Nickname(s) | Sokoli (The Falcons)[1]
Repre (The Representatives)[2] | ||
---|---|---|---|
Association | Slovenský futbalový zväz (SFZ) | ||
Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
Head coach | Francesco Calzona | ||
Captain | Milan Škriniar | ||
Most caps | Marek Hamšík (138) | ||
Top scorer | Marek Hamšík (26) | ||
Home stadium | Tehelné pole Štadión Antona Malatinského Košická futbalová aréna | ||
FIFA code | SVK | ||
| |||
FIFA ranking | |||
Current | 41 1 (24 October 2024)[3] | ||
Highest | 14 (August 2015) | ||
Lowest | 150 (December 1993) | ||
First international | |||
(1939–1945): Slovakia 2–0 Germany (Bratislava, Slovakia; 27 August 1939) (1993–present): Unofficial: Lithuania 0–1 Slovakia (Vilnius, Lithuania; 14 October 1992) Official: United Arab Emirates 0–1 Slovakia (Dubai, United Arab Emirates; 2 February 1994) | |||
Biggest win | |||
Slovakia 7–0 Liechtenstein (Bratislava, Slovakia; 8 September 2004) Slovakia 7–0 San Marino (Dubnica nad Váhom, Slovakia; 13 October 2007) Slovakia 7–0 San Marino (Bratislava, Slovakia; 6 June 2009) | |||
Biggest defeat | |||
Argentina 6–0 Slovakia (Mendoza, Argentina; 22 June 1995) Sweden 6–0 Slovakia (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; 12 January 2017) | |||
World Cup | |||
Appearances | 9 (first in 1934 as Czechoslovakia 2010 as Slovakia) | ||
Best result | As Czechoslovakia: Runners-up (1934, 1962) As Slovakia: Round of 16 (2010) | ||
European Championship | |||
Appearances | 6 (first in 1960 as Czechoslovakia 2016 as Slovakia) | ||
Best result | As Czechoslovakia: Champions (1976) As Slovakia: Round of 16 (2016, 2024) | ||
The Slovakia national football team (Slovak: Slovenská futbalová reprezentácia) represents Slovakia in men's international football competition and it is governed by the Slovak Football Association (SFZ), the governing body for football in Slovakia. Slovakia's home stadium from 2019 is the reconstructed Tehelné pole in Bratislava. Historically, up to the split in 1993, the team participated mostly as Czechoslovakia,[5][6][7][8][9] while it also competed as Slovakia during World War II.
Since 1993, Slovakia has qualified for four major international tournaments, the 2010 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016, UEFA Euro 2020 and UEFA Euro 2024. Slovakia qualified for the FIFA World Cup in 2010 after winning their qualifying group. At the World Cup, Slovakia progressed beyond the group stage after a 3–2 win against Italy, before bowing out of the tournament after a 2–1 defeat in the knockout stage against the eventual runners-up Netherlands. It was the first time the newly independent national team had ever played in a major football competition, after playing every FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign since 1998 and every UEFA European Championship qualifying campaign since 1996. The nation did come close to securing a berth at the 2006 finals in Germany, after finishing second in their group ahead of Russia and behind Portugal, before drawing Spain in their qualification play-off, in which the Slovaks lost by a wide margin on aggregate (1–5, 1–1).