Yugoslavia national football team
The Yugoslavia national football team[b] represented Yugoslavia in international association football.
| 1920–1992 | |
|---|---|
| (1920–1941) and (1945–1992) | |
| Nickname(s) | Plavi (The Blues) Brazilians of Europe[1] |
| Association | Football Association of Yugoslavia |
| Most caps | Dragan Džajić (85) |
| Top scorer | Stjepan Bobek (38) |
| Home stadium | Stadium Rajko Mitić, Belgrade |
| FIFA code | YUG |
| First international | |
| Czechoslovakia 7–0 Kingdom of SCS (Antwerp, Belgium; 28 August 1920) | |
| Last international | |
| Netherlands 2–0 Yugoslavia (Amsterdam, Netherlands; 25 March 1992)[a] | |
| Biggest win | |
| Yugoslavia 10–0 Venezuela (Curitiba, Brazil; 14 June 1972)[2][3] | |
| Biggest defeat | |
| Czechoslovakia 7–0 Kingdom of SCS (Antwerp, Belgium; 28 August 1920) Uruguay 7–0 Kingdom of SCS (Paris, France; 26 May 1924) Czechoslovakia 7–0 Kingdom of SCS (Prague, Czechoslovakia; 28 October 1925) | |
| World Cup | |
| Appearances | 8[a] (first in 1930) |
| Best result | Fourth place (1930, 1962) |
| European Championship | |
| Appearances | 4[a] (first in 1960) |
| Best result | Runners-up (1960, 1968) |
Although the team mainly represented the pre-war Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the post-war SFR Yugoslavia, various iterations of the state were formally constituted in football, including the:
- Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (1918–1929)
- Kingdom of Yugoslavia (1929–1945)
- Democratic Federal Yugoslavia (1945)
- Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia (1945–1963)
- Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1963–1992)
It enjoyed success in international competition, reaching semifinal[c] at the 1930 and 1962 FIFA World Cups. In 1992, during the Yugoslav wars, the team was suspended from international competition as part of the United Nations sanctions on Yugoslavia.
History
The first national team was in the kingdom that existed between the two world wars. The Football Federation of what was then the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was founded in Zagreb in 1919 under the name Jugoslavenski nogometni savez (and admitted into FIFA), and the national team played its first international game at the Summer Olympics in Antwerp in 1920. The opponent was Czechoslovakia, and the historic starting eleven that represented Kingdom of SCS on its debut were: Dragutin Vrđuka, Vjekoslav Župančić, Jaroslav Šifer, Stanko Tavčar, Slavin Cindrić, Rudolf Rupec, Dragutin Vragović, Artur Dubravčić, Emil Perška, Ivan Granec, and Jovan Ružić. They lost by a huge margin 0–7, but nonetheless got their names in the history books.
1930 World Cup
In 1929, the country was renamed to Yugoslavia and the football association became Fudbalski savez Jugoslavije and ordered to move its headquarters from Zagreb to Belgrade. The national team participated at the 1930 FIFA World Cup, finishing in fourth place. In its first ever World Cup match in Montevideo's Parque Central, Yugoslavia managed a famous 2–1 win versus mighty Brazil, with the following starting eleven representing the country: Milovan Jakšić, Branislav Sekulić, Aleksandar Tirnanić, Milutin Ivković, Ivica Bek, Momčilo Đokić, Blagoje Marjanović, Milorad Arsenijević, Đorđe Vujadinović, Dragoslav Mihajlović, and Ljubiša Stefanović. The team was the youngest squad at the inaugural World Cup at an average age of just under 22 years old, and became quite popular amongst the Uruguayan public, who dubbed them "Los Ichachos". The national team consisted of players based in Serbian football clubs, while the Zagreb Subassociation forbid players from Croatian clubs, some of whom were regulars in the national team until then, to play in the World Cup due to the relocation of football association's headquarters from Zagreb to Belgrade.[4]
Post-World War II period
The federation and football overall was disrupted by World War II. After the war, a socialist federation was formed and the football federation reconstituted. It was one of the founding members of the UEFA in 1954.
Silver Medal at 1948 Summer Olympics
Yugoslavia began their football campaign by defeating Luxembourg 6–1, with five different players scoring the goals. In the quarter-finals and the semi-finals, they would take out Turkey and Great Britain by the same score of 3–1. In the final though, they would lose to Sweden.
Silver Medal at 1952 Summer Olympics
Having a team with many players from the 1948 generation, Yugoslavia was a formidable side at the 1952 Summer Olympics and finished as runners-up behind the famous "Golden Team" representing Hungary. Against the USSR, Yugoslavia was 5–1 up with 15 minutes of their first round match to go. The Yugoslavs, understandably, put their feet up. Arthur Ellis, the match referee, recorded what happened next in his book, The Final Whistle (London, 1963): "The USSR forced the most honourable draw ever recorded! [Vsevolod] Bobrov, their captain, scored a magnificent hat-trick. After the USSR had reduced the lead to 5–2, he, almost single-handed, took the score to 5–5, scoring his third in the last minute. For once, use of the word sensational was justified." Although Bobrov's early goal in their replay presaged a miraculous recovery, Yugoslavia recovered sufficiently to put out their opponents easily in the second half.
Later decades
In 1976, Yugoslavia organized the European Championship played in Belgrade and Zagreb. The national team participated in eight World Cups and four Euros, won the Olympic football tournament in 1960 at the Summer Games (they also finished second three times and third once), and developed a reputation for skillful and attacking football, leading them to be dubbed "the Brazilians of Europe".[5]
Dragan Džajić holds the record for the most national team caps at 85, between 1964 and 1979. The best scorer is Stjepan Bobek with 38 goals, between 1946 and 1956.
Dissolution and UN embargo
With the end of the Cold War, democratic principles were introduced to the country which brought about the end of Titoist rule. In the subsequent atmosphere, national tensions were heightened. At the Yugoslavia-Netherlands friendly in preparation for the 1990 World Cup, the Croatian crowd in Zagreb jeered the Yugoslav team and anthem and waved Dutch flags (owing to its resemblance to the Croatian tricolour). With the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the team split up and the remaining team of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) was banned from competing at Euro 92. The decision was made on 31 May 1992, just 10 days before the competition commenced.[6] They had finished top of their qualifying group, but were unable to play in the competition due to United Nations Security Council Resolution 757. Their place was taken by Denmark, who went on to win the competition.
After the breakup of Yugoslavia, the FRY consisted of Montenegro and Serbia.[7][8]
In 1992, Yugoslavia had also been drawn as second seed in Group 5 of the European Zone in the qualifying tournament for the 1994 World Cup. FRY was barred from competing, rendering the group unusually weak.
In 1994, when the boycott was lifted, the union of Serbia and Montenegro competed under the name "Yugoslavia", as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia national football team.
The Serbia national football team inherited Yugoslavia's spot within FIFA and UEFA and is considered by both organisations as the only successor of Yugoslavia (and of Serbia and Montenegro).[9][10][11]
The national team of Serbia and Montenegro continued under the name Yugoslavia until 2003, when country and team were renamed Serbia and Montenegro.
Youth teams
The under-21 team won the inaugural UEFA U-21 Championship in 1978.
The Yugoslav under-20 team won the FIFA World Youth Championship 1987.
Kits
1930 | 1950–1968 | 1974 | 1976 | 1982 | 1984 | 1990 | 1992 |
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup record
Champions Runners-up Third Place Fourth Place
| FIFA World Cup record | Qualification Record | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Squads | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1930 | Semi-finals[12][d] | 4th | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 7 | Squad | Invited | ||||||
| 1934 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||||||||
| 1938 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||||||||||
| 1950 | Group stage | 5th | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 3 | Squad | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 6 | |
| 1954 | Quarter-final | 7th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | Squad | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1958 | Quarter-final | 5th | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 7 | Squad | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | |
| 1962 | Fourth place | 4th | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 7 | Squad | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 4 | |
| 1966 | Did not qualify | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 8 | |||||||||
| 1970 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 19 | 7 | ||||||||||
| 1974 | Second group stage | 7th | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | 7 | Squad | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4 | |
| 1978 | Did not qualify | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 8 | |||||||||
| 1982 | Group stage | 16th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | Squad | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 7 | |
| 1986 | Did not qualify | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 8 | |||||||||
| 1990 | Quarter-final | 5th | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | Squad | 8 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 6 | |
| Total | Fourth place | 8/14 | 33 | 14 | 7 | 12 | 55 | 42 | – | 66 | 38 | 15 | 13 | 130 | 68 | |
UEFA European Championship record
Champions Runners-up Third Place Fourth Place
| UEFA European Championship record | Qualification Record | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Squads | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1960 | Runners-up | 2nd | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6 | Squad | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 4 | |
| 1964 | Did not qualify | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 | |||||||||
| 1968 | Runners-up | 2nd | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | Squad | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 5 | |
| 1972 | 1/4 playoffs | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 5 | |||||||||
| 1976 | Fourth place | 4th | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 7 | Squad | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 5 | |
| 1980 | Did not qualify | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 6 | |||||||||
| 1984 | Group stage | 8th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | Squad | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 11 | |
| 1988 | Did not qualify | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 9 | |||||||||
| 1992 | Banned after qualification[e] | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 24 | 4 | |||||||||
| Total | Runners-up | 4/9 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 14 | 26 | – | 56 | 35 | 10 | 11 | 114 | 54 | |
- *Denotes draws including knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
Mediterranean Games
Honours
Player statistics
Most capped players
| Rank | Name | Caps | Goals | Position | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dragan Džajić | 85 | 23 | MF | 1964–1979 |
| 2 | Zlatko Vujović | 70 | 25 | FW | 1979–1990 |
| 3 | Branko Zebec | 65 | 17 | DF | 1951–1961 |
| 4 | Stjepan Bobek | 63 | 38 | FW | 1946–1956 |
| 5 | Faruk Hadžibegić | 61 | 6 | DF | 1982–1992 |
| Branko Stanković | 3 | DF | 1946–1956 | ||
| 7 | Ivica Horvat | 60 | 0 | DF | 1946–1956 |
| 8 | Vladimir Beara | 59 | 0 | GK | 1950–1959 |
| Rajko Mitić | 32 | FW | 1946–1957 | ||
| Bernard Vukas | 22 | MF | 1948–1957 |
Top goalscorers
| Rank | Name | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stjepan Bobek | 38 | 63 | 0.60 | 1946–1956 |
| 2 | Milan Galić | 37 | 51 | 0.73 | 1959–1965 |
| Blagoje Marjanović | 58 | 0.64 | 1926–1938 | ||
| 4 | Rajko Mitić | 32 | 59 | 0.54 | 1946–1957 |
| 5 | Dušan Bajević | 29 | 37 | 0.78 | 1970–1977 |
| 6 | Todor Veselinović | 28 | 37 | 0.76 | 1953–1961 |
| 7 | Borivoje Kostić | 26 | 33 | 0.79 | 1956–1964 |
| 8 | Zlatko Vujović | 25 | 70 | 0.36 | 1970–1977 |
| 9 | Dragan Džajić | 23 | 84 | 0.27 | 1964–1979 |
| 10 | Bernard Vukas | 22 | 59 | 0.37 | 1948–1957 |
Notable players
- Goalkeepers
Vladimir Beara played 59 matches from 1950 to 1959
Milutin Šoškić played 50 matches from 1959 to 1966
- Defenders
Milutin Ivković played for Yugoslavia from 1925 to 1934 and captained the team in 1930 FIFA World Cup
Branko Stanković played for Yugoslavia from 1946 to 1956
Branko Zebec played for Yugoslavia from 1951 to 1961 and captained the team in 1958 FIFA World Cup
Velibor Vasović played for Yugoslavia from 1961 to 1966
- Midfielders
Aleksandar Tirnanić played in the 1930 FIFA World Cup and managed the team from 1953 to 1960
Dragoslav Šekularac played for the team from 1956 to 1966
Dragan Džajić was considered by many to be the best player in history of Yugoslavia
Vladimir Petrović, creative midfielder played for the team from 1973 to 1982
Safet Sušić played for the team from 1977 to 1990
Dragan Stojković played from 1983 until breakup of Yugoslavia
Dejan Savićević played for the team from 1986 until breakup of Yugoslavia
- Forwards
Rajko Mitić scored 32 goals on 59 matches between 1946 and 1957
Stjepan Bobek is top goal scorer in the team's history with 38 goals
Bora Kostić scored 26 goals on 33 matches between 1956 and 1964
Milan Galić scored 37 goals on 51 matches between 1959 and 1965
Josip Skoblar, 1971 European Golden Shoe, winner scored 11 goals on 32 matches
Dušan Bajević scored 29 goals on 37 matches between 1970 and 1977
Darko Pančev, 1991 European Golden Shoe winner, played for the team from 1984 until breakup of Yugoslavia
Head-to-head record
Positive Record Neutral Record Negative Record
| Opponents | Pld | W | D | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Algeria | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Argentina | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Australia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Austria | 17 | 8 | 4 | 5 |
| Belgium | 11 | 5 | 2 | 4 |
| Bolivia | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Brazil | 14 | 2 | 6 | 6 |
| Bulgaria | 28 | 17 | 5 | 6 |
| Chile | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| China | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Colombia | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Cyprus | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Czechoslovakia | 31 | 9 | 4 | 18 |
| Denmark | 9 | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| East Germany | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Ecuador | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Egypt | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| England | 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
| Ethiopia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Faroe Islands | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Finland | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| France | 25 | 10 | 7 | 8 |
| Great Britain | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Greece | 20 | 16 | 2 | 2 |
| Honduras | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Hong Kong | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Hungary | 29 | 5 | 9 | 15 |
| India | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Indonesia | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Iran | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Israel | 9 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| Italy | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
| Japan | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Luxembourg | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| Mexico | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Morocco | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Netherlands | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| Northern Ireland | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| Norway | 12 | 9 | 1 | 2 |
| Paraguay | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Poland | 19 | 6 | 4 | 9 |
| Portugal | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Republic of Ireland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Romania | 40 | 17 | 5 | 18 |
| Saar | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Scotland | 8 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| South Korea | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Soviet Union | 17 | 2 | 4 | 11 |
| Spain | 16 | 5 | 4 | 7 |
| Sweden | 11 | 5 | 2 | 4 |
| Switzerland | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| Tunisia | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Turkey | 11 | 7 | 3 | 1 |
| United Arab Emirates | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| United States | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Venezuela | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Wales | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| West Germany | 25 | 8 | 3 | 14 |
| Zaire | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Head coaches
See also
- List of Yugoslavia international footballers
- List of Yugoslavia national football team goalscorers
- Yugoslavia national football team results (1920–41)
- Yugoslavia national football team results (1946–69)
- Yugoslavia national football team results (1970–92)
- Yugoslavia national under-21 football team
- Yugoslavia national under-20 football team
Teams from successor states
- Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team (member of UEFA and FIFA since 1990s)
- Croatia national football team (member of UEFA and FIFA since 1990s)
- Slovenia national football team (member of UEFA and FIFA since 1990s)
- North Macedonia national football team (member of UEFA and FIFA since 1990s)
- Serbia and Montenegro national football team (considered successor of Yugoslavia by UEFA and FIFA), later:
- Montenegro national football team (member of UEFA and FIFA since 2006)
- Serbia national football team (considered successor of Serbia and Montenegro, as Serbia since 2008)
- Kosovo national football team (member of UEFA and FIFA since 2016)
Notes
- ^ a b c As of 1992 before the split of SFR Yugoslavia; for later data see FR Yugoslavia national football team.
- ^ Serbian: Фудбалска репрезентација Југославије, Fudbalska reprezentacija Jugoslavije; Croatian: Jugoslavenska nogometna reprezentacija; Slovene: Jugoslovanska nogometna reprezentanca; Macedonian: Фудбалска репрезентација на Југославија, romanized: Fudbalska reprezentacija na Jugoslavija
- ^ 1930 World Cup didn't feature a match for the third place. Retroactively, FIFA established rankings based on overall tournament record, placing Yugoslavia at the fourth place
- ^ Yugoslavia earned 4th place below the loser of the other semi-final, the United States, because of a lower goal difference (0 to the United States' +1). No third place match was played.
- ^ Suspended because of United Nations Security Council Resolution 757 during Yugoslav Wars. Yugoslavia was replaced by Denmark, who went on to win the tournament.
References
- ^ A farewell to Yugoslavia openDemocracy.net. Dejan Djokic; 10 April 2002
- ^ "Jugoslavija – Venecuela 10–0". Reprezentacija.rs (in Serbo-Croatian). 14 October 2009. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
- ^ . FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 14 April 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
- ^ History at Football Association of Serbia official website, Retrieved 17 May 2913 (in Serbian)
- ^ "90: 'The team was far better than the country' - The lost brilliance of Yugoslavia". 4 June 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ^ "S/RES/757(1992) - e - S/RES/757(1992) -Desktop".
- ^ "Yugoslavia and the breakup of its soccer team". Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ^ Merrill, Austin (2 June 2010). "The Splintering of Yugoslavia and Its Soccer Team". The Hive. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
- ^ History at FSS official website, Retrieved 4 October 2012 (in Serbian)
- ^ at FIFA official website
- ^ News: Serbia at UEFA official website, published 1 January 2011, Retrieved 4 October 2012
- ^ . FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
Bibliography
- Gigi Riva (2016). L'ultimo rigore di Faruk. Una storia di calcio e di guerra [The Faruk's last penalty. A story about football and war] (in Italian). Palermo: Sellerio. ISBN 978-8838935640.
External links
Media related to Yugoslavia national association football team at Wikimedia Commons
- RSSSF – Yugoslavia men's national football team international matches 1920–1992 (in English)
- RSSSF – Yugoslavia men's national football team international matches + Serbia and Montenegro and Serbia (in English)
- Yugoslavia national football team web page (in Serbian)