Francis Sparks	1879–1880	1	3	15 March 1880
104	Jack Hunter	1878–1882	1	7	26 February 1881
104	John Hudson	1883	1	1	24 February 1883
104	John Brodie	1889–1891	1	3	2 March 1889
104	Arthur Walters	1885–1890	1	9	5 April 1890
104	Billy Moon	1888–1885	1	7	6 April 1891
104	R. Cunliffe Gosling	1892–1895	1 or 2[c]	5	6 April 1895
104	William Oakley	1895–1901	1	16	9 March 1901
104	Ernest Needham	1894–1902	1	16	18 March 1901
104	Reginald Foster	1900–1902	1	5	3 March 1902
104	Frank Forman	1898–1903	1	9	22 March 1902
104	Stephen Bloomer	1895–1907	1 or 2[f]	23	3 May 1902[f]
104	Arthur Knight	1919	1	1	25 October 1919
104	Joseph McCall	1913–1920	1	5	23 October 1920
104	Ephraim Longworth	1920–1923	1	5	21 May 1921
104	Max Woosnam	1922	1	1	13 March 1922
104	Graham Doggart	1923	1	1	1 November 1923
104	Frank Moss	1924	1	5	12 April 1924
104	Claude Ashton[r]	1925	1	1	24 October 1925
104	Tommy Lucas	1921–1926	1	3	24 May 1926
104	Fred Kean	1923–1929	1	9	21 May 1927
104	Jack Barker	1934–1936	1	11	17 October 1936
104	Stan Cullis	1937–1939	1	12	24 May 1939
104	Alan Mullery	1964–1971	1	35	3 February 1971
104	Colin Bell	1968–1975	1	48	23 May 1972
104	Trevor Cherry	1976–1980	1	27	31 May 1980
104	Ray Clemence	1972–1983	1	61	12 May 1981
104	Phil Neal	1976–1983	1	50	2 June 1982
104	Peter Beardsley	1986–1996	1	59	13 February 1988
104	Mark Wright	1984–1996	1	45	21 May 1991
104	David Seaman	1988–2003	1	75	10 September 1997
104	Martin Keown	1992–2002	1	43	11 September 2000
104	Gareth Barry	2000–2012	1	53	29 March 2011
104	Scott Parker	2003–2013	1	11	29 February 2012
104	Ashley Cole	2001–2014	1	107	29 May 2013[s]
104	Alex Scott	2004–2017	1	140	31 October 2013
104	Karen Bardsley	2005–2022	1	81	9 March 2015
104	Phil Jagielka	2008–2016	1	40	12 October 2015
104	James Milner	2009–2016	1	61	29 March 2016
104	Chris Smalling	2011–2017	1	31	27 May 2016
104	Toni Duggan	2012–present	1	76	8 November 2018[t]
104	Fabian Delph	2014–2019	1	20	15 November 2018
104	Marcus Rashford	2016–present	1	62	6 June 2021
104	Declan Rice	2019–present	1	66	26 March 2024[u]
104	John Stones	2014–present	1	83	10 October 2024

Captains by age

• Bold indicates permanent captain of England (not necessarily at time of the relevant match/es)

Youngest captains

Players who started as captain at under 25 years of age.^[68]

#	Player	Date of birth	First captaincy	Age	#W	#M
Age 20
1	Carol Thomas (née McCune)[v]	(1955-06-05)5 June 1955	22 May 1976	20 years, 352 days	1	–
Age 21
2	Keira Walsh	(1997-04-08)8 April 1997	4 September 2018	21 years, 149 days	2	–
Age 22
3	Bobby Moore	(1941-04-12)12 April 1941	29 May 1963	22 years, 47 days	–	1
4	Jordan Nobbs	(1992-12-08)8 December 1992	11 March 2015	22 years, 93 days	3	–
5	Tinsley Lindley	(1865-10-27)27 October 1865	4 February 1888	22 years, 100 days	–	2
6	Michael Owen	(1979-12-14)14 December 1979	17 April 2002	22 years, 124 days	–	3
7	Cuthbert Ottaway	(1850-07-20)20 July 1850	30 November 1872	22 years, 133 days	–	4
8	Jack Hudson	(1860-10-11)11 October 1860	24 February 1883	22 years, 136 days	–	5
9	William Rawson	(1854-10-14)14 October 1854	3 March 1877	22 years, 140 days	–	6
10	Percy Walters	(1863-09-30)30 September 1863	13 March 1886	22 years, 164 days	–	7
11	Stan Cullis	(1916-10-25)25 October 1916	24 May 1939	22 years, 211 days	–	8
12	Basil Patchitt	(1900-08-08)8 August 1900	21 May 1923	22 years, 286 days	–	9
13	Billy Moon	(1868-06-07)7 June 1868	4 April 1891	22 years, 301 days	–	10
Age 23
14	G. O. Smith	(1872-11-25)25 November 1872	4 April 1896	23 years, 131 days	–	11
15	Bob Crompton	(1879-09-26)26 September 1879	2 March 1903	23 years, 157 days	–	12
16	Charles Bambridge	(1858-07-30)30 July 1858	18 February 1882	23 years, 203 days	–	13
17	Marcus Rashford	(1997-10-31)31 October 1997	6 June 2021	23 years, 218 days	–	14
18	Stan Harris	(1881-07-19)19 July 1881	25 February 1905	23 years, 221 days	–	15
19	Norman Bailey	(1857-07-23)23 July 1857	12 March 1881	23 years, 232 days	–	16
20	Sol Campbell	(1974-09-18)18 September 1974	29 May 1998	23 years, 253 days	–	17
21	Gerry Francis	(1951-12-06)6 December 1951	3 September 1975	23 years, 271 days	–	18
22	Eric Dier	(1994-01-15)15 January 1994	10 November 2017	23 years, 299 days	–	19
23	Steven Gerrard	(1980-05-30)30 May 1980	31 March 2004	23 years, 306 days	–	20
24	Harry Kane	(1993-07-28)28 July 1993	10 June 2017	23 years, 317 days	–	21
25	R. E. Foster	(1878-04-16)16 April 1878	3 March 1902	23 years, 321 days	–	22
26	Debbie Bampton[v]	(1961-10-07)7 October 1961	22 September 1985	23 years, 350 days	4	–
Age 24
27	Wayne Rooney	(1985-10-24)24 October 1985	14 November 2009	24 years, 21 days	–	23
28	Faye White	(1978-02-02)2 February 1978	7 March 2002	24 years, 33 days	5	–
29	Hubert Heron	(1852-01-30)30 January 1852	4 March 1876	24 years, 34 days	–	24
30	Leah Williamson	(1997-03-29)29 March 1997	17 September 2021	24 years, 172 days	6	–
31	Raheem Sterling	(1994-12-08)8 December 1994	6 June 2019	24 years, 180 days	–	25
32	Billy Wright	(1924-02-06)6 February 1924	9 October 1948	24 years, 246 days	–	26
33	Claude Ashton	(1901-02-19)19 February 1901	24 October 1925	24 years, 247 days	–	27
34	Francis Sparks	(1855-07-04)4 July 1855	15 March 1880	24 years, 255 days	–	28
35	George Cotterill	(1868-04-04)4 April 1868	25 February 1893	24 years, 327 days	–	29
36	Sheila Parker[v][w]	1947	18 November 1972	~24 years and 11 months[x]	7	–
37	Arthur Cursham	(1853-03-14)14 March 1853	2 March 1878	24 years, 353 days	–	30

Oldest captains

Players who started as captain at over 35 years of age.^[70]

#	Player	Date of birth	Last captaincy	Age	#W	#M
Age 41+
1	Alexander Morten	1831 or 1832[71]	8 March 1873	41 or 42[71]	–	1
Age 40
2	Peter Shilton	(1949-09-18)18 September 1949	7 July 1990	40 years, 292 days	–	2
Age 36
3	Gillian Coultard	(1963-07-22)22 July 1963	13 May 2000	36 years, 296 days	1	–
4	Jesse Pennington	(1883-08-23)23 August 1883	10 April 1920	36 years, 231 days	–	3
5	Frank Lampard	(1978-06-20)20 June 1978	24 June 2014	36 years, 4 days	–	4
Age 35
6	Debbie Bampton	(1961-10-07)7 October 1961	11 May 1997	35 years, 216 days	2	–
7	Billy Wright	(1924-02-06)6 February 1924	28 May 1959	35 years, 111 days	–	5
8	Billy Walker	(1897-10-29)29 October 1897	7 December 1932	35 years, 39 days	–	6
9	Stuart Pearce	(1962-04-24)24 April 1962	24 May 1997	35 years, 30 days	–	7

Others

Disputed captains

These players may have officially captained England, but sources are either uncertain or differ.

Player	England career	Caps as captain	Total caps
Harry Daft	1889–1892	1 or 0[72]	5
Vaughan Lodge	1894–1896	0 or 1[d]	5
George Raikes	1895–1896	0 or 1[d]	4

Unofficial captains

The following players have never been named, i.e. started a match as, captain, but were given the armband partway through a match after that game's captain was either sent off or substituted. As records for such mid-game changes are not often kept, this list may be incomplete:

Player	England career	Date
Gareth Southgate	1995–2004	25 May 2001[73]
Robbie Fowler	1996–2002	27 March 2002[74]
Danny Mills	2001–2004	12 February 2003[75]
Emile Heskey	1999–2010	3 June 2003[8]
Phil Neville	1996–2007	3 June 2003[8]
Jamie Carragher	1999–2010	3 June 2003[8]
David James	1997–2010	28 May 2005[76]
Gary Neville	1995–2007	1 July 2006[77]
Joleon Lescott	2007–2013	26 May 2012[78]
Michael Carrick	2001–2015	15 August 2012[79]
Georgia Stanway	2018–present	15 November 2022[80]
Rachel Daly	2016–present	19 February 2023[81]
Katie Zelem	2021–present	19 February 2023[82]

Amateurs

Main articles: England national amateur football team and Great Britain men's Olympic football team

For a period after the introduction of professionalism, the England team split into two teams that represented the nation internationally, one only including amateur players. This or other amateur English teams also represented Great Britain at the Olympics, when known as "England" in certain early competitions.^[y]

Amateur men's teams that have represented England internationally

Tenure	Incumbent		Team
1900	Henry Haslam		Upton Park[83]
1908		Vivian Woodward	England amateurs[84]

Captains of other non-official teams

Before the men's and women's teams each became officially associated, different teams represented them in international tournaments.

Men's teams^[85]

Tenure	Incumbent		Team
1870–1871		Charles W. Alcock	England (representative)

Women's teams

Tenure	Incumbent		Team
1920		Alice Kell	Dick, Kerr Ladies[2][86][87]
1925		Florrie Redford
1933		Ethel Audaer	Terry's Ladies[88][89]
1953		Stella Briggs	Dick, Kerr Ladies[90]
1957–1966		Doris Ashley	Manchester Corinthians/Nomad/All Stars Ladies[23][91][92][93][94][95]
1960		Margaret Griffiths
1969–1970		Sue Lopez	British Independents[52][z]
1971		Carol Wilson

• Bold indicates tournament winners

Non-official England women's teams' tournament record

Player	Tournament(s)[g]
Doris Ashley	1957 European Cup[93] 1960 Torneo Internacional De Futbol Femenino[91][97]
Margaret Griffiths	1960 Torneo Internacional De Futbol Femenino[91][97]
Sue Lopez	1969 European Competition for Women's Football[52] 1970 Women's World Cup[98]
Carol Wilson	1971 Women's World Cup[52]

Non-official captains by appearances as captain

The following players have never captained England officially, but have started a match as named captain of a team representing England, with the match and/or team not officially recognised:

Only known, confirmed, non-official caps as captain are included.

Player	England career	Caps as captain	First captaincy	Ref(s)
Alice Kell	1920	8+	~April 1920	[aa]
Doris Ashley	1957–1966	5+	2 November 1957	[93][99]
Carol Wilson	1971	4	2 June 1971	[52]
Sue Lopez	1969–1970	2+	1 November 1969	[52]
Florrie Redford	1925	1+	~June 1925	[87]
Margaret Griffiths	1960	1+	April 1960	[91]
Stella Briggs	1952–1953	1+	23 July 1953	[90]
Stanley Briggs	1899	1	23 November 1899	[100]
Ethel Audaer	1933	1	9 August 1933	[88]

Others by age

• Bold indicates permanent captain of England (not necessarily at time of the relevant match/es)

Unofficial young captaincies

Player	Date of birth	First unofficial captaincy	Age
Age 18
Carol Wilson[v]	June 1952	2 June 1971[ab]	~18 years and 11 months
Age 20
Casey Stoney	(1982-05-13)13 May 1982	25 February 2003[n]	20 years, 288 days
Age 21
Alice Kell	(1898-06-24)24 June 1898	~April 1920[aa]	~21 years and 9 months
Age 23
Georgia Stanway	(1999-01-03)3 January 1999	15 November 2022	23 years, 316 days
Age 24
Sue Lopez[v]	(1945-09-01)1 September 1945	1 November 1969[ab]	24 years, 61 days

Unofficial old captaincies

Player	Date of birth	Last unofficial captaincy	Age
Doris Ashley	~1923[99][102]	17 July 1966[92]	~42

Notes

1. In 2004, after the unofficial captaincies of Wilson (1971) and Stoney (2003), and after Thomas' WFA career as captain (1976–85), The Guardian named Bobby Moore as "still the youngest ever England captain".^[4]
2. Reserve captains are players that have taken the captain's armband on a one-off match basis when the incumbent permanent captain is unavailable. Unlike unofficial captaincies the player is given the responsibility prior to the game and is officially recognised by the FA as having officially captained England, whereas unofficial captains receive the armband part way through a match due to the substitution or the receiving of a red card by the captain.^[13]
3. Sources differ concerning the captaincy for England vs Wales, 12 March 1894. It was either Charles Wreford-Brown or Cunliffe Gosling.
4. The captaincy for England vs Ireland, 7 March 1896 is disputed between G. O. Smith (13 confirmed captaincies), and George Raikes and Vaughan Lodge, neither of whom had captained England in another match.
5. The match on 16 March 1896 may have been captained by Gilbert (G. O.) Smith.
6. Bloomer captained two successive games in 1902, with the first, on 5 April 1902, seeing the 1902 Ibrox disaster occur. This match was, afterwards, declared null and void by the Football Association.
7. Tournaments for which the player has been officially named as captain, not including tournaments where they have stepped up as a reserve captain or have been otherwise substituted for a match/es. Only tournaments at continental scale or wider.
8. The Women's Football Association fielded their first England team in 1972, and was the governing body of women's football in England until the Football Association incorporated the team in 1993, marking a change in the formal organisation of it.^[21] Few of the international matches contested by the team were considered official.^[22] In 2019, women's sports history researcher Jean Williams found that "many of the games before 1993 were not recognised as official internationals, [...] and, though recognised by the FA with a virtual cap as representative games, many women players do not have more than one or two caps for their country as a result."^[23] The WFA had so little funding that one woman hand-stitched caps for players.^[23] The FA announced in 2022 that it would seek to recognise all former women's internationals.^[24]
9. Houghton was named a vice-captain but did not wear the armband under Williamson.
10. Vice-captain Bright was formally interim captain for the tournament due to a long term injury to Leah Williamson.
11. Women's matches (Englandfootballonline.com indices):^{[52][6][7][35][45]}
12. Contemporary to the end of her career, the Guinness Book of Records listed Thomas with 49 caps as captain from 56 overall international caps,^[57] which it repeated in every edition through 1990.^[58] When Thomas was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2021, they reported 51 caps as captain, still from 56 international caps.^[59] Thomas has stated that the only match she did not captain between first taking the armband and retiring was a 17 August 1985 game against Wales.^[23]
13. Some teamsheets from the appropriate period are unavailable, incomplete, or do not indicate captain.
14. Casey Stoney was first handed the captain's armband on an unofficial basis on 25 February 2003 (age 20) when captain Karen Walker was substituted off;^[62] this captaincy is not counted as she was not named/did not start as captain. She first made an appearance as a named captain, starting the match as captain (as reserve for Faye White), on 7 March 2009 (age 26).
15. Alfred Bower was the last amateur player to captain England.
16. Alcock had earlier captained England in the officially-unrecognised representative matches.
17. Sources differ concerning the captaincy for England vs Wales, 18 January 1879. It was either Arthur Cursham or Henry Wace.
18. Claude Ashton was the last player to be appointed captain for his solitary England appearance.
19. Cole was never a formal reserve or vice captain, but started with the armband as a gesture to celebrate his 100th cap. The match was actually Cole's 102nd cap, and there was reported surprise that he accepted the offer, as he had previously scorned the captaincy.^[64]
20. Duggan took the place of captain Steph Houghton so that Houghton could defer her 100th England cap by a match to play it at home rather than away. Other recent stand-in captains were unavailable — Keira Walsh was injured,^[65] Lucy Bronze also did not travel, and Jordan Nobbs was an unused substitute^[66] — and manager Phil Neville said Duggan's importance in the team was cause for her selection.^[67]
21. Captained amidst injury absences and on the occasion of his 50th cap.^[18]
22. WFA era
23. The FA announced in 2022 that it would award caps to the 1972 first official women's team, including captain Parker.^[24]
24. Parker was appointed captain in 1972 aged 24.^[63] She was 74 on 31 December 2021.^[69] Provided she was 24 at the time of her first match on 18 November 1972, Parker must have been born in November or December 1947.
25. Most of the time, the Amateurs were known as "England Amateurs". Those captains, as well as those representing teams known as "Great Britain", including recent Great Britain Olympic; past United Kingdom; and all British Universiade teams, are not included.
26. Women were banned from top flight football in England until 1972, with the early pseudo-international British Independents teams specifically disavowed and blacklisted.^[96]
27. Kell was captain for the England-France series in 1920 (four in England, four in France). The third match was played at Hyde Road in Manchester^[2] on 6 May 1920.^[101]
28. Wilson and Lopez' captaincies, which were not authorised and occurred while women's football was still banned in England, are not recognised by any official body.