The question is whether the Japanese got the word from the Chinese, and if so where the Chinese got it from, or whether the Japanese got the pronunciation independently and then noticed that the Chinese already had a kanji for that word and decided to use it.
China and Europe had been sending diplomatic and trade missions to each other for well over a millennium before there was any direct contact between the West and Japan (and also since long before England came into existence).
It seems likely Japan's early knowledge of Europe, including England, came via the Chinese.
