England's qualification campaign for the 2027 Women's World Cup is now officially in progress. It has not unfolded quite as the Lionesses would have wanted so far, with a second-place finish in the group sending Sarina Wiegman's side into the play-off route. Even so, the 2023 runners-up are still widely expected to reach the 2027 tournament, even if they are taking the longer path.

So, if England do secure their place in Brazil, who is likely to be on that flight? Naturally, there are several names who would be considered near-certain inclusions in the final squad next June. Wiegman has now been in charge of England for more than four years, which means there is already a clear picture of the players she trusts, the kind of starting XIs she tends to favour in tournament football and the profile of player she likes to use to complete the rest of her squad beyond the obvious picks.

Even so, trying to forecast the entire Lionesses squad for the 2027 Women's World Cup is far from straightforward. A number of fresh names have emerged since the successful European Championship campaign in 2025 and, unfortunately, several players are currently out with long-term injuries.

With England's qualifying campaign moving towards its final stages and the new Women's Super League season now under way, who appears certain to claim a place in Wiegman's squad? Who still has work to do during this process? And who may be at risk of missing out? Here is a closer look at the current state of the Lionesses player pool ahead of next summer's tournament.

Unquestionable locks

Given the continuity around the Lionesses, Wiegman's lengthy spell in charge and the evidence available from previous major tournaments, there are many players who can be confidently pencilled in for a seat on the plane to Brazil next summer - provided injury does not intervene.

Captain Leah Williamson is unquestionably one of them, assuming she is fit, and the same applies to first-choice goalkeeper Hannah Hampton. Others who have firmly established themselves in Wiegman's XI during her tenure include Lucy Bronze, Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway, Lauren James, Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo. It would be a major surprise if any of those six were not involved in Brazil.

Total players: 8

Wiegman's other leaders

There is a fair case for several players in this next section to be placed among the locks above, but they fall just below that bracket because they are not quite as guaranteed to start as the others. Still, it would be a very big shock if any of these players were left out by Wiegman for Brazil, such is the importance they have built up as senior figures and big-game performers during her time in charge.

That group includes Jess Carter, Esme Morgan and Alex Greenwood, all of whom are almost always involved in England squads at present, even if they can be rotated in and out depending on how Wiegman chooses to structure her defence. All three bring important versatility in addition to their quality and experience, and they look set to be key parts of the 2027 squad.

Ella Toone always faces heavy competition for the No.10 role but often emerges as Wiegman's preferred option, while Beth Mead and Chloe Kelly have shown themselves to be hugely important members of this side, even when they are not starting every match. All three have delivered defining contributions in England's previous triumphs and are expected to be on the plane to Brazil.

Total players: 14

Trending positively

From here on, the certainty begins to decrease. Even so, the players in this category are moving in the right direction in the England set-up and, as things stand, look highly likely to be involved next summer.

Aggie Beever-Jones has been part of this group for quite some time, having spent most of the last two years as Russo's deputy in the centre-forward position. That shifted slightly more recently because of the rise of Michelle Agyemang, who was introduced ahead of her several times at Euro 2025. But Beever-Jones remains high in the overall pecking order in this England squad and has returned to being Russo's clear back-up while Agyemang is sidelined through injury.

Jess Park, Maya Le Tissier and Lucia Kendall, meanwhile, are players who have moved into this category in recent months after excellent club performances translated into chances with the Lionesses.

If all four players in this section continue on the same path, they should be heading to the 2027 Women's World Cup as valuable squad members, whether as dependable alternatives or useful impact substitutes.

Total players: 18

Final few spots

Significantly, FIFA published regulations for the 2027 Women's World Cup in April and confirmed there that squad sizes have been expanded to 26 players. That has been standard in major men's tournaments for some time, but it had not yet become widespread in the women's game, with Wiegman restricted to 23-player squads for the 2023 Women's World Cup and Euro 2025. If England do qualify for Brazil, however, she will be able to take three additional players.

One of the key calls over those final places will be deciding which two goalkeepers travel as Hampton's understudies. Wiegman's options in that department have struggled for regular game time in recent months and that is likely to prove decisive. Summer moves for Khiara Keating, to Liverpool, and Sophie Baggaley, to Birmingham City, have improved their prospects, but Ellie Roebuck appears to face genuine competition for her spot at Aston Villa. Anna Moorhouse, meanwhile, had pulled away from this group by playing every week for Orlando Pride, but a loan switch to Man City, where she seems likely to be a back-up, drops her into this bracket.

As for defenders, the versatility of so many of the more probable members of this projected 2027 Women's World Cup squad makes it difficult to judge exactly which group Wiegman will settle on. In realistic terms, the six players mentioned earlier already cover all the main defensive needs, so the issue becomes what extra qualities or positional depth she wants available.

Niamh Charles, Anouk Denton and Taylor Hinds are all capable of operating on either the right or the left, while Poppy Pattinson has also recently emerged as a natural option in that problematic left-back position. Centre-back Lotte Wubben-Moy, meanwhile, was included in the squads for Euro 2022, the 2023 Women's World Cup and Euro 2025, and that tournament experience could count strongly in her favour, though her game time at Arsenal will matter too.

In midfield, Grace Clinton has found minutes hard to come by, and has also had some niggles, since moving to Manchester City and that is harming her England hopes. By contrast, club-mate Laura Blindkilde Brown has been starring for the Women's Super League leaders and has seen that rewarded with more opportunities for the Lionesses. Erica Parkinson, the 17-year-old who received her first senior call-up for the April international break because of injuries to Toone and Clinton, has now also entered the conversation in that area.

Then there is Freya Godfrey, the 21-year-old who has been regularly involved in England squads over the last year, and Keira Barry, the Bay FC winger who replaced Godfrey after she withdrew from camp in April. The attacking positions in this team are packed, so it may take absences for either player to make next summer's squad, but much can still change between now and then in terms of playing time and form.

Total players: 32

Outsiders

Could anyone else still force their way into contention? It is not impossible. Wiegman has shown before that she is willing to bring players back from the margins. She selected Laura Coombs for the 2023 Women's World Cup, ending the Man City player's eight-year absence from the England squad, and she also recalled Nikita Parris last year after the forward had spent more than two years out of favour, although she ultimately did not make the final cut for Euro 2025.

So who might follow that path and arrive in this England squad seemingly from nowhere, if required?

Millie Turner and Lucy Parker are both established WSL regulars who have hovered around the fringes of the Lionesses squad under Wiegman and would probably be next in line if injuries affected the centre-back group.

In midfield, Ruby Mace and Maisie Symonds are both young talents who have already received senior call-ups and are playing regularly both for their clubs and for England's Under-23s. Wiegman has frequently turned to the U23s to complete her squad when others have been unavailable, as well as when younger players have earned the opportunity to step up.

Again, as matters stand, it would be unlikely for any of these four to be involved in 2027. In fact, Parker and Symonds are still uncapped despite having been named in senior squads, while Turner and Mace have only one cap each. But all four have demonstrated their quality in the WSL, all have been part of the environment and, in particular, the situations of Mace and Symonds could still shift given how young they are and how much progress they could make between now and next summer.

Total players: 36

Forgotten women

Across her four-and-a-half years in charge, Wiegman has handed caps to 48 different players. Six of those have since retired, but there are still many names out there who are continuing to play, including some in the second tier of English football, who at one stage or another were part of the current Lionesses manager's England thinking.

Many of them are more experienced players who have since been overtaken in the squad by younger talent, such as Parris, Bethany England and Jordan Nobbs. Elsewhere, neither Katie Zelem nor Gabby George truly managed to catch Wiegman's eye during their involvement in camps, despite operating in positions where the squad needed reinforcement.

There are also a couple of younger players in this category who have not quite built on their initial breakthroughs into the England set-up. Ebony Salmon has not received a call-up since February 2023, having struggled for consistent goals over the years. Katie Robinson, meanwhile, looked to be a real favourite of Wiegman's and even won a place in the 2023 Women's World Cup squad, travelling to Australia as the Lionesses' youngest player at 20 years old. However, she has not been involved with the senior side since September of that year, despite remaining a regular with the U23s for a long period afterwards.

Total players: 43

Long-term absentees

Complicating this projection is a small group of long-term absentees who are expected to return before the 2027 World Cup begins, which means they remain in the running for a place on the plane but are difficult to rank right now.

Of that group, Agyemang appears the most likely to make next summer's squad. The forward was one of the breakthrough stories of 2025, announcing herself with a goal just 41 seconds into her Lionesses debut as part of a late surge into the Euros squad. In Switzerland, she scored twice in the knockout rounds and was named Young Player of the Tournament, only to suffer an ACL injury in October. She is expected back soon, however, and will hope to resume where she left off to strengthen Wiegman's options at centre-forward.

There are three more players on the fringes of this squad who have been out with ACL injuries. Jessica Naz, the Tottenham forward who has been sidelined since December 2025, has six caps; teenager Katie Reid is still waiting for her senior international debut but was one of the country's most in-form centre-backs when she earned her first Lionesses call-up in November, only days before news of her injury; and Ella Morris had been introduced as a possible answer to the shortage of right-back depth shortly before Euro 2025, only to suffer her knee injury on that very camp. Morris returned to action in early April and still has plenty of time to work her way back into contention.

Missy Bo Kearns is another absentee. At first, that absence was for much happier reasons. The Aston Villa midfielder announced in March 2026 that she was pregnant with her first child, due in September. However, at the end of March, she revealed that she had heartbreakingly lost the baby. Kearns was on standby for Euro 2025 and featured in two of England's friendlies at the end of the year, receiving opportunities ahead of players such as Blindkilde Brown and Clinton.

Total: 48