Before the Nations League began, England’s men’s team would regularly arrange matches against countries from around the world. But friendlies are now relatively rare – England have only played 14 since the 2018 World Cup, compared to 37 in the seven years before then.
England’s women’s team have enjoyed much more freedom.
Before the 2019 Women’s World Cup they were able to play 11 friendlies, including testing fixtures against Sweden, Brazil (twice), the USA and Spain.
Before the 2023 tournament they played nine matches against opponents of different strengths, plus the Finalissima against Brazil.
They reached the semi-finals in 2019 and the final in 2023.
So should the men’s team look to organise games against top countries, or versus nations who play in a similar style to their World Cup opponents?
Ideally, you would do both. Before the 2018 World Cup, England played the Netherlands and Italy (who had failed to qualify) in March before taking on Nigeria and Costa Rica – as direct preparation for group stage games against Tunisia and Panama.
But England need to weigh up two kinds of preparation, and consider possible knockout opponents too.
They have not faced a South American team since the 1-0 defeat by Brazil in March 2024.
And they have not played a team from Asia (discounting a friendly against Australia in October 2023) or Concacaf since matches against Iran and the USA at the 2022 World Cup.
The draw will be the guide, but Uruguay (ranked 15th) would present the chance to play a team from South America, and be their strongest opponents for two years. Japan, now ranked 19th, are the leading nation in Asia.
However, you cannot help but wonder if England might be missing a true top-level test before the World Cup.
