Sweden grabbed an eqaliser with almost an hour gone, Danny Mills could only clear to Niclas Alexandersson after a mix up in the box and the Everton man fired past David Seaman from the edge of the box.
England were disappointing in the second half, particularly in midfield where they were overrun by the Swedes, Emile Heskey was ineffective wide on the left, David Beckham only lasted 64 minutes, while Paul Scholes and Owen Hargreaves failed to provide the spark in the middle. Michael Owen and Darius Vassell had little service up front to impress.
It was Sweden who looked more likely to grab a winner and Seaman made a couple of important saves late on.
England now move to Sapporo where they take on Argentina, a defeat could end make England's route to the second phase difficult but a victory would put them in control of their own destiny.