Slovakia national football team

Slovakia
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Sokoli (The Falcons)[1]
Repre (The Representatives)[2]
AssociationSlovenský futbalový zväz (SFZ)
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachFrancesco Calzona
CaptainMilan Škriniar
Most capsMarek Hamšík (138)
Top scorerMarek Hamšík (26)
Home stadiumTehelné pole
Štadión Antona Malatinského
Košická futbalová aréna
FIFA codeSVK
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 41 Increase 1 (24 October 2024)[3]
Highest14 (August 2015)
Lowest150 (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
Appearances9 (first in 1934 as Czechoslovakia
2010 as Slovakia)
Best resultAs Czechoslovakia: Runners-up (1934, 1962)
As Slovakia: Round of 16 (2010)
European Championship
Appearances6 (first in 1960 as Czechoslovakia
2016 as Slovakia)
Best resultAs 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).

  1. ^ "Slovenskí Sokoli". Slovak Football Association (in Slovak). Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  2. ^ "Prezývka slovenských reprezentantov? Suchá". Aktualne Atlas (in Slovak). Archived from the original on 29 July 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2010.
  3. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 24 October 2024. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  4. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 21 November 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  5. ^ Dunmore, Tom (16 September 2011). Historical Dictionary of Soccer. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-7188-5.
  6. ^ "UEFA EURO 2016: How all the teams qualified". UEFA. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  7. ^ "UEFA EURO 2020 contenders in focus: Czech Republic | UEFA EURO". 22 February 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  8. ^ "UEFA EURO 2020 contenders in focus: Slovakia". UEFA. 3 January 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  9. ^ "Who has qualified for UEFA EURO 2024? | UEFA EURO 2024". UEFA. 28 December 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2024.