England vs Republic of Ireland is a footballing rivalry that, naturally, transcends the sport at times.
But while matches between the two nations are fairly infrequent, with the Nations League fixtures in 2024 the first time England and Republic of Ireland have played against each other in a competitive setting for the first time in 33 years, there's still been some high-profile games in the past.
But as the Three Lions prepare to host Republic of Ireland at Wembley in their Nations League return fixture on November 17, FourFourTwo decided it would be apt to delve into what England's record is like against the Republic of Ireland.
What is England's record vs the Republic of Ireland?
Despite their proximity to one another, England and Republic of Ireland rarely meet in games; the pair have played each other just 18 times through the years, with one of those games not counting to the final tally due to the 1995 friendly at Landsdowne Road being abandoned after 27 minutes, with the match result ultimately declared void. For context, England have played Scotland 116 times since their first game 150 years ago.
In total, England have won seven of their meetings, while Republic of Ireland has been victorious just twice. Draws have been the final outcome of fixtures on most occasions, though, with stalemates having happened on eight different occasions.
Their first game, in 1946, ended as a 1-0 away victory to England, with Republic of Ireland getting their revenge in the next match in 1949, which was played in Liverpool. In winning, Republic of Ireland became the first non-British team to beat England on their home soil.
Since those first two matches, eight of their 17 completed games have been friendlies, with the other eight taking place in a competitive setting. Crucially, Republic of Ireland beat England at Euro 88 to ensure the Three Lions finished bottom of the group pointless - though Republic of Ireland also failed to progress beyond the group stages, too.
Two years later, at the 1990 World Cup, the pair couldn't be separated in the group stages, with both reaching the knockout stages.
Since then, the two nations haven't met at a major tournament.
The return Nations League fixture on November 17 is set to be just the third time the two sides will have played each other at the new Wembley, too, with the previous games ending as a draw in 2013 and an England win four years ago.
