It's a topic that's raged for years and generations, but here's our take on the age-old debate.
Here is our list of the finest 25 male players to wear a Three Lions shirt, which includes world champions, generational superstars, and modern-day greats.
Raheem Sterling (#25)
Sterling is one of England's most accomplished players of the twenty-first century, having won four Premier League titles with Manchester City, as well as the FA Cup and four League Cups.
The dynamic former Liverpool forward scored three goals in England's march to the Euro 2020 final, including the game-winning goal as Gareth Southgate's team defeated Germany 2-0 in the last 16.
Michael Owen (# 24)
Owen has been retired for nine years, but he is still ranked 10th all-time in Premier League goals scored.
He made his mark on the international arena with the solitary goal against Argentina at the 1998 World Cup, one of 40 he scored for the Three Lions in total (only five players have notched more).
Tom Finney (age 17)
Following his service in WWII, Finney went on to become one of the best players in the world during the mid-twentieth century, spending practically his entire career at Preston North End and representing England 76 times.
Bill Shankly, a club teammate, referred to him as "the finest player I ever saw, bar none." He was an unselfish forward famed for his assists as much as his goals.
Paul Scholes (nineteen)
Scholes, a member of the 'Class of '92,' was a key figure in Manchester United's long-term success under Sir Alex Ferguson; the diminutive playmaker appeared in 718 games for the Red Devils, scoring 155 goals.
His time with England was brief : he retired from international duty seven years before his (first) retirement from the sport.
Peter Shilton (#15)
When you think of Shilton, you probably think of Diego Maradona outjumping him to score his famous 'hand of God' goal, yet Shilton was one of the best goalkeepers of his period.
He played in three World Cups and two Euros for the Three Lions, as well as winning the European Cup twice with Nottingham Forest, and making a total of 1,0005 league appearances for eight clubs.
Rio Ferdinand is 14 years old.
Ferdinand's ability to play the ball and his athleticism set him apart from other English centre-halves at the turn of the century.
He was the most expensive defender twice, spending 12 years with Manchester United (who he joined from arch-rivals Leeds) and winning the Premier League twice.
Kevin Keegan (#13)
Kevin Keegan is a character in the film Kevin Keegan (Image credit: Getty)
After winning the European Cup and three Premier League titles with Liverpool, Keegan moved to Hamburg in 1977 and became one of England's biggest stars overseas (for his trendsetting perm as well as what he did on the pitch).
But the two-time Ballon d'Or winner – who represented his country 31 times – is best known for a particular moment in his management career: the rant against Sir Alex Ferguson in 1996...
Ashley Cole (#12)
Cole has a claim to being one of the most complete full-backs ever, having been Invincible with Arsenal by the age of 23 and a winner of, well, pretty much every other trophy going with Chelsea.
The left-back was gifted with both intellect and athleticism.
Stanley Matthews (#11)
"Stanley Matthews showed us how to play football," Pele remarked, "and I couldn't believe he was just a man." Bobby Charlton opined, "He was the best player in the world."
'The Wizard of the Dribble,' who famously played professionally until he was 50, became a hero at both Blackpool and his local club Stoke City, and represented his country in the 1950 and 1954 World Cups.
10. Gary Lineker: In the latter half of the 1980s, Lineker was England's main attacking threat, scoring more World Cup goals than any other Three Lions player and winning the Golden Boot at the 1986 tournament.
The current Match of the Day anchor's club career took him from boyhood to adulthood.
Harry Kane (nine)
Kane, without a question one of the top attackers on the planet right now, is on his way to making goalscoring history in a variety of ways.
Tottenham's main man needs just 19 more goals to overtake Jimmy Greaves as the club's all-time leading scorer, and only four more to pass Wayne Rooney as England's all-time leading scorer – while Alan Shearer's 260 Premier League goals should also be within his grasp.
Shearer, Alan
Shearer was unstoppable at his height, winning the Premier League Golden Boot in 1994/95, 1995/96, and 1996/97, leading Blackburn to the title as half of the 'SAS' partnership with Chris Sutton in the first two seasons.
At Ewood Park, and even more so at his boyhood club, he is a legend.
John Terry (number 23)
Terry is not only one of the best defenders in English football history, but he is also the highest-scoring centre-back in Premier League history, having scored 41 goals for Chelsea, most of them with his head.
He led the Blues to five Premier League titles and the Champions League title (despite being suspended and lifting the trophy in full uniform).
Glenn Hoddle (number 22)
Hoddle, arguably the most gifted English footballer of his period, became a legend at Tottenham and was crowned the club's best-ever player on multiple occasions.
He was a mainstay of Bobby Robson's England side in the 1980s, reaching number 12 in the charts with 'Diamond Lights,' a duet with colleague Chris Waddle (because of course).
John Barnes
Barns carried his wing wizardry to Liverpool after earning a name for himself at Watford, where he helped the Reds win two league titles.
He won 79 England caps, and in a 1984 friendly against Brazil at the Maracana, he created the most memorable moment of his career (barring the 'World in Motion' rap, however), gliding through the Brazilian defense to score probably the Three Lions' finest goal (with his weaker right foot).
Frank Lampard
Lampard revolutionized what it meant to be a goalscoring midfielder during his trophy-laden career at the highest level; he is sixth all-time in the Premier League with 177 goals (two more than Thierry Henry).
Only six England caps were obtained by the Chelsea icon.
BillyWright
Wright was the first player to win 100 caps for England, capturing the team 90 times (a joint record with Bobby Moore) and wearing the armband in the 1950, 1954, and 1958 World Cups.
At club level, the centre-back spent his whole career with Wolves, captaining the team to three First Division titles and appearing in some of the first European matches, including the legendary floodlit friendly at Molineux.
Steven Gerra
Gerrard will forever be associated with Liverpool's 2004/05 Champions League win – from that goal against Olympiacos to that night in Istanbul – as another Premier League hero who appreciated a goal from midfield.
But he's also the fourth most-capped England player of all time, with a total of 66 appearances for the national team.
David Beckham is number seven.
Beckham was the face of the England squad for over a decade, captaining them for six years and creating headlines for both good and bad reasons (that free-kick against Greece) (that red card against Argentina).
He played approximately 400 times for Manchester United, winning six league titles and the Champions League, before moving on to Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, AC Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain.
Paul Gascoigne, No. 6
'Gazza' was the great entertainer of the England team throughout the 1990s, not least when football came home at Euro 96. He was a supremely talented player and an equally brilliant character.
His career was filled of memorable events, from tears in Turin to that beautiful goal against Scotland (followed by one of his many notable celebrations, the 'dentist's chair'), and he played for local team Newcastle, Spurs, Lazio, Rangers, and more.
Gordon Banks, No. 5
They said he was as safe as the Banks of England, and you'll understand why once you've seen his'save of the century' from Pele during the 1970 World Cup (if you haven't, remedy that immediately!).
Between 1966 and 1971, the man in goal for England's finest hour – their 1966 World Cup triumph – was elected FIFA Goalkeeper of the Year six times in a row, while the IFFHS named him the second-best goalkeeper of the twentieth century, behind only Lev Yashin.
Jimmy Greaves,
Jimmy Greaves, the Spurs and Chelsea hero who scored a record 357 top-flight goals and won the First Division top scorer award six times, will almost certainly be replaced in English football.
He was replaced in the 1966 World Cup by Geoff Hurst due to injury during the group stage, and he did not play in the final or get a winners' medal until a FIFA rule change in 2009, but he remains one of the Three Lions' most prolific scorers with 44 goals in 57 appearances.
Rooney, Wayne
When Rooney made his debut as a 17-year-old for Everton against Arsenal with his now-iconic last-minute winner, it felt as if English football had just been exposed to someone very special.
And so it proved, as he went on to become Manchester United's all-time leading scorer, while also captaining England and scoring some of the Premier League's most memorable goals (who could forget his incredible Manchester derby-winning overhead kick or smashing volley against Newcastle.
Bobby Moore is number two.
Moore, England's World Cup-winning captain, was an absolute Rolls-Royce of a player, with Pele describing him as "the greatest defender he ever faced" because of his defensive skills.
His name will go down in history as the first footballer to win BBC Sports Personality of the Year, and he spent 16 years at West Ham, captaining them to FA Cup and Cup Winners' Cup victories in 1964 and 1965, respectively.
Bobby Charlton, No. 1
Bobby Charlton was a British footballer
"Nobody epitomizes the values of Manchester United more than Sir Bobby Charlton," the club's official website says of one of the 'Busby Babes,' who became a legend on the domestic, European, and international arenas after surviving the horror of the Munich Air Disaster.
His name will forever be associated with the English game, having won three First Division titles, the European Cup (as United became the first English team to win the competition in 1968) and, of course, the 1966 World Cup.
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