England appear to be in a golden generation, having reached back-to-back European Championship finals and harbouring hopes of triumphing at next year’s World Cup, with star striker Harry Kane set to be central to that dream.
Kane may be England’s top scorer of all time, but who else is on the list? Football FanCast takes a look at the top Three Lions goalscorers, with a detailed look at the very best the nation has produced over the years…
All information correct as of 15th May 2025.
England's most-capped football players
Football FanCast has taken a look at the England football players with the most caps for their country.
ByLuke RandallMar 19, 2024
Rank
Player
Caps
Goals
1
Harry Kane
105
71
2
Wayne Rooney
120
53
3
Sir Bobby Charlton
106
49
4
Gary Lineker
80
48
5
Jimmy Greaves
57
44
6
Michael Owen
89
40
=7
Nat Lofthouse
33
30
=7
Alan Shearer
63
30
=7
Sir Tom Finney
77
30
10
Frank Lampard
106
29
=11
Vivian Woodward
23
28
=11
Steve Bloomer
23
28
13
David Platt
62
27
14
Bryan Robson
90
26
=15
Stan Mortensen
26
24
=15
Sir Geoff Hurst
49
24
=17
Tommy Lawton
23
22
=17
Peter Crouch
42
22
=19
Mick Channon
46
21
=19
Kevin Keegan
63
21
=19
Steven Gerrard
114
21
Here is a detailed look at England’s top 10 goalscorers:
10 Frank Lampard 29 goals (106 caps)
One of England’s finest midfielders, Chelsea legend Frank Lampard was prolific at international level from midfield for the Three Lions.
Playing from 1998 to 2014, Lampard’s England career came to an end soon after the 2014 World Cup, captaining the side during the final group game against Costa Rica.
He scored at Euro 2004 in the group defeat to France, and though he never scored at a World Cup finals, he was infamously denied an equaliser against Germany in the last 16 of the 2010 tournament.
He remains England’s highest-scoring midfielder, with his last goal coming in his 96th cap during a 1-1 draw with Ireland in 2013.
9 Sir Tom Finney 30 goals (77 caps)
Sir Tom Finney made his debut for the Three Lions just four weeks after his league debut for Preston North End back in 1946. He would go on to become a mainstay in the England and Preston sides, spending 20 years at Deepdale as well as 12 years in the international squad, and was described by some as the most complete British footballer of all time, despite failing to win a single major honour for either club or country.
During that time, Finney scored just under 200 goals at club level and netted 30 times in 77 games for England. He retired in 1960 and passed away at the age of 91 in 2014.
8 Alan Shearer 30 goals (63 caps)
Known by many as Newcastle’s record scorer, Alan Shearer also enjoyed success on the international stage, representing the Three Lions at three major tournaments between 1992-2000, averaging a goal almost every other appearance.
The forward was seen by some as the ideal long-term replacement for Gary Lineker, however, he retired from international football at the age of 30 following Euro 2000, with his last goal coming in the 3-2 group stage defeat against Romania.
7 Nat Lofthouse 30 goals (33 caps)
The third and final player who has 30 goals for England is Nat Lofthouse, who managed the achievement in just 33 appearances.
A Bolton Wanderers legend who spent his entire playing career with his hometown club and even went on to manage The Trotters, Lofthouse made his England debut at the age of 25 in 1950, retiring eight years later. Lofthouse passed away at the age of 85 in 2011.
6 Michael Owen 40 goals (89 caps)
The last English player to win the Ballon d’Or, Michael Owen made his England debut aged just 18 and made an immediate impact at the 1998 World Cup with a memorable goal against Argentina.
Owen, who had numerous injury issues during his career, then featured in four more major tournaments for the Three Lions, even becoming the first player to score international goals at both the old and new Wembley Stadiums before hanging up his England boots in 2007.
5 Jimmy Greaves 44 goals (57 caps)
Next on the list is former Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham striker Jimmy Greaves, who is best known for his time at Spurs. The striker enjoyed a club career that lasted more than 20 years and represented England for over eight years between 1959 and 1967.
Part of the 1966 World Cup-winning squad, Greaves retired from Three Lions duty shortly after and famously sold his winners’ medal for £44,000 in 2014. He is undoubtedly one of English football’s greatest-ever goalscorers.
4 Gary Lineker 48 goals (80 caps)
Best known to the younger generation now as the host of Match of the Day, Gary Lineker plied his club trade in three different countries and was one of the best strikers in the world during the 1980s.
He was the first English player to win a Golden Boot at the World Cup in 1986 and even netted four times in two separate games during his Three Lions career, which helped take him to 48 goals in 80 appearances, agonisingly short of Sir Bobby Charlton’s record.
3 Sir Bobby Charlton 49 goals (106 caps)
Manchester United icon Sir Bobby Charlton was England’s record scorer for 45 years and is one of a select group of players who have made more than 100 appearances for the Three Lions.
A World Cup winner in 1966, Charlton was one of the world’s leading players during the 1960s and has been described as England’s greatest-ever footballer.
2 Wayne Rooney 53 goals (120 caps)
The first man to overtake Charlton was another Red Devils legend – Wayne Rooney. One of the youngest players to make their debut at 17 years of age, Rooney burst onto the international scene, scoring his first England goal in 2003.
He’d go on to play in six major tournaments for his nation and score more than 50 goals. As well as being second on the scoring charts, Rooney is also England’s second-highest appearance maker, five behind goalkeeper Peter Shilton with 120 caps.
1 Harry Kane 71 goals (105 caps)
Top of the charts and now well clear of Rooney, Harry Kane has been England’s record scorer since March 2023 after netting a penalty against Italy, with 23 of Kane’s goals coming from the spot.
He is now in triple figures in terms of caps, claiming his 100th against Finland in September 2024.
He captained the side through the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, as well as the European Championships in 2021 and 2024. Sure to go down in the history books, Kane’s scoring record looks set to stand for years to come.