Iceland national football team

Although Úrvalsdeild, the Icelandic Football League, was founded in 1912,[8] the country's first international match was played on 29 July 1930, against the Faroe Islands.[9] Although Iceland won 1–0 away, both teams were at the time unaffiliated with FIFA.[10] The first match officially recognised by FIFA took place in Reykjavík on 17 July 1946, a 0–3 loss to their future rivals Denmark.[11] The first international victory was against Finland in 1947.[12] For the first 20 years of the Football Association of Iceland (KSÍ)'s existence, the team mostly did not participate in qualifying for the FIFA World Cup or the UEFA European Championship. In 1954, Iceland applied to take part in qualification for the 1954 World Cup, but the application was rejected.[9] In qualification for the 1958 World Cup, Iceland finished last in their group with zero wins, conceding 26 goals![9]

In 1980, Iceland won the first edition of the friendly tournament known as the Greenland Cup.[13]

Since 1974, the team has taken part in qualifying for every World Cup and European Championship. In 1994, the team reached their then best ever position in the FIFA World Rankings, 37th. This record stood until 2016 when they managed to reach 21st.[14] In a friendly against Estonia on 24 April 1996 in Tallinn, Eiður Smári Guðjohnsen entered as a substitute for his father Arnór. This marked the first time that a father and son played in the same international match.[15]

Iceland national football team at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Rostov-on-Don, Russia

In qualification for Euro 2004, Iceland finished third in their group, one point behind Scotland.[16] As a result, they failed to qualify for a playoff spot.[17]

However, the following qualifying campaigns will be much more difficult for Iceland which will flirt with the last places of its respective groups, in particular during the Euro 2008 qualifiers where despite two unexpected successes against Northern Ireland (3–0 in the opening away, 2–1 at home in the return) and a heroic resistance in the first and second leg against the Spanish future winners of the competition (a 1–1 draw at home after having led the score and a short 0–1 defeat away), Our boys suffered several other heavy defeats, including two against Latvia, who had qualified for Euro 2004 as a surprise (0–4 away, 2–4 home), and one against Liechtenstein (0–3 away, after a 1–1 home draw).

The reasons for the lack of results of the selection were due to the absence of professionals on the island, the Icelanders played soccer for fun. Moreover, the hostile climate where winter lasts 8 months did not help the development of the sport, there were only two synthetic fields forcing the footballers to train on the gravel or in the snow. In the 2000s, Icelandic soccer will experience a real revolution. The economic boom will allow the authorities to create important structures with indoor pitches in synthetic turf, which results in the practice of soccer all year round without worrying about the weather conditions outside. These new structures encourage young people to turn to sports and even lead to a decrease in alcohol and tobacco consumption among teenagers.[18]

In 2014, Iceland almost secured qualification for their first World Cup.[19] Finishing second in Group D, they played Croatia in a two-leg playoff for qualification.[20][21] After holding them to a 0–0 draw in the home leg, they lost 2–0 away.[22]

Iceland qualified for a major tournament for the first time in 2015 after finishing second in Group A of qualification for Euro 2016, losing only two games, and beating the Netherlands – which had finished third in the 2014 World Cup – twice.[23] During the qualification, they reached their then highest ranking in the FIFA World Rankings, 23rd.[24][25] Iceland were drawn into a group with Portugal, Hungary and Austria for the final tournament.

At the tournament finals, Iceland recorded 1–1 draws in their first two group stage matches against Portugal and Hungary. They then advanced from their group with a 2–1 victory against Austria.[26] Iceland qualified for the tournament's quarter-finals after a 2–1 upset win over England in the Round of 16, which led to England manager Roy Hodgson resigning in disgrace immediately after the final whistle.[27] However, they were eliminated by host nation France in the quarter-finals, 5–2.[28]

World Cup team 2018.

Iceland qualified for the 2018 World Cup, their first ever appearance in the world championship, securing qualification on 9 October 2017 after a 2–0 win against Kosovo. In doing so, they became the lowest-populated country ever to reach the finals.[29] Iceland were drawn to play Croatia, Argentina and Nigeria in a group that was considered by many as the "group of death".[30][31] Despite a challenging group, Iceland were tipped to advance from the group by several journalist websites, based on their impressive performance in Euro 2016.[32] Their maiden match at the World Cup was against 2014 runners-up Argentina, with Iceland surprisingly holding Argentina to a 1–1 draw.[33][34] However, their chances of advancing from the group were hurt following a 2–0 loss to Nigeria, with several missed opportunities in the first half and a penalty kick in the second half missed by Gylfi Sigurdsson, putting Iceland to play with full determination against already qualified Croatia.[35][36] Iceland lost to Croatia in their final group game; and because Argentina won against Nigeria, Iceland finished bottom of the group with just a point.[37][38]

After Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup, Iceland was expected to play at Euro 2020. However, the team is playing just before the brand new Nations League, where they are in Group 2 of League A with Switzerland and Belgium. But the Strákarnir okkar are showing worrying signals: the post-World Cup period is difficult as Iceland concedes 4 defeats in 4 games, including a heavy initial setback in Switzerland (0–6) where they were dominated in all compartments of the game by the Helvetians. Many of Iceland's international matches were undermined by the repeated absence of some of their key players, often due to injury; while the Icelandic defense, often unbeatable in previous crucial matches, is showing more and more difficulty in replacing its usual key players with a new generation of younger defenders. Due to the change of rules finally decided by UEFA, Iceland is not relegated to League B for the 2020–2021 edition.

In group H of the Euro qualifiers with the world champions France, Turkey, Albania, Andorra and Moldova, Icelanders are reassuring on the accounting level and are not surprised by the most modest opponents (Moldova and Andorra). However, they have more difficulties away (like the 0–6 in Switzerland) and lost three games, including the two confrontations against Les Bleus (4–0 at the Stade de France and 1–0 at home on a penalty kick after the hour of play at the end of a tight game) and a scathing defeat away against Albania 4–2, However, they continue to outplay Turks by taking 4 points out of 6 possible and being the only undefeated team as well as the only team of the group to inflict a defeat against this team. Third behind Turkey and France, the Icelanders won 2–1 in the first playoff game against Romania thanks to a brace of Gylfi Sigurðsson in the first half (16th and 34th minute), despite the Romanian reduction of the score on penalty kick in the second half after consultation of the VAR and will have to negotiate a perilous trip to Hungary, which won at the Bulgarians (3–1) and made a good impression at home in group E of the Euro 2020 qualifiers by beating Croatia (2–1) and Wales (1–0). On November 12, 2020 in their playoff game against Hungary, Iceland came agonisingly close to qualifying for Euro 2020, as it led 1–0 for nearly the entire match, on a direct free kick by Gylfi Sigurðsson well helped by a blunder of the opponent's goalkeeper Péter Gulácsi (11th minute), until Hungary scored two goals in under five minutes, the first coming in the 88th minute by Loïc Nego to stun Iceland and the second in the second minute of added time by Dominik Szoboszlai, proving to be the winner; Hungary had beaten Iceland 2–1.[39]

Iceland had also suffered poor results in their UEFA Nations League campaign in League A, having lost all their group stage matches and failing to garner a single point, resulting in their relegation to League B the following season.[40] Manager Erik Hamrén ultimately resigned, following their poor performance that year.[41]

The start of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers was also totally missed by Iceland, which suffered two defeats at the beginning of the tournament, away against Germany (0–3) and more surprisingly in Armenia (0–2). However, the Strákarnir okkar are back in the race thanks to a 4–1 victory over Liechtenstein combined with concomitant defeats of Romania and Germany. The crucial preparation for the September games, where Iceland had the advantage of playing all three games at home after several away games and had played some encouraging friendlies in June, was disrupted by extra-sporting affairs involving major players accused of sexual offences[42][43] and thus absent from the month's games. The cases also led to the resignation of several senior officials of the Icelandic Football Association, including its president.[44] Against this backdrop, Romania took revenge for the Euro play-off they had lost almost a year earlier, beating Strákarnir okkar 2-0. The latter are then forced to draw (2–2 after being led 0–2) against North Macedonia before falling heavily against Germany (0–4) and pointing to the penultimate place in the group with 4 units on the counter with 4 days to go in the qualifiers, significantly reducing Iceland's chances of qualifying for the next World Cup. Then Iceland recovered in the two October games by holding Armenia (1–1) who had beaten them 2–0 in March and then by winning widely against Liechtenstein (4–0). Despite this, Iceland is still 5th in its group and is about to be eliminated. Against all odds, they resisted away against Romania despite a clear domination of the local team (0–0) but were mathematically eliminated with one day to go since the Strákarnir okkar had to win their last two games and hope for slip-ups from their direct competitors to finish 2nd in the group.

These distressing results are due to several factors, both sporting and extra-sporting: the late generational renewal of the usual ageing management team, a process partly hampered by a limited pool of footballers due to Iceland's demographics; the questionable tactical choices of the new, inexperienced coach, resulting in a lack of automatism among new players who are not used to playing together and the absence of a real standard team; and sexual assault scandals that have effectively sidelined some of the team's best players under investigation and have continued the negative spiral.[45][46]

The official kit is produced by German sports manufacturing company Puma since 2020. Before that the kit providers were Umbro (1975), Adidas (1976–1992), ABM (1992–1996), Reusch (1996–2001) and Erreà (2002–2020)

Kit provider	Period
Umbro	1975
Adidas	1976–1991
ABM	1992–1996
Reusch	1996–2001
Erreà	2002–2020
Puma	2020–

[50][51][52][53]

Romania  v  Iceland

11 November 2021 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification	Romania	0–0	Iceland	Bucharest, Romania
20:45		Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)		Stadium: Stadionul Steaua Referee: Sergei Karasev (Russia)

North Macedonia  v  Iceland

14 November 2021 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification	North Macedonia	3–1	Iceland	Skopje, North Macedonia
18:00	Alioski 7' Elmas 65', 87'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Þorsteinsson 54'	Stadium: Toše Proeski Arena Referee: Davide Massa (Italy)

The following players were called up for the friendly match against Saudi Arabia on 6 November 2022.[56]

Caps and goals are correct as of 27 September 2022, after the match against Albania.[57][58]

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Frederik Schram	(1995-01-19) 19 January 1995	5	0	Valur
	1GK	Hákon Rafn Valdimarsson	(2001-10-13) 13 October 2001	2	0	Elfsborg
	1GK	Sindri Kristinn Ólafsson	(1997-01-19) 19 January 1997	0	0	Keflavík
	2DF	Victor Pálsson	(1991-04-30) 30 April 1991	31	1	D.C. United
	2DF	Höskuldur Gunnlaugsson	(1994-09-26) 26 September 1994	5	0	Breiðablik
	2DF	Damir Muminovic	(1990-05-13) 13 May 1990	2	0	Breiðablik
	2DF	Hörður Ingi Gunnarsson	(1998-08-14) 14 August 1998	1	0	Sogndal
	2DF	Rúnar Þór Sigurgeirsson	(1999-12-28) 28 December 1999	1	0	Keflavík
	2DF	Róbert Orri Þorkelsson	(2002-04-03) 3 April 2002	0	0	Montréal
	2DF	Logi Tómasson	(2000-09-13) 13 September 2000	0	0	Víkingur Reykjavík
	2DF	Viktor Örn Margeirsson	(1994-07-22) 22 July 1994	0	0	Breiðablik
	3MF	Aron Gunnarsson (Captain)	(1989-04-22) 22 April 1989	99	2	Al-Arabi
	3MF	Viktor Karl Einarsson	(1997-01-30) 30 January 1997	2	0	Breiðablik
	3MF	Viktor Örlygur Andrason	(2000-02-05) 5 February 2000	2	0	Víkingur Reykjavík
	3MF	Valdimar Þór Ingimundarson	(1999-04-28) 28 April 1999	1	0	Sogndal
	3MF	Bjarki Steinn Bjarkason	(2000-05-11) 11 May 2000	0	0	Venezia
	3MF	Dagur Dan Þórhallsson	(2000-05-02) 2 May 2000	0	0	Breiðablik
	3MF	Jónatan Ingi Jónsson	(1999-03-15) 15 March 1999	0	0	Sogndal
	3MF	Daníel Hafsteinsson	(1999-11-12) 12 November 1999	0	0	KA
	4FW	Óttar Magnús Karlsson	(1997-02-21) 21 February 1997	9	2	Oakland Roots
	4FW	Jason Daði Svanþórsson	(1999-12-31) 31 December 1999	1	0	Breiðablik
	4FW	Danijel Djuric	(2003-01-05) 5 January 2003	0	0	Víkingur Reykjavík
	4FW	Ísak Snær Þorvaldsson	(2001-05-01) 1 May 2001	0	0	Breiðablik

The following players have been called up to the Iceland squad in the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Rúnar Alex Rúnarsson	(1995-02-18) 18 February 1995	19	0	Alanyaspor	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
GK	Elías Rafn Ólafsson	(2000-03-11) 11 March 2000	4	0	Midtjylland	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
GK	Patrik Gunnarsson	(2000-11-15) 15 November 2000	1	0	Viking	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
GK	Ingvar Jónsson	(1989-10-18) 18 October 1989	8	0	Víkingur Reykjavík	v.  San Marino, 9 June 2022 INJ
GK	Jökull Andrésson	(2001-08-25) 25 August 2001	1	0	Reading	v.  South Korea, 15 January 2022
DF	Hörður Björgvin Magnússon	(1993-02-11) 11 February 1993	43	2	Panathinaikos	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
DF	Hjörtur Hermannsson	(1995-02-08) 8 February 1995	25	1	Pisa	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
DF	Daníel Leó Grétarsson	(1995-10-02) 2 October 1995	11	0	Śląsk Wrocław	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
DF	Davíð Kristján Ólafsson	(1995-05-15) 15 May 1995	9	0	Kalmar	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
DF	Alfons Sampsted	(1998-04-06) 6 April 1998	13	0	Bodø/Glimt	v.  Venezuela, 22 September 2022 INJ
DF	Brynjar Ingi Bjarnason	(1999-12-06) 6 December 1999	14	2	Vålerenga	v.  Israel, 13 June 2022
DF	Atli Barkarson	(2001-03-19) 19 March 2001	4	0	SønderjyskE	v.  Israel, 13 June 2022
DF	Ari Leifsson	(1998-04-19) 19 April 1998	4	0	Strømsgodset	v.  Israel, 13 June 2022
DF	Valgeir Lunddal Friðriksson	(2001-09-24) 24 September 2001	3	0	Häcken	v.  Israel, 13 June 2022
DF	Guðmundur Þórarinsson	(1992-04-15) 15 April 1992	12	0	OFI Crete	v.  Finland, 26 March 2022 INJ
DF	Ísak Ólafsson	(2000-06-30) 30 June 2000	2	0	Esbjerg	v.  South Korea, 15 January 2022
DF	Finnur Tómas Pálmason	(2001-02-12) 12 February 2001	1	0	KR	v.  South Korea, 15 January 2022
DF	Birkir Már Sævarsson	(1984-11-11) 11 November 1984	103	3	Valur	v.  North Macedonia, 14 November 2021 RET
DF	Ari Freyr Skúlason	(1987-05-14) 14 May 1987	83	0	Norrköping	v.  North Macedonia, 14 November 2021 RET
DF	Jón Guðni Fjóluson	(1989-04-10) 10 April 1989	18	1	Hammarby	v.  Armenia, 8 October 2021 INJ
MF	Birkir Bjarnason (vice-captain)	(1988-05-27) 27 May 1988	112	15	Adana Demirspor	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Jón Dagur Þorsteinsson	(1998-11-26) 26 November 1998	23	4	OH Leuven	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Arnór Sigurðsson	(1999-05-15) 15 May 1999	23	2	Norrköping	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Mikael Anderson	(1998-07-01) 1 July 1998	16	2	AGF	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Aron Elís Þrándarson	(1994-11-10) 10 November 1994	15	1	OB	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Ísak Bergmann Jóhannesson	(2003-03-23) 23 March 2003	15	2	Copenhagen	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Þórir Jóhann Helgason	(2000-09-28) 28 September 2000	14	2	Lecce	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Stefán Teitur Þórðarson	(1998-10-16) 16 October 1998	13	1	Silkeborg	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Mikael Egill Ellertsson	(2002-03-11) 11 March 2002	8	0	Spezia	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Hákon Arnar Haraldsson	(2003-04-10) 10 April 2003	5	0	Copenhagen	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
MF	Albert Guðmundsson	(1997-06-15) 15 June 1997	33	6	Genoa	v.  Israel, 13 June 2022
MF	Júlíus Magnússon	(1998-06-28) 28 June 1998	1	0	Víkingur Reykjavík	v.  San Marino, 9 June 2022
MF	Willum Þór Willumsson	(1998-10-23) 23 October 1998	1	0	Go Ahead Eagles	v.  Israel, 2 June 2022 INJ
MF	Arnór Ingvi Traustason	(1993-04-30) 30 April 1993	44	5	Norrköping	v.  Spain, 29 March 2022
MF	Andri Baldursson	(2002-01-10) 10 January 2002	9	0	NEC	v.  Spain, 29 March 2022
MF	Viðar Ari Jónsson	(1994-03-10) 10 March 1994	7	0	Honvéd	v.  South Korea, 15 January 2022
MF	Alex Þór Hauksson	(1999-11-26) 26 November 1999	4	0	Öster	v.  South Korea, 15 January 2022
MF	Gísli Eyjólfsson	(1994-05-31) 31 May 1994	4	0	Breiðablik	v.  South Korea, 15 January 2022
MF	Kristall Máni Ingason	(2002-01-18) 18 January 2002	2	0	Rosenborg	v.  South Korea, 15 January 2022
MF	Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson	(1990-10-27) 27 October 1990	81	8	Burnley	v.  Armenia, 8 October 2021 INJ
FW	Alfreð Finnbogason	(1989-02-01) 1 February 1989	63	15	Lyngby	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
FW	Sveinn Aron Guðjohnsen	(1998-05-12) 12 May 1998	16	1	Elfsborg	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
FW	Andri Guðjohnsen	(2002-01-29) 29 January 2002	11	2	Norrköping	v.  Albania, 27 September 2022
FW	Hólmbert Friðjónsson	(1993-04-19) 19 April 1993	6	2	Lillestrøm	v.  Israel, 2 June 2022 WD
FW	Jón Daði Böðvarsson	(1992-05-25) 25 May 1992	64	4	Bolton Wanderers	v.  Spain, 29 March 2022
FW	Brynjólfur Willumsson	(2000-08-12) 12 August 2000	0	0	Kristiansund	v.  Uganda, 12 January 2022 INJ
FW	Viðar Örn Kjartansson	(1990-03-11) 11 March 1990	32	4	Atromitos	v.  Romania, 11 November 2021 INJ
FW	Elías Már Ómarsson	(1995-01-18) 18 January 1995	9	0	Nîmes	v.  Liechtenstein, 11 October 2021
INJ Withdrew due to injury RET Retired from the national team WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.

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Source:[61]