# Who is the best player in England national team history?

> England only won the World Cup once — in 1966 — but the Three Lions have produced extraordinary talent across generations. Who is the greatest?

*By YPB Team · Published May 19, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/who-is-the-best-player-in-england-national-team-history*

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## Current results (0 votes)

1. **Bobby Charlton**
   1966 World Cup winner, the heart of the England midfield and one of European football's greatest players.
2. **Bobby Moore**
   Captained England to the 1966 World Cup title; Pelé called him the finest defender he faced.
3. **Gary Lineker**
   England's second all-time top scorer and 1986 World Cup Golden Boot winner.
4. **Wayne Rooney**
   England's all-time top scorer (53 goals), the country's greatest modern striker.
5. **David Beckham**
   England captain and a global icon whose crossing and set-piece delivery were without peer.
6. **Alan Shearer**
   Premier League all-time top scorer and dominant centre-forward who powered England in the 90s.
7. **Geoff Hurst**
   The only man to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final, driving England to the 1966 title.
8. **Stanley Matthews**
   The 'Wizard of the Dribble', first Ballon d'Or winner (1956) and England's first great winger.
9. **Gordon Banks**
   Widely rated the finest goalkeeper in football history; made 'the save of the century' against Pelé.
10. **Paul Gascoigne**
   The most gifted English player of his generation, a mercurial talent at Italia 90.
11. **Jimmy Greaves**
   England's third all-time top scorer (44 goals) and one of the most natural finishers ever.
12. **Bryan Robson**
   England's 'Captain Marvel' and the complete midfielder of the 1980s.
13. **Tom Finney**
   Deadly winger, twice Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year, and a 1950s great.
14. **Harry Kane**
   Broke Wayne Rooney's all-time England scoring record; two-time Premier League Golden Boot.

Tags: football, players, world cup, legends, all-time, england, national teams