He did not play in England's 7–1 defeat to Hungary in Budapest in May 1954. However he was in the squad for the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland. Matthews helped England to a 4–4 draw with Belgium, though was left out of a win over Switzerland, before he returned to the first XI as England crashed out of the competition with a 4–2 defeat to Uruguay at the St. Jakob Stadium after mistakes from goalkeeper Gil Merrick. His third match of the year was a 2–0 win over Northern Ireland at Windsor Park in the 1954–55 British Home Championship, though on the pitch he did not gel well with Don Revie. Matthews then put in a superb performance in a 2–0 win over the Welsh, before he helped England to record a 3–1 victory over World Champions West Germany, though only three of the Germans used at Wembley had been in the first XI in the World Cup Final.