 | |||
| Nickname(s) | Ethniki (The National) Galanolefki (The Azure & White) Piratiko (The Pirate Ship) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Hellenic Football Federation (HFF) (Ελληνική Ποδοσφαιρική Ομοσπονδία – ΕΠΟ) | ||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
| Head coach | Ivan Jovanović | ||
| Captain | Anastasios Bakasetas | ||
| Most caps | Giorgos Karagounis (139) | ||
| Top scorer | Nikos Anastopoulos (29) | ||
| Home stadium | Karaiskakis Stadium[1] Athens Olympic Stadium | ||
| FIFA code | GRE | ||
| |||
| FIFA ranking | |||
| Current | 42  6 (24 October 2024)[2] | ||
| Highest | 8[3] (April 2008, October 2011) | ||
| Lowest | 66 (September 1998) | ||
| First international | |||
 Greece 1–4 Italy  (Piraeus, Greece; 7 April 1927) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Greece 8–0 Syria  (Athens, Greece; 25 November 1949) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Hungary 11–1 Greece (Budapest, Hungary; 25 March 1938) | |||
| World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 3 (first in 1994) | ||
| Best result | Round of 16 (2014) | ||
| European Championship | |||
| Appearances | 4 (first in 1980) | ||
| Best result | Champions (2004) | ||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Appearances | 3 (first in 1920) | ||
| Best result | Group stage (2004) | ||
| Confederations Cup | |||
| Appearances | 1 (first in 2005) | ||
| Best result | Group stage (2005) | ||
| Website | epo.gr | ||
The Greece national football team (Greek: Εθνική Ελλάδας, Ethniki Elladas) represents Greece in men's international football matches, and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece is one of only ten national teams to have been crowned UEFA European Champions.
Greece’s first appearance in a major tournament was at UEFA Euro 1980 where they were knocked out in the group stage. Their qualification to the then eight-team UEFA European Championship gave them a position in the top eight European football nations that year. Greece did not qualify for another major tournament until the 1994 FIFA World Cup and after an undefeated qualifying campaign, they produced a poor performance in the finals, losing all three group matches without scoring.
UEFA Euro 2004 marked the highest point in Greece's football history when they won the tournament in only their second participation. Dismissed as rank outsiders before the tournament, Greece defeated some of the favourites in the competition including defending European champions France and hosts Portugal twice. During the tournament, Greece defeated the hosts in both the opening game of the tournaments and again in the final. Their triumph earned them a place in the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup.
In the decade after the 2004 victory, Greece qualified for the finals tournaments of all but one major competition entered, reaching the quarter-finals at the UEFA Euro 2012 and the round of 16 at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. During that period, they occupied a place in the top 20 of the FIFA World Rankings for all but four months, and reached an all-time high of eighth in the world from April to June 2008, as well as in October 2011.
Since 2014, Greece has not made an appearance at the finals of any major tournament.
- ^ "Εθνική Ανδρών: Αφήνει την Opap Arena και επιστρέφει στο «Γ. Καραϊσκάκης» - Documento". 23 July 2024.
- ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 24 October 2024. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
- ^ "Greece Men's Ranking – Details and Ranking History". FIFA. Archived from the original on 19 February 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 18 November 2024. Retrieved 18 November 2024.