Predominantly playing as a tighthead prop, he has also earned caps for England in over 100 test matches and notably represented the British & Irish Lions on two separate tours to Australia and New Zealand.

[9] Through injury to Leicester tight-heads Julian White and Martin Castrogiovanni, Cole achieved a run of games during the 2009–10 season which saw him gain notoriety as man-of-the-match against Wasps.

[33] He was included in Stuart Lancaster's 31-man squad for the 2015 Rugby World Cup[34] and went on to start in all four of their pool games as the hosts failed to reach the knock out phase.

[35] Cole was included in new coach Eddie Jones's 31-man squad for the 2016 Six Nations[36] and scored a try in the final game against France as England completed the grand slam.

[40] The following year saw Cole score a try against Italy during the 2017 Six Nations Championship[41] as the team eventually retained their title[42] missing out on a consecutive grand slam with defeat in the final game away to Ireland which also brought an end to a record equalling eighteen successive Test victories.

[45] On 26 September 2019, in a World Cup pool match against the United States, Cole became England's joint-third highest capped player with 91 international appearances.

[46] In the World Cup final starter Kyle Sinckler was knocked unconscious after two minutes and replaced by Cole for the remainder of the game[47] as England were defeated by South Africa to finish runners up.