The English Football Hall of Fame is housed at the National Football Museum in Manchester, England. The Hall aims to celebrate and highlight the achievements of the all-time top English footballing talents, as well as non-English players and managers who have become significant figures in the history of the English game. New members are added each year, with an induction ceremony held in the autumn, formerly at varying locations, but exclusively at the Museum itself following its move to Manchester's Urbis building in 2012.

The Hall is on permanent display at the Museum. An accompanying book, The Football Hall of Fame: The Official Guide to the Greatest Footballing Legends of All Time, was first published in October 2005 by Robson Books. Authored by football historian Rob Galvin and the Museum's founding curator Mark Bushell, it is updated every year with the newest inductees, containing an in-depth profile about the career and reputation of each one, along with a select exhibit from the Museum which relates to their achievements.

Members of the Hall of Fame are chosen by a panel. Initially, this consisted of ex-players Jimmy Armfield, Sir Trevor Brooking, Jimmy Hill, Mark Lawrenson and Gordon Taylor, all of whom had become professional pundits and/or senior figures in football after retiring.

In subsequent years, former England national team manager Graham Taylor and former England international Steve Hodge have also served stints on the panel, though it is now chiefly a grouping of eminent football historians. The current panel features Neil Carter, Tony Collins, Jeffrey Hill, Peter Holme, Dick Holt, John Hughson, Simon Inglis, Alexander Jackson, Gary James, Graham Kelly, Tony Mason, Kevin Moore, Martin Polley, Dil Porter, Dave Russell, Matthew Taylor, Jean Williams and John Williams.

All surviving inductees to the Hall are granted an additional place on the panel. Two players have been inducted as the 'Fans' Choice', following polls on the BBC Sport and Sky Sports websites.

Initially, there were three main categories of induction; a mass of 'Players' and 'Managers' from the men's game, together with one figure from the women's game (Sir Alf Ramsey is noted as the only figure to date honoured in both of the main male categories). To be considered for induction, players must be either retired or at least 30 years of age. All inductees must also have played/managed for at least five years in England.

In 2007, two other regular categories were established. Chiefly, this was in recognition of football's central role in English culture, extending Hall of Fame honours to those who have contributed greatly to the English game outside the more obvious fields of play. The Community Champion category – sponsored by the Football Foundation – honours professional players who have donated their spare time and money to the grassroots level of the sport, while the Football for All Award – sponsored by The Football Association – is presented to pioneers of the various forms of football played by disabled people.

Since 2009, the Museum has also commemorated great teams from history alongside its awarding of individual players and coaches. The criteria for a team's induction is that they must have played at least a quarter of a century prior. 2013 saw the first induction of a referee (Jack Taylor), while 2017 saw the first induction of a figure from the football media.