Iceland national football team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Iceland women's national football team.

The Iceland men's national football team (in Icelandic: Íslenska karlalandsliðið í knattspyrnu) represents Iceland in men's international football. The team is controlled by the Football Association of Iceland, and have been a FIFA member since 1947 and a UEFA member since 1957. The team's nickname is Strákarnir okkar, which means Our Boys in Icelandic.

Iceland

Nickname(s)	Strákarnir okkar (Our Boys)
Association	Knattspyrnusamband Íslands (KSÍ)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Åge Hareide^[1]
Captain	Aron Gunnarsson
Most caps	Birkir Bjarnason (113)
Top scorer	Gylfi Sigurðsson (27)
Home stadium	Laugardalsvöllur
FIFA code	ISL
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	67 (26 October 2023)^[2]
Highest	18 (February–March 2018)
Lowest	131 (April–June 2012)
First international
Unofficial  Faroe Islands 0–1 Iceland  (Tórshavn, Faroe Islands; 29 July 1930)^[3] Official  Iceland 0–3 Denmark  (Reykjavík, Iceland; 17 July 1946)^[4]
Biggest win
Unofficial  Iceland 9–0 Faroe Islands  (Keflavík, Iceland; 10 July 1985)^[5] Official  Liechtenstein 0–7 Iceland  (Vaduz, Liechtenstein; 26 March 2023)
Biggest defeat
Denmark 14–2 Iceland  (Copenhagen, Denmark; 23 August 1967)
World Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 2018)
Best result	Group stage (2018)
European Championship
Appearances	1 (first in 2016)
Best result	Quarter-finals (2016)

The team enjoyed success in the second half of the 2010s. In the qualifying rounds for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Iceland reached the playoffs before losing to Croatia. Iceland reached its first major tournament, UEFA Euro 2016, after a qualification campaign which included home and away wins over the Netherlands. After reaching the knockout stages of Euro 2016, Iceland defeated England in the Round of 16, advancing to the quarter-finals, where they lost to host nation France 5–2. They became the smallest nation by population ever to clinch a FIFA World Cup berth when they qualified for the 2018 tournament on 9 October 2017.^[7] They drew with Argentina in their opening match, but went out in the group stage.^[8][9]

History

20th century

Although Úrvalsdeild, the Icelandic Football League, was founded in 1912,^[10] the country's first international match was played on 29 July 1930, against the Faroe Islands.^[11] Although Iceland won 1–0 away, both teams were at the time unaffiliated with FIFA.^[12] The first match officially recognised by FIFA took place in Reykjavík on 17 July 1946, a 0–3 loss to their future rivals Denmark.^[13] The first international victory was against Finland in 1947.^[14] 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.^[11] In qualification for the 1958 World Cup, Iceland finished last in their group with zero wins, conceding 26 goals.^[11]

In 1980, Iceland won the first edition of the friendly tournament known as the Greenland Cup.^[15]

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.^[16] 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.^[17]

21st century

 

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.^[18] As a result, they failed to qualify for a playoff spot.^[19]

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.^[20]

In 2014, Iceland almost secured qualification for their first World Cup.^[21] Finishing second in Group D, they played Croatia in a two-leg playoff for qualification.^[22][23] After holding them to a 0–0 draw in the home leg, they lost 2–0 away.^[24]

Euro 2016

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.^[25] During the qualification, they reached their then highest ranking in the FIFA World Rankings, 23rd.^[26][27] 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.^[28] 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.^[29] However, they were eliminated by host nation France in the quarter-finals, 5–2.^[30]

 

World Cup team 2018.

2018 World Cup

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.^[31] Iceland were drawn to play Croatia, Argentina and Nigeria in a group that was considered by many as the "group of death".^[32][33] Despite a challenging group, Iceland were tipped to advance from the group by several journalist websites, based on their impressive performance in Euro 2016.^[34] Their maiden match at the World Cup was against 2014 runners-up Argentina, with Iceland holding Argentina to a 1–1 draw.^[35][36] 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 in position to play a decisive match against already qualified Croatia.^[37][38] Iceland lost to Croatia in their final group game; and because Argentina won against Nigeria, Iceland finished bottom of the group with a single point.^[39][40]

2018–19 UEFA Nations League

After Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup, Iceland participated in the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League, in which they were in Group 2 of League A with Switzerland and Belgium. Many of Iceland's international matches in this competition were undermined by the repeated absence of some of their key players, often due to injury. Iceland lost all four games and faced relegation to League B,^[41] but due to a rule change by UEFA, Iceland was not relegated to League B for the 2020–2021 edition.

Euro 2020 qualifiers

In group H of the Euro qualifiers with the world champions France, Turkey, Albania, Andorra and Moldova. Iceland lost both 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 the away match against Albania 4–2, though achieved a win and a draw against Turkey. Iceland finished third behind France and Turkey and advanced to the playoffs, where they defeated Romania 2–1. On 12 November 2020, in their playoff game against Hungary, Iceland nearly secured qualification for Euro 2020, having led 1–0 for most of the match, thanks to a direct free kick by Gylfi Sigurðsson. However, Hungary scored two goals in under five minutes, the first in the 88th minute by Loïc Nego and the second in the second minute of added time by Dominik Szoboszlai, proving to be the winner, thereby securing qualification at Iceland's expense.^[42]

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.^[43] Manager Erik Hamrén ultimately resigned, following their poor performance that year.^[44]

2022 World Cup qualifiers

Iceland also had a poor start to 2022 World Cup qualifiers, suffering two defeats at the beginning of the tournament, away against Germany (0–3) and Armenia (0–2). 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 both Kolbeinn Sigþórsson and Gylfi Sigurðsson accused of sexual offences^[45][46] 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.^[47] In the aftermath of these affairs, Iceland lost against Romania (0–2), drew against North Macedonia (2–2), and suffered a heavy loss against Germany (0–4); these results left Iceland in second-to-last place in Group J with four matches remaining. In the two October games, Iceland drew against Armenia (1–1) and defeated Liechtenstein (4–0). Despite these results, along with an away draw against Romania (0–0), Iceland was mathematically eliminated with one day remaining, being unable to recover enough points to reach second place.

This run of poor results has been attributed to several factors, both sporting and extra-sporting: the late generational renewal, a process partly hampered by a limited pool of footballers due to Iceland's demographics; the questionable tactical choices of the new 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.^[48][49]

Euro 2024 qualifiers

The Euro 2024 qualifiers have also got off to a poor start in terms of results, with just one win and 3 defeats after 4 matches and a provisional penultimate place. Iceland were swept aside in Bosnia (0–3), before recording the biggest official victory in their history against Liechtenstein (7–0). Following a long series of poor results, Icelandic coach Arnar Viðarsson was sacked^[50] and replaced by Norwegian Åge Hareide. Under the new coach and after two away games, Iceland hosted Slovakia and Portugal, but both matches ended in defeat. First, the Strákarnir okkar lost to the Slovaks (1–2) after a crude defensive error with a direct clearance to Tomáš Suslov, who scored Slovakia's 2nd goal when the teams were back to back. Iceland then put in a better performance than in their previous matches against group favourites Portugal, demonstrating excellent tactical organization and keeping the Lusitanians at bay for long periods. However, a goal by Cristiano Ronaldo on his 200th appearance for Portugal, initially disallowed but then validated by VAR at the very end of normal time, sealed Portugal's victory (0–1), shortly after the Nordic side had been reduced to 10 men following a second yellow card for Willum Þór Willumsson.

Team image

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Iceland national football team kits.

 

The previous logo (1995–2020)

The national team uses blue as the home colours and white as their second colours; their crest features stylized imagery of Iceland's four "guardian spirits" (Landvættir) in local folklore: a giant, a dragon, a bull, and an eagle. The team's crest was adopted in 2020 and was designed by Reykjavík-based firm Bradenburg. Previously the team had used a team crest which featured a shield-type symbol which consisted of the abbreviation of the Football Association of Iceland in Icelandic (KSI), stripes in the colors of the Flag of Iceland, and a football.^[51][52]

Iceland's supporters became known for using the Viking Thunder Clap chant in the mid-2010s, which involves fans clapping their hands above their heads and yelling "huh!" to the beat of a drum; the tradition originates from Scottish club Motherwell F.C. Iceland's Viking Clap first received wider international attention during Euro 2016.^[53]

Kit providers

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–

Results and fixtures

Main article: Iceland national football team results (2020–present)

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2022

Saudi Arabia   v   Iceland

6 November 2022 Friendly	Saudi Arabia	1–0	Iceland	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
16:00 UTC+4	Abdulhamid   26'	Report		Stadium: Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium Referee: Ahmed Eisa Darwich (United Arab Emirates)

South Korea   v   Iceland

11 November 2022 Friendly	South Korea	1–0	Iceland	Hwaseong, South Korea
20:00 UTC+9	Song Min-kyu   33'	Report		Stadium: Hwaseong Stadium Attendance: 15,274 Referee: Jumpei Iida (Japan)

Lithuania   v   Iceland

16 November 2022 Baltic Cup Semi-final	Lithuania	0–0 (5–6 p)	Iceland	Vilnius, Lithuania
		Report		Stadium: LFF Stadium
	Penalties
	Girdvainis   Gineitis   Novikovas   Golubickas   Baravykas   Žebrauskas		A. Guðjohnsen   Þórðarson   Sigurðsson   Anderson   Ingason   Þrándarson

Latvia   v   Iceland

19 November 2022 Baltic Cup Final	Latvia	1–1 (7–8 p)	Iceland	Riga, Latvia
16:00 UTC+2	Cigaņiks   67'	Report	Jóhannesson   62' (pen.)	Stadium: Daugavas stadions Referee: Joonas Jaanovits (Estonia)
	Penalties
	J. Ikaunieks   Zjuzins   D. Ikaunieks   Jaunzems   Stuglis   Sorokins   Cigaņiks   Černomordijs		Jóhannesson   S. Guðjohnsen   Helgason   Sigurðsson   Þórðarson   Þrándarson   Ellertsson   Grétarsson

2023

Iceland   v   Estonia

8 January 2023 Friendly	Iceland	1–1	Estonia	Albufeira, Portugal
	A. Guðjohnsen   90+1' (pen.)		Zenjov   45'	Stadium: Estadio da Nora

Sweden   v   Iceland

12 January 2023 Friendly	Sweden	2–1	Iceland	Algarve, Portugal
	E. Andersson   85' Ondrejka   90+4'		S. Guðjohnsen   30'	Stadium: Estádio Algarve

Bosnia and Herzegovina   v   Iceland

23 March 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Bosnia and Herzegovina	3–0	Iceland	Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina
20:45	Krunić   14', 40' Dedić   63'	Report		Stadium: Bilino Polje Attendance: 9,234 Referee: Donatas Rumšas (Lithuania)

Liechtenstein   v   Iceland

26 March 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Liechtenstein	0–7	Iceland	Vaduz, Liechtenstein
18:00		Report	Ólafsson   3' Haraldsson   38' Gunnarsson   48', 68', 73' (pen.) A. Guðjohnsen   85' Ellertsson   87'	Stadium: Rheinpark Stadion Attendance: 1,692 Referee: Jakob Kehlet (Denmark)

Iceland   v   Slovakia

17 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Iceland	1–2	Slovakia	Reykjavík, Iceland
20:45 (18:45 UTC±0)	Finnbogason   41' (pen.)	Report	Kucka   27' Suslov   70'	Stadium: Laugardalsvöllur Attendance: 7,555 Referee: Don Robertson (Scotland)

Iceland   v   Portugal

20 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Iceland	0–1	Portugal	Reykjavík, Iceland
20:45 (18:45 UTC±0)		Report	Ronaldo   89'	Stadium: Laugardalsvöllur Attendance: 9,517 Referee: Daniel Siebert (Germany)

Luxembourg   v   Iceland

8 September 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Luxembourg	3–1	Iceland	Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
20:45	Chanot   9' (pen.) Borges Sanches   70' Sinani   89'	Report	Haraldsson   88'	Stadium: Stade de Luxembourg Attendance: 7,427 Referee: Goga Kikacheishvili (Georgia)

Iceland   v   Bosnia and Herzegovina

11 September 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Iceland	1–0	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Reykjavík, Iceland
20:45 (18:45 UTC±0)	Finnbogason   90+1'	Report		Stadium: Laugardalsvöllur Attendance: 5,229 Referee: Lawrence Visser (Belgium)

Iceland   v   Luxembourg

13 October 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Iceland	1–1	Luxembourg	Reykjavík, Iceland
20:45 (18:45 UTC±0)	Óskarsson   23'	Report	Rodrigues   46'	Stadium: Laugardalsvöllur Attendance: 4,568 Referee: Sebastian Gishamer (Austria)

Iceland   v   Liechtenstein

16 October 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Iceland	4–0	Liechtenstein	Reykjavík, Iceland
20:45 (18:45 UTC±0)	G. Sigurðsson   22' (pen.), 49' Finnbogason   44' Haraldsson   63'	Report		Stadium: Laugardalsvöllur Attendance: 4,317 Referee: Abdulkadir Bitigen (Turkey)

Slovakia   v   Iceland

16 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Slovakia	v	Iceland	Bratislava, Slovakia
20:45		Report		Stadium: Tehelné pole

Portugal   v   Iceland

19 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Portugal	v	Iceland	Lisbon, Portugal
20:45 (19:45 UTC±0)		Report		Stadium: Estádio José Alvalade

^{[54][55][56][57]}

Coaching staff

See also: List of Iceland national football team managers

Position	Name
Head coach	Åge Hareide
Assistant coach	Joey Guðjónsson
Technical advisor	Bjarni Jakobsson
Training coach	Birkir Eyjólfsson
Fitness coach	Ari Þór Örlygsson
First-Team Doctor	Jóhannes Rúnarsson
Goalkeeper coach	Halldór Björnsson
Athletic coach	Arnór Snær Guðmundsson
Physiotherapist	Sverrir Sigþórsson

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Luxembourg and Liechtenstein on 13 October and 16 October 2023 respectively.^[58]

Caps and goals are correct as of 16 October 2023, after the match against Liechtenstein.^[59][60]

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Rúnar Alex Rúnarsson	(1995-02-18) 18 February 1995 (age 28)	27	0	Cardiff City
12	1GK	Hákon Rafn Valdimarsson	(2001-10-13) 13 October 2001 (age 22)	4	0	Elfsborg
13	1GK	Elías Rafn Ólafsson	(2000-03-11) 11 March 2000 (age 23)	5	0	Mafra
2	2DF	Alfons Sampsted	(1998-04-06) 6 April 1998 (age 25)	20	0	Twente
3	2DF	Guðmundur Þórarinsson	(1992-04-15) 15 April 1992 (age 31)	12	0	OFI Crete
4	2DF	Victor Pálsson	(1991-04-30) 30 April 1991 (age 32)	40	1	Eupen
5	2DF	Sverrir Ingi Ingason (vice-captain)	(1993-08-05) 5 August 1993 (age 30)	44	3	Midtjylland
6	2DF	Hjörtur Hermannsson	(1995-02-08) 8 February 1995 (age 28)	26	1	Pisa
14	2DF	Kolbeinn Finnsson	(1999-08-25) 25 August 1999 (age 24)	6	0	Lyngby
7	3MF	Hákon Arnar Haraldsson	(2003-04-10) 10 April 2003 (age 20)	15	3	Lille
8	3MF	Arnór Sigurðsson	(1999-05-15) 15 May 1999 (age 24)	28	2	Blackburn Rovers
10	3MF	Gylfi Sigurðsson	(1989-09-08) 8 September 1989 (age 34)	80	27	Lyngby
16	3MF	Júlíus Magnússon	(1998-06-28) 28 June 1998 (age 25)	5	0	Fredrikstad
17	3MF	Aron Gunnarsson (captain)	(1989-04-22) 22 April 1989 (age 34)	102	5	Al-Arabi
18	3MF	Mikael Anderson	(1998-07-01) 1 July 1998 (age 25)	24	2	AGF
19	3MF	Ísak Bergmann Jóhannesson	(2003-03-23) 23 March 2003 (age 20)	22	3	Fortuna Düsseldorf
21	3MF	Arnór Ingvi Traustason	(1993-04-30) 30 April 1993 (age 30)	51	5	Norrköping
23	3MF	Kristian Hlynsson	(2004-01-23) 23 January 2004 (age 19)	0	0	Ajax
9	4FW	Jón Dagur Þorsteinsson	(1998-11-26) 26 November 1998 (age 24)	32	4	OH Leuven
11	4FW	Alfreð Finnbogason	(1989-02-01) 1 February 1989 (age 34)	71	18	Eupen
15	4FW	Willum Þór Willumsson	(1998-10-23) 23 October 1998 (age 25)	6	0	Go Ahead Eagles
20	4FW	Orri Óskarsson	(2004-08-29) 29 August 2004 (age 19)	4	1	FC Copenhagen
22	4FW	Andri Guðjohnsen	(2002-01-29) 29 January 2002 (age 21)	16	4	Lyngby

Recent call-ups

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	Patrik Gunnarsson	(2000-11-15) 15 November 2000 (age 22)	3	0	Viking	v.   Liechtenstein, 26 March 2023
GK	Frederik Schram	(1995-01-19) 19 January 1995 (age 28)	7	0	Valur	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
GK	Sindri Kristinn Ólafsson	(1997-01-19) 19 January 1997 (age 26)	0	0	FH	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
DF	Hörður Björgvin Magnússon	(1993-02-11) 11 February 1993 (age 30)	49	2	Panathinaikos	v.   Luxembourg, 13 October 2023 ^INJ
DF	Brynjar Ingi Bjarnason	(1999-12-06) 6 December 1999 (age 23)	14	2	HamKam	v.   Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 September 2023
DF	Daníel Leó Grétarsson	(1995-10-02) 2 October 1995 (age 28)	13	0	SønderjyskE	v.   Portugal, 20 June 2023
DF	Davíð Kristján Ólafsson	(1995-05-15) 15 May 1995 (age 28)	15	1	Kalmar	v.   Liechtenstein, 26 March 2023
DF	Höskuldur Gunnlaugsson	(1994-09-26) 26 September 1994 (age 29)	8	0	Breiðablik	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
DF	Damir Muminovic	(1990-05-13) 13 May 1990 (age 33)	6	0	Breiðablik	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
DF	Róbert Orri Þorkelsson	(2002-04-03) 3 April 2002 (age 21)	4	0	Montréal	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
DF	Hörður Ingi Gunnarsson	(1998-08-14) 14 August 1998 (age 25)	2	0	FH	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
DF	Logi Tómasson	(2000-09-13) 13 September 2000 (age 23)	2	0	Strømsgodset	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
DF	Rúnar Þór Sigurgeirsson	(1999-12-28) 28 December 1999 (age 23)	2	0	Willem II	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
DF	Viktor Örn Margeirsson	(1994-07-22) 22 July 1994 (age 29)	1	0	Breiðablik	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
MF	Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson	(1990-10-27) 27 October 1990 (age 33)	88	8	Burnley	v.   Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 September 2023
MF	Mikael Egill Ellertsson	(2002-03-11) 11 March 2002 (age 21)	13	1	Venezia	v.   Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 September 2023
MF	Birkir Bjarnason	(1988-05-27) 27 May 1988 (age 35)	113	15	Brescia	v.   Portugal, 20 June 2023
MF	Þórir Jóhann Helgason	(2000-09-28) 28 September 2000 (age 23)	16	2	Eintracht Braunschweig	v.   Portugal, 20 June 2023
MF	Stefán Teitur Þórðarson	(1998-10-16) 16 October 1998 (age 25)	17	1	Silkeborg	v.   Liechtenstein, 26 March 2023
MF	Aron Elís Þrándarson	(1994-11-10) 10 November 1994 (age 28)	17	1	Víkingur Reykjavík	v.   Liechtenstein, 26 March 2023
MF	Aron Sigurðarson	(1993-10-08) 8 October 1993 (age 30)	8	2	Horsens	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
MF	Viktor Örlygur Andrason	(2000-02-05) 5 February 2000 (age 23)	4	0	Víkingur Reykjavík	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
MF	Dagur Dan Þórhallsson	(2000-05-02) 2 May 2000 (age 23)	4	0	Orlando City	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
MF	Kristall Máni Ingason	(2002-01-18) 18 January 2002 (age 21)	4	0	SønderjyskE	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
MF	Bjarni Mark Antonsson	(1995-12-27) 27 December 1995 (age 27)	3	0	Start	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
MF	Aron Bjarnason	(1995-10-14) 14 October 1995 (age 28)	1	0	Sirius	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
MF	Nökkvi Þeyr Þórisson	(1999-08-13) 13 August 1999 (age 24)	1	0	St. Louis City	v.   Estonia, 8 January 2023
MF	Viktor Karl Einarsson	(1997-01-30) 30 January 1997 (age 26)	4	0	Breiðablik	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
MF	Bjarki Steinn Bjarkason	(2000-05-11) 11 May 2000 (age 23)	2	0	Venezia	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
MF	Jónatan Ingi Jónsson	(1999-03-15) 15 March 1999 (age 24)	2	0	Sogndal	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
MF	Valdimar Þór Ingimundarson	(1999-04-28) 28 April 1999 (age 24)	2	0	Sogndal	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
MF	Daníel Hafsteinsson	(1999-11-12) 12 November 1999 (age 23)	1	0	KA	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
FW	Sævar Atli Magnússon	(2000-06-16) 16 June 2000 (age 23)	5	0	Lyngby	v.   Bosnia and Herzegovina, 11 September 2023
FW	Albert Guðmundsson	(1997-06-15) 15 June 1997 (age 26)	35	6	Genoa	v.   Portugal, 20 June 2023
FW	Sveinn Aron Guðjohnsen	(1998-05-12) 12 May 1998 (age 25)	19	2	Elfsborg	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
FW	Ísak Þorvaldsson	(2001-05-01) 1 May 2001 (age 22)	4	0	Rosenborg	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
FW	Danijel Djuric	(2003-01-05) 5 January 2003 (age 20)	3	0	Víkingur Reykjavík	v.   Sweden, 12 January 2023
FW	Óttar Magnús Karlsson	(1997-02-21) 21 February 1997 (age 26)	11	2	Vis Pesaro	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
FW	Jason Daði Svanþórsson	(1999-12-31) 31 December 1999 (age 23)	3	0	Breiðablik	v.   South Korea, 11 November 2022
^INJ Withdrew due to injury ^RET Retired from the national team ^WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.

.

Previous squads

FIFA World Cup World Cup 2018 squad

UEFA European Championship Euro 2016 squad

Records

As of 16 October 2023.^[61][62]

Players in bold are still active with Iceland.

Most caps

 

Birkir Bjarnason is Iceland's all-time most capped player with 113 caps.

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Birkir Bjarnason	113	15	2010–present
2	Rúnar Kristinsson	104	3	1987–2004
3	Birkir Már Sævarsson	103	3	2007–2021
4	Aron Gunnarsson	102	5	2008–present
5	Ragnar Sigurðsson	97	5	2007–2020
6	Kári Árnason	90	6	2005–2021
7	Hermann Hreiðarsson	89	5	1996–2011
8	Eiður Guðjohnsen	88	26	1996–2016
	Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson	88	8	2008–present
10	Ari Freyr Skúlason	83	0	2009–2021

Top goalscorers

 

Gylfi Sigurðsson is Iceland's all-time top scorer with 27 goals.

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Gylfi Sigurðsson	27	80	0.34	2010–present
2	Kolbeinn Sigþórsson	26	64	0.41	2010–2021
	Eiður Guðjohnsen	26	88	0.3	1996–2016
4	Alfreð Finnbogason	18	71	0.25	2010–present
5	Ríkharður Jónsson	17	33	0.52	1947–1965
6	Birkir Bjarnason	15	113	0.13	2010–present
7	Ríkharður Daðason	14	44	0.32	1991–2004
	Arnór Guðjohnsen	14	73	0.19	1979–1997
9	Þórður Guðjónsson	13	58	0.22	1993–2004
10	Tryggvi Guðmundsson	12	42	0.29	1997–2008
	Heiðar Helguson	12	55	0.22	1999–2011

Competitive record

For the all-time record of the national team against opposing nations, see Iceland national football team head to head.

FIFA World Cup

Main article: Iceland at the FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record											FIFA World Cup qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930	Not a FIFA member										Not a FIFA member
1934
1938
1950
1954	Did not enter										Did not enter
1958	Did not qualify										4	0	0	4	6	26
1962	Did not enter										Did not enter
1966
1970
1974	Did not qualify										6	0	0	6	2	29
1978											6	1	0	5	2	12
1982											8	2	2	4	10	21
1986											6	1	0	5	4	10
1990											8	1	4	3	6	11
1994											8	3	2	3	7	6
1998											10	2	3	5	11	16
2002											10	4	1	5	14	20
2006											10	1	1	8	14	27
2010											8	1	2	5	7	13
2014											12	5	3	4	17	17
2018	Group stage	28th	3	0	1	2	2	5	Squad		10	7	1	2	16	7
2022	Did not qualify										10	2	3	5	12	18
2026	To be determined										To be determined
Total	Group stage	1/22	3	0	1	2	2	5	—		116	30	22	64	128	233

List of FIFA World Cup matches
Year	Round	Opponent	Score	Result	Date	Venue
2018	Group D	Argentina	1–1	Draw	16 June 2018	Moscow, Russia
		Nigeria	2–0	Loss	22 June 2018	Volgograd, Russia
		Croatia	1–2	Loss	26 June 2018	Rostov-on-Don, Russia

UEFA European Championship

Main article: Iceland at the UEFA European Championship

UEFA European Championship record											Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1960	Did not enter										Did not enter
1964	Did not qualify										2	0	1	1	3	5
1968	Did not enter										Did not enter
1972
1976	Did not qualify										6	1	2	3	3	8
1980											8	0	0	8	2	21
1984											8	1	1	6	3	13
1988											8	2	2	4	4	14
1992											8	2	0	6	7	10
1996											8	1	2	5	3	12
2000											10	4	3	3	12	7
2004											8	4	1	3	11	9
2008											12	2	2	8	10	27
2012											8	1	1	6	6	14
2016	Quarter-finals	8th	5	2	2	1	8	9	Squad		10	6	2	2	17	6
2020	Did not qualify										12	7	1	4	17	14
2024	To be determined										To be determined
2028
2032
Total	Quarter-finals	1/16	5	2	2	1	8	9	–		108	31	18	59	98	160

List of UEFA European Football Championship matches
Year	Round	Opponent	Score	Result	Date	Venue
2016	Group F	Portugal	1–1	Draw	14 June 2016	Saint-Étienne, France
		Hungary	1–1	Draw	18 June 2016	Marseille, France
		Austria	2–1	Win	22 June 2016	Paris, France
	Round of 16	England	2–1	Win	27 June 2016	Nice, France
	Quarter- finals	France	2–5	Loss	3 July 2016	Paris, France

UEFA Nations League

UEFA Nations League record
Year	Division	Group	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	P/R	Rank
2018–19	A	2	4	0	0	4	1	13		12th
2020–21	A	2	6	0	0	6	3	17		16th
2022–23	B	2	4	0	4	0	6	6		23rd
2024–25	B	To be determined
Total			14	0	4	10	10	36	12th

Honours

• Baltic Cup
  •   Champions (1): 2022
• Greenland Cup
  •   Champions (2): 1980, 1984
• China Cup
  •   Runners-up (1): 2017

FIFA ranking history

Source:^[63]

1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021
46	47	39	50	60	72	64	43	50	52	58	58	93	94	93	90	83	92	112	104	90	49	33	36	21	22	37	39	46	62

See also

•  Association football portal
•  Iceland portal

• Iceland national under-21 football team
• Iceland national under-19 football team
• Iceland national under-17 football team
• Iceland national futsal team
• Iceland women's national football team

Notes

References

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External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Iceland national football team.

• Football Association of Iceland
• Iceland at UEFA
• Iceland at FIFA
• Iceland National Team (1946–2000) by Jostein Nygård (Norway)
• RSSSF archive of results 1946–
• RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers