Israel national under-21 football team

The Israel national under-21 football team (Hebrew: הנבחרת הצעירה של ישראל בכדורגל) is the national under-21 football team of Israel and is controlled by the Israel Football Association (IFA). It is considered to be the feeder team for the senior Israel national football team.

Israel Under-21

Nickname(s)	הנבחרת הצעירה (The Young Chosen Team) התכולים-לבנים (The Skyblue and Whites)^[1]
Association	Israel Football Association
Confederation	UEFA (Europe; 1990s–present)
Head coach	Guy Luzon^[2]
Captain	Gil Cohen^[3]^[4]
Most caps	Arik Benado (39)^[5]
Top scorer	Alon Mizrahi (15)^[6]
FIFA code	ISR
First colours Second colours
First international
Israel 2–2 Greece  (Greece; 1977)
Biggest defeat
Czech Republic 5–1 Israel  (Czech Republic; 25 April 2000)
Olympic Games
Appearances	2 (first in 1968)
Best result	Quarter-finals (1968, 1976)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances	3 (first in 2007)
Best result	Semi-finals (2023)

This team consists of Israeli players aged 21 or under at the start of each two-year UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship campaign, so players can be, and often are, up to 23 years old. Team members may also simultaneously qualify to various teams for Under-20s (for non-UEFA tournaments), Under-19s and Under 17s, or even the senior national team, so long as the meet the respective age restriction. It is also possible to play for one country at youth level and another at senior level (provided the player is eligible).

The U-21 team has been constructed, following the Israel's acceptance as a full member of UEFA. A draw in a qualifier against Greece in Greece, was Israel U-21s' first fixture during the early 1990s.

Israel U-21s do not have a permanent home. They play in stadia dotted all around Israel in an attempt to encourage fans in all areas of the country to get behind Israel. Because of the lesser appeal compared to the senior national team, smaller grounds are usually used (such as HaMoshava Stadium in Petah Tikva, Israel).

The team qualified for the European Championships for the first time in 2007, reaching the final stage held in the Netherlands after beating the French Under-21 team 2–1 on aggregate.

Competitive history

There is no Under-21 World Cup, although there is an Under-20 World Cup. European U-21 teams compete for the European Championship, with the finals every even-numbered year. It will be held in odd-numbered years from 2007. Israel has never fared well in European Under-21 Football Championships.

The current campaign started shortly after the 2006 finals – the qualification stage of the 2007 competition. UEFA have decided to shift the next tournament forward to avoid a clash with senior tournaments taking place in even-numbered years. The competition has therefore been reduced as qualifying must be completed in a year's less time. In their three-team qualification group, Israel finished ahead of Turkey and Wales. In the two-legged play-off against France for a place in the final stage, the team achieved a surprising 1–1 draw in France and won the home match 1–0, with Amir Taga scoring in stoppage time.

Note: The year of the tournament represents the year in which it ends.

Competitive record

UEFA European Under-21 Championship

 

The Israeli U21 squad at the final-tournament of the 2013 UEFA Euros Under-21 that was hosted by Israel

UEFA U-21 Championship Record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1992	Did not qualify									6	3	2	0	17	3
1994										10	3	1	6	17	16
1996										10	3	3	4	12	11
1998										8	5	2	1	17	9
2000										8	2	2	4	6	13
2002										8	4	0	4	16	13
2004										8	3	1	4	6	11
2006										8	4	3	1	11	7
2007	Group Stage	3	0	0	3	0	6	Squad		4	2	2	0	5	3
2009	Did not qualify									8	5	2	1	16	5
2011										8	5	1	2	18	8
2013	Group Stage	3	1	1	1	3	6	Squad		Qualified as host
2015	Did not qualify									8	5	0	3	22	15
2017										10	6	3	1	21	4
2019										10	4	2	4	17	18
2021										10	3	4	3	12	14
2023	Semi-final	5	1	2	2	2	6	Squad		12	6	3	3	20	11
Total	3/17	11	2	3	6	5	18	-		136	63	31	41	233	161

2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

Main article: 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

Qualifiers – Group B

Main article: 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group D

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Germany	4	4	0	0	13	4	+9	12	Final tournament		—	3–1	11 Oct '24	22 Mar '24	4–1	26 Mar '24
2	Poland	5	4	0	1	12	4	+8	12	Play-offs		15 Oct '24	—	26 Mar '24	3–0	5–0	2–1
3	Bulgaria	6	2	3	1	13	7	+6	9			2–3	10 Sep '24	—	1–1	6–0	1–0
4	Kosovo	6	2	2	2	8	10	−2	8			0–3	11 Oct '24	2–2	—	2–0	3–1
5	Estonia	6	0	1	5	2	19	−17	1			10 Sep '24	0–1	1–1	15 Oct '24	—	6 Sep '24
6	Israel	3	0	0	3	2	6	−4	0			TBD	21 Mar '24	15 Oct '24	10 Sep '24	TBD	—

Updated to match(es) played on 21 November 2023. Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Qualifiers play-offs

Main article: 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification play-offs

The four play-off winners qualify for the final tournament.

Team 1	Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score	Team 2	1st leg	2nd leg
Croatia	3–3 (5–4 p)	Denmark	2–1	1–2 (a.e.t.)
Slovakia	3–5	Ukraine	3–2	0–3
Republic of Ireland	1–1 (1–3 p)	Israel	1–1	0–0 (a.e.t.)
Iceland	1–2	Czech Republic	1–2	0–0

2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship group stage (Final tournament)

Main article: 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship § Group_C

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	England	3	3	0	0	6	0	+6	9	Advance to knockout stage
2	Israel	3	1	1	1	2	3	−1	4
3	Czech Republic	3	1	0	2	2	4	−2	3
4	Germany	3	0	1	2	2	5	−3	1

Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Knockout stage

Main article: 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship § Knockout_stage

In the knockout stage, extra time and a penalty shoot-out are used to decide the winners if necessary. As France qualified as hosts and England are ineligible for the 2024 Summer Olympics, their results will be used to determine whether an Olympic play-off match would be required and who would participate.^[7]

Bracket

Main article: 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship § Bracket

	Quarter-finals				Semi-finals				Final
	1 July – Boris Paichadze Stadium
	Georgia	0 (3)
					5 July – Adjarabet Arena
	Israel (p)	0 (4)
					Israel	0
	2 July – Ramaz Shengelia Stadium
					England	3
	England	1
									8 July – Adjarabet Arena
	Portugal	0
									England	1
	1 July – Stadionul Rapid-Giulești
									Spain	0
	Spain (a.e.t.)	2
					5 July – Stadionul Steaua
	Switzerland	1
					Spain	5
	2 July – Cluj Arena
					Ukraine	1
	France	1
	Ukraine	3

Results and fixtures

  Win   Draw   Loss

2022

Qualifiers play-offs

Republic of Ireland   v   Israel

23 September 2022 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification Play-off 1st leg	Republic of Ireland	1–1	Israel	Tallaght Stadium, Dublin, Ireland
21:00 (Israel Summer Time)	Ferguson   65'	Report	Gorno   45'	Attendance: 6,786 Referee: Dario Bel (Croatia)

Israel   v   Republic of Ireland

27 September 2022 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification Play-off 2nd leg	Israel	0–0 (a.e.t.) (3–1 p)	Republic of Ireland	Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel
20:15 (Israel Summer Time)		Report		Attendance: 22,752 Referee: Nathan Verboomen (Belgium)
	Penalties
	Karzev   Peretz   Cohen   Davida		Coventry   Wright   Ferguson   Devoy

1–1 on aggregate. Israel won 3–1 on penalties and qualified for the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

---

2023

Germany   v   Israel

22 June 2023 (2023-06-22) UEFA European Under-21 Championship (Final tournament)	Germany	1–1	Israel	Ramaz Shengelia Stadium, Kutaisi, Georgia
19:00 (Israel Summer Time)	Bisseck   26'	Report	Turgeman   20'	Attendance: 2,442^[8] Referee: Willy Delajod (France)

England   v   Israel

25 June 2023 (2023-06-25) UEFA European Under-21 Championship (Final tournament)	England	2–0	Israel	Kutaisi, Georgia
19:00 (Israel Summer Time)	Gordon   15' Smith Rowe   68'	Report		Stadium: Ramaz Shengelia Stadium Attendance: 5,106^[9] Referee: Rade Obrenović (Slovenia)

Israel   v   Czech Republic

28 June 2023 (2023-06-28) UEFA European Under-21 Championship group stage (Final tournament)	Israel	1–0	Czech Republic	Ramaz Shengelia Stadium, Kutaisi, Georgia
19:00 (Israel Summer Time)v	Gandelman   82'	Report		Attendance: 2,175^[10] Referee: Duje Strukan (Croatia)

Georgia   v   Israel

1 July 2023 (2023-07-01) UEFA European Under-21 Championship Quarter-finals	Georgia	0–0 (a.e.t.) (3–4 p)	Israel	Boris Paichadze Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia
19:00 (Israel Summer Time)		Report		Attendance: 44,338^[11] Referee: Espen Eskås (Norway)
	Penalties
	Azarovi   Davitashvili   Gagua   Moistsrapishvili   Khvadagiani		Cohen   Gandelman   Khalaily   Gloukh

Israel   v   England

5 July 2023 (2023-07-05) UEFA European Under-21 Championship Semi-finals	Israel	0–3	England	Adjarabet Arena, Batumi, Georgia
19:00 (Israel Summer Time)		Report	Gibbs-White   42' Palmer   63' Archer   90'

Coaching staff

 

Israel U21's last practice ahead of the 2023 UEFA Euros Under-21 qualifiers away match against Germany U21

As of 22 June 2023^[2]

Position	Name
Head Coach	Guy Luzon
Assistant Coach	Haim Cohen
Fitness Coach	Yossi Kakun
	Lidor Ganon
Goalkeeping Coach	Victor Buchnik
Analyst	Liron Glat

Players

Current squad

• The following players were called-up for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification matches against   Poland on 17 November 2023 and   Kosovo on 21 November 2023.^[12]
• Caps and goals correct as of: 21 November 2023, after the match against   Kosovo

Bolded names denote players who have been capped for the senior team.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Tomer Tzarfati	(2003-10-16) 16 October 2003 (age 20)	4	0	Maccabi Netanya
18	1GK	Niv Eliasi	(2002-02-01) 1 February 2002 (age 21)	2	0	Hapoel Be'er Sheva
2	2DF	Guy Deznet	(2005-11-01) 1 November 2005 (age 18)	3	0	Macabi Petah Tikva
3	2DF	Tal Archel	(2003-06-10) 10 June 2003 (age 20)	2	0	Hapoel Tel Aviv
4	2DF	Denis Kulikov	(2004-08-24) 24 August 2004 (age 19)	2	0	Macabi Netanya
5	2DF	Matan Levi	(2002-02-19) 19 February 2002 (age 21)	1	0	Macabi Netanya
9	2DF	Li On Mizrahi	(2002-10-24) 24 October 2002 (age 21)	4	0	Beitar Jerusalem
12	2DF	Hadar Fuchs	(2003-12-13) 13 December 2003 (age 19)	2	0	Macabi Petah Tikva
19	2DF	Jonathan Mulder	(2002-01-02) 2 January 2002 (age 21)	2	0	TOP Oss
6	3MF	Eitan Azulay	(2002-05-26) 26 May 2002 (age 21)	14	0	Maccabi Netanya
10	3MF	Shalev Harush	(2002-05-08) 8 May 2002 (age 21)	2	0	F.C. Ashdod
11	3MF	Roy Nawi	(2004-03-04) 4 March 2004 (age 19)	1	0	Hapoel Petah Tikva
13	3MF	Ayano Preda	(2002-04-29) 29 April 2002 (age 21)	3	0	Hapoel Jerusalem
14	3MF	Bassam Zarura	(2002-11-13) 13 November 2002 (age 21)	1	0	Maccabi Netanya
15	3MF	Tai Abed	(2004-08-03) 3 August 2004 (age 19)	3	0	Jong PSV
16	3MF	Ran Binyamin	(2004-02-06) 6 February 2004 (age 19)	2	1	Hapoel Tel Aviv
20	3MF	Amir Ganah	(2004-09-07) 7 September 2004 (age 19)	3	0	Hapoel Be'er Sheva
21	3MF	Adi Yona	(2004-04-17) 17 April 2004 (age 19)	1	0	Beitar Jerusalem
7	4FW	Stav Nahmani	(2002-01-20) 20 January 2002 (age 21)	7	2	St Mirren
8	4FW	Or Roizman	(2002-03-22) 22 March 2002 (age 21)	2	0	Hapoel Jerusalem
17	4FW	Suf Podgoreanu	(2002-01-20) 20 January 2002 (age 21)	8	1	Maccabi Haifa
	4FW	Hamza Shibli	(2004-08-19) 19 August 2004 (age 19)	1	0	Maccabi Haifa
	4FW	Bassel Khoury	(2003-12-16) 16 December 2003 (age 19)	0	0	Bnei Sakhnin

Recent call-ups

The following players have previously been called-up to the Israel under-21 squad in the last 12 months and remain eligible for selection.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Lior Gliklich	(2003-01-02) 2 January 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Hapoel Tel Aviv	v.   Ukraine, 19 November 2022
GK	Maor Erlich	(2003-03-03) 3 March 2003 (age 20)	0	0	F.C. Kafr Qasim	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
DF	Noam Malmoud	(2002-08-02) 2 August 2002 (age 21)	4	0	Hapoel Jerusalem	v.    Switzerland, 28 March 2023
DF	Stav Lemkin	(2003-04-02) 2 April 2003 (age 20)	11	1	Shakhtar Donetsk	v.    Switzerland, 28 March 2023
DF	Shaked Hakmon	(2002-06-15) 15 June 2002 (age 21)	1	0	F.C. Ashdod	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
DF	Ilay Feingold	(2004-08-23) 23 August 2004 (age 19)	1	0	Macabi Haifa	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
MF	Niv Gotlieb	(2002-10-29) 29 October 2002 (age 21)	0	0	Hapoel Hadera	v.   Ukraine, 19 November 2022
MF	Ilay Madmon	(2003-02-23) 23 February 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Hapoel Be'er Sheva	v.   Ukraine, 19 November 2022
MF	Noam Muche	(2003-07-30) 30 July 2003 (age 20)	1	0	F.C. Ashdod	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
MF	El Yam Kancepolsky	(2003-12-22) 22 December 2003 (age 19)	1	0	Hapoel Tel Aviv	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
MF	Ilay Madmon	(2003-02-03) 3 February 2003 (age 20)	1	0	Hapoel Be'er Sheva	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
FW	Idan Gorno	(2004-08-09) 9 August 2004 (age 19)	6	1	Maccabi Petah Tikva	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
FW	Dor Turgeman	(2003-10-24) 24 October 2003 (age 20)	7	1	MaccabiTel Aviv	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023
FW	Mohammed Abu Rumi	(2004-03-10) 10 March 2004 (age 19)	3	0	Ironi Kiryat Shmona	v.   Bulgaria, 12 September 2023

Records

Most capped players

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Career	U-21 Caps
1	Arik Benado	Maccabi Haifa, Beitar Jerusalem	1992–1995	39
2	Nir Sivilia	Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, Beitar Jerusalem	1993–1997	34
2	Shay Holtzman	Maccabi Netanya, Maccabi Haifa, Tzafririm Holon	1992–1995	34
3	Dekel Keinan	Maccabi Haifa, Bnei Sakhnin, Maccabi Netanya	2003–2007	30
4	Alon Halfon	Maccabi Netanya, Hapoel Haifa	1993–1995	29
4	Tom Almadon	Maccabi Haifa	2004–2007	29
5	Ofer Talker	Maccabi Ironi Ashdod, Hapoel Haifa	1992–1995	28
6	Ofir Kopel	Maccabi Haifa	1994–1997	27
7	Lior Jan	Maccabi Tel Aviv	2006–2008	26
8	Moshe Ohayon	Ashdod	2001–2005	24

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s. Those players in bold are still eligible to play for the team.

Leading goalscorers

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Career	U-21 Goals
1	Alon Mizrahi	Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv	1992–1993	15
2	Shay Holtzman	Maccabi Netanya, Maccabi Haifa, Tzafririm Holon	1992–1995	14
3	Mu'nas Dabbur	Maccabi Tel Aviv, Grasshopper	2011–2014	13
4	Nir Sivilia	Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, Beitar Jerusalem	1993–1997	12
5	Ben Sahar	Chelsea, Espanyol	2007–2010	8
5	Maor Buzaglo	Maccabi Haifa, Hapoel Petah Tikva, Bnei Sakhnin, Maccabi Tel Aviv	2007–2010	8
6	Eli Abarbanel	Hapoel Petah Tikva	1994–1999	7
6	Amir Turgeman	Ironi Ashdod	1992–1993	7

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s. Those players in bold are still eligible to play for the team.

See also

•  Israel portal
•  Association football portal

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• Israel national football team – senior men's squad
• Israel national under-20 football team
• Israel national under-19 football team
• Israel national under-18 football team
• Israel national under-17 football team
• Israel national under-16 football team

References

1. Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs publication The Flag and the Emblem 2007-04-17 at the Wayback Machine by art historian Alec Mishory, wherein he quotes "The Provisional Council of State Proclamation of the Flag of the State of Israel" made on 28 October 1948 by Joseph Sprinzak, Speaker.
2. "Israel Football Association - U21 National Team - Team Staff".
3. "Latvia-Israel | Under-21 2023".
4. "Israel-San Marino | Under-21 2023".
5. http://football.org.il/NationalTeam/Pages/NationalTeamAppearance.aspx?NATIONAL_TEAM_ID=943&PAGE_NUM=1^{[dead link]}
6. http://football.org.il/NationalTeam/Pages/NationalTeamCaptivate.aspx?NATIONAL_TEAM_ID=943&PAGE_NUM=1^{[dead link]}
7. "2021–23 UEFA European Under-21 Championship regulations". UEFA.
8. "Germany vs. Israel" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 22 June 2023. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
9. "England vs. Israel" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
10. "Israel vs. Czech Republic" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
11. "Georgia vs. Israel" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
12. "עם נחמני ופודגוראנו: פורסם סגל הנבחרת הצעירה" (in Hebrew). The Sport Channel. Retrieved 12 November 2023.

External links

• Contains full results archive
• The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation Contains full record of U-21 Championship hosts and additional statistics, such as the Group Winners table for the 1998 qualifiers.