Finland national football team

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

The Finland national football team (Finnish: Suomen jalkapallomaajoukkue, Swedish: Finlands fotbollslandslag) represents Finland in men's international football competitions and is controlled by the Football Association of Finland, the governing body for football in Finland, which was founded in 1907. The team has been a member of FIFA since 1908 and a UEFA member since 1957.

Finland

Nickname(s)	Huuhkajat (The Eagle-owls)
Association	Football Association of Finland
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Markku Kanerva
Captain	Lukas Hradecky
Most caps	Jari Litmanen (137)
Top scorer	Teemu Pukki (42)
Home stadium	Helsinki Olympic Stadium
FIFA code	FIN
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	66 2 (24 October 2024)
Highest	33 (March 2007)
Lowest	110 (July–August 2017)
First international
Finland 2–5 Sweden (Helsinki, Finland; 22 October 1911) as Finland Sweden 1–0 Finland (Stockholm, Sweden; 29 May 1919)
Biggest win
Finland 10–2 Estonia (Helsinki, Finland; 11 August 1922) Finland 8–0 San Marino (Helsinki, Finland; 17 November 2010)
Biggest defeat
Germany 13–0 Finland (Leipzig, Germany; 1 September 1940)
European Championship
Appearances	1 (first in 2020)
Best result	Group stage (2020)
Olympic Games
Appearances	4 (first in 1912)
Best result	Fourth place (1912)
Baltic Cup
Appearances	2 (first in 2012)
Best result	Runners-up (2012)

Finland had never qualified for a major tournament until securing a spot at UEFA Euro 2020. After decades of average results and campaigns, the nation made progress in the 2000s, achieving notable results against established European teams and reaching a peak of 33rd in the FIFA World Rankings in 2007. Afterward, their performances and results declined, drawing them to their all-time low of 110th in the FIFA Rankings in 2017. Seven years after their all-time low in the FIFA Rankings, as of July 2024, they sit at 63rd place in the overall ranking.

History

Finland team playing a Moscow XI in Moscow 1912

Early history

The Football Association of Finland was founded in 1907 and became a member of FIFA the next year. At the time, Finland was an autonomous grand duchy ruled by the Russian Emperors. Finland played its first international on 22 October 1911, as Sweden beat the Finns at the Eläintarha Stadium in Helsinki. Finland participated the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, beating Italy and the Russian Empire, but losing the bronze medal match against the Netherlands.

Period of dispersion

The Finnish national team against Denmark in 1933

After the 1918 Civil War, the Finnish sports movement was divided into the right-wing Finnish Gymnastics and Sports Federation (SVUL) and the leftist Finnish Workers' Sports Federation (TUL), Finnish Football Association was a member of the SVUL. Both sides had their own championship series, and between 1919 and 1939 the Finland national team was selected of the Football Association players only. The Finnish Workers' Sports Federation football team in turn, participated in the competitions of the international labour movement.

However, since the late 1920s several top footballers defected from TUL and joined the Football Association to be eligible for the national team. During the 1930s, these ″defectors″ formed the spine of the national team. For example, the Finland squad at the 1936 Summer Olympics was composed of eight former TUL players. In 1937, Finland participated the FIFA World Cup qualification for the first time, losing all three matches against Sweden, Germany and Estonia.

Since 1939, TUL players were selected for the national team and finally, in 1956, the TUL and Football Association series were merged.

Post-war years

The 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki saw the Finnish hosts lose to Austria in the first round. Finland did, however, win the unofficial Nordic championship in 1964 and 1966.

Finland also took part in European Championship qualifying since the 1968 event, but had to wait for its first win until 1978.

Late 20th century

Finnish team after the victory over Yugoslavia in 1950

Finland against the Netherlands from 1975

Finland missed out on qualification for Euro 1980 by just a point and for the 1986 World Cup by two points. Finland was invited to take part in the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow after many Western countries announced they would boycott the games, but failed to progress from its group.

By the mid-1990s Finland started to have more players in high-profile European leagues, led by Ajax superstar Jari Litmanen. In 1996, Euro 1992-winning coach Richard Møller Nielsen was hired to take Finland to the 1998 World Cup. The team enjoyed mixed fortunes in the campaign, the high points of which were a draw and a win away to Norway and Switzerland respectively. Going into the last match, Finland would have needed a win at home to Hungary to earn a place in the play-offs. They led the game 1–0 going into injury time, but scored an own goal, and their qualification campaign was over. Møller Nielsen also tried to lead Finland to Euro 2000. In this campaign, the Finns recorded a sensational win away to Turkey, but couldn't compete with Germany and Turkey in the long run.

Jari Litmanen is widely regarded as Finland's greatest footballer of all time.

Antti Muurinen succeeded Møller Nielsen as coach in 2000. He had arguably the most talented group of Finnish players ever at his disposal, including players such as Antti Niemi, Sami Hyypiä, Teemu Tainio and Mikael Forssell in addition to the legendary Litmanen. The team also performed quite well under him in qualification for the 2002 World Cup despite a difficult draw, earning two draws against Germany and a home draw with England as well as beating Greece 5–1 in Helsinki. In the end, however, England and Germany proved too strong, and the Finns finished third in the group, but were the only team in that group not to lose at home. Hopes were high going into qualification for Euro 2004 after the promising last campaign and friendly wins over the likes of Norway, Belgium and Portugal (which seen the Finns jump from 40th to 30th in the Elo ranking). However, Finland started the campaign by losing to Wales and Yugoslavia (later Serbia and Montenegro, now two separate nations). These losses were followed by two defeats by Italy, and a 3–0 home win over Serbia and Montenegro was little consolation, as the Finns finished fourth in the group. In qualification for the 2006 World Cup Finland failed to score a single point in six matches against the top three teams in their group, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Romania. Muurinen was sacked in June 2005, and he was replaced by caretaker Jyrki Heliskoski, but results didn't improve.

Recent history

Markku Kanerva managed to lead his Finnish national team to first time qualification to a UEFA European Tournament.

In August 2005, it was announced that Englishman Roy Hodgson would become the new Finland coach in 2006, and he started the job in January of that year. Hodgson stepped down as manager after they failed to qualify for Euro 2008.

Hodgson's replacement was a Scotsman, Stuart Baxter, who signed a contract until the end of the 2012 European Championship qualification campaign. In the Euro 2008 qualifying Finland needed to win their last qualifying game away to Portugal to qualify for their first major football tournament. However, the match ended 0–0 meaning the team missed out on qualification to the tournament, with Finland ending the group stage with 24 points and Portugal with 27 points. However, the performance in qualifying led to the Finns gaining their best-ever FIFA world ranking to date at 33rd.

The 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign under new head coach Stuart Baxter saw Finland again finish third in their group with five wins, three draws and two defeats. They were the only team in qualifying not to lose to eventual 3rd-place finishers Germany; in both the home and away matches Finland had led Germany only to concede late equalizers.

Mixu Paatelainen era (2011–2015)

During the Euro 2012 qualifying, head coach Baxter was sacked, and on 31 March 2011 he was replaced by former national team player Mixu Paatelainen. Paatelainen started his tenure with a win against San Marino, only to be followed by a 5–0 loss against Sweden. Finland eventually finished fourth in its group with only three wins, two of them against San Marino.

Paatelainen's deal with the Finnish FA extended until 2016, covering the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifiers, and also the next 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification and the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers. As Finland was already eliminated from UEFA Euro 2012, his main task was to renew the national team with a generation switch, and try to qualify for one or more of the tournaments during his projected tenure as Finland's head coach. This included ultimately leaving out Jari Litmanen, team's long-served captain and "The King of Finnish Football".

In the 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign, Finland's best result was a 1–1 draw at reigning world champions Spain. They finished third in the five-team Group I, behind Spain and France. On 14 June 2015, Paatelainen was sacked following his fourth defeat in a row during the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign. Finland eventually finished fourth in Euro 2016 qualifying under guidance of a caretaker manager Markku Kanerva. They achieved a somewhat noteworthy result; Joel Pohjanpalo's goal gave the Finns a 1–0 win at former European champions Greece, who had reached the second round of the 2014 World Cup and were the top seeds of their qualifying group.

Paatelainen had stucked with his preferred formation of 4–3–2–1, which he had named joulukuusi – a Christmas tree – due to its shape. With the bad results while insistently using the same formation, and his defensive statements to media, he gained a negative reputation among the supporters and the media, and his time as the national team head coach is still remembered mainly for joulukuusi.

Hans Backe (2016)

On 12 August 2015, Swedish Hans Backe was named the new manager, starting on 1 January 2016. His first official match with the team was held on 10 January 2016, and ended in a 3–0 defeat by Sweden. On 12 December 2016, Backe was fired during the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign, and a former assistant and caretaker Markku Kanerva was named the new head coach. Finland did not win a single game during Backe's time as head coach. His record during 2016 was nine defeats and two draws.

Markku Kanerva era (2016–present)

Finland's peak of 33rd in the FIFA ranking in 2007, had demoted to 110th as of 2017. As UEFA created a new competition, UEFA Nations League, to largely replace international friendlies, Finland were placed in the League C in the first 2018–19 edition due to a low ranking place. Kanerva had renewed the roster, as veterans including Perparim Hetemaj, Niklas Moisander and Alexander Ring, had announced their retirement from international duty. Roman Eremenko was also not available for national team anymore due to a competition ban. With a help of goalscoring by Teemu Pukki and saves by captain goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky, Finland won their League C Group 2, on top of Hungary, Greece and Estonia, and won a promotion to League B for the next edition of UEFA Nations League.

Kanerva continued to get outstanding results with the team in the UEFA Euro 2020 qualification, and on 15 November 2019, Finland qualified to the country's first ever major tournament, UEFA Euro 2020, after defeating Liechtenstein 3–0, and finishing as the Group J runner-up behind Italy. The successful qualifying campaign was aided by a distinctive performance of Teemu Pukki, who scored ten goals in ten qualifying matches. However, the final tournament was postponed to the summer 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Later in the Autumn 2020, the second edition of UEFA Nations League started, and Finland was drawn in the Group 4 with Wales, Ireland and Bulgaria. They defeated both Ireland and Bulgaria home and away, but lost both games against Wales and finished 2nd in the group and missed the promotion to next season's League A.

On 12 June 2021 in the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament, Finland had their first victory on their debut in a major tournament finals against Denmark. Joel Pohjanpalo scored the only goal, a header in a 1–0 win to grant his country their first goal and the first win in a major competition. The game was interrupted by a tragic heart attack suffered by Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen, which he luckily survived. Unfortunately, having lost the next two games against both Russia and Belgium, Finland finished third in the group and was knocked out at the group stage alongside fellow debutants North Macedonia.

Finland failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, even though Pukki continued with his scoring streak with 6 goals in the qualifiers. They were drawn in the Group D, with France, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kazakhstan, finished 3rd and missed the second round qualification play-offs. The long-served defenders Jukka Raitala, Paulus Arajuuri and Joona Toivio announced their retirement from international football after the qualifiers.

Having secured their spot in the Nations League B, Finland was drawn in the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League B Group 3 with Bosnia, Romania and Montenegro. They had a mediocre record of two wins, two draws and two losses, and defended their place in the League B again as the group's runners-up, falling behind the group winner Bosnia and Herzegovina.

After the successful qualifying to previous European tournament, the team and the country had high hopes when starting the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying campaign. Finland started expectedly with an away loss to Denmark, but won the next three games in a row against Northern Ireland away in March, and Slovenia and San Marino at home in June, with zero conceded goals in these three games. They continued with an away win against Kazakhstan in September, but lost the next three games against Denmark at home, Slovenia away and Kazakhstan at home. The loss to Kazakhstan occurred with two conceded goals late in the game after Finland was already leading 1–0 before. The defeat also took away the possibility for direct qualifying. Finland ended the qualifying campaign with two wins in the last two matches, including 4–0 victory over Northern Ireland at home in November, and finished third in the group. As having placed among the best runner-ups in the previous Nations League, and with a help of overlapping results in other games, Finland had secured their place in the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying play-offs. In March 2024, in the first decisive play-off match against Wales away, Finland were destroyed 4–1 and were definitely left out of the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament.

After a run of mediocre results and the lack of reaching out the best potential out of the team, the speculations had started about the extension of Kanerva's contract as his previous deal was going to expire soon. However, during Kanerva's seven-year spell, Finland had ascended in FIFA rankings and as of Summer 2024, were sitting at the 63rd place. During the recent years, the national team roster had undergone a relatively large renovation by Kanerva. He had successfully called-up new younger generation players to the roster, including Kaan Kairinen, Benjamin Källman, Oliver Antman, Daniel Håkans and Matti Peltola.

On 17 June 2024, after some ambiguous comments by the Finnish FA president Ari Lahti, it was announced by the FA that Markku Kanerva will continue as the manager of the team until the end of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification and for the possible final tournament. The assistant coaches Mika Nurmela and Toni Korkeakunnas would be replaced by Jani Honkavaara, and by former long-time national team players Teemu Tainio and Tim Sparv. Kanerva, with his new staff, was first set to start preparing the team for the upcoming 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B, where Finland would face England, Ireland and Greece in the Group 2, starting in September. Finland lost both games against Greece and England away with apathetic performances, which signaled outside that Kanerva had a very little more to give for this team anymore. According to Helsingin Sanomat, Kanerva is only a puppet leader of the national team until the 2024 Veikkausliiga season is finished and then a current assistant coach Jani Honkavaara, also a current manager of Veikkausliiga club KuPS, can be named a sole head coach of the national team. There is also a conflict of interest of Finnish FA president Ari Lahti, who happens to be also the owner of KuPS.

Home stadiums

Helsinki Central Station lantern carriers dressed in national colours during the 2020 European Championships in 2021

Finnish national team supporters at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium in 2009

Most of Finland's home matches are played at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium in the capital, Helsinki. It has been Finland's principal home stadium ever since its construction was completed in 1938. Before that, Pallokenttä in Helsinki was mainly used.

During 2000s and 2010s, some qualifying matches against lower profile opponents and some friendlies were hosted at the Tampere Stadium in Tampere, and Veritas Stadion in Turku. Helsinki's Bolt Arena, which has artificial turf, is also used for some friendlies and qualifiers. During the reconstruction of Helsinki Olympic Stadium between 2016 and 2020, Tampere Stadium served as the main stadium for qualifying games.

The team returned permanently to Helsinki Olympic Stadium in 2020, after the delayed reconstruction and renovation was finished, but had to play some of the first games without an audience due to pandemic.

In the five home matches during the UEFA Euro 2024 qualification campaign, Huuhkajat had the record audience average of 31,406 (157,029 in total), which corresponds to around 97 per cent of the stadium's full capacity.

Kits and crest

Finland's home kit worn at UEFA Euro 2020

Finland's kit are currently supplied by American brand Nike. They replaced German company Adidas, who supplied Finland's kits between 1979 and 2013.

Kit sponsorship

Kit supplier	Period
Adidas	1979–2013
Nike	2014–present

Results and fixtures

Main article: Finland 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

2023

Finland v Northern Ireland

17 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	Finland	4–0	Northern Ireland	Helsinki, Finland
19:00 UTC+2	Pohjanpalo 42' (pen.) Håkans 48' Pukki 73' Lod 88'	Report		Stadium: Helsinki Olympic Stadium Attendance: 28,711 Referee: Aliyar Aghayev (Azerbaijan)

San Marino v Finland

20 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying	San Marino	1–2	Finland	Serravalle, San Marino
20:45 UTC+1	Berardi 90+7' (pen.)	Report	Soiri 50', 58'	Stadium: Stadio Olimpico de Serravalle Attendance: 1,427 Referee: Manfredas Lukjančukas (Lithuania)

2024

Wales v Finland

21 March 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying play-offs	Wales	4–1	Finland	Cardiff, Wales
20:45	Brooks 3' Williams 38' Johnson 47' D. James 86'	Report	Pukki 45'	Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium Attendance: 32,162 Referee: István Kovács (Romania)

Finland v Estonia

26 March 2024 Friendly	Finland	2–1	Estonia	Helsinki, Finland
17:00	F. Jensen 30' Hein 38' (o.g.)	Report	Tamm 62'	Stadium: Helsinki Olympic Stadium Attendance: 12,559 Referee: Mads Kristoffersen (Denmark)

Portugal v Finland

4 June 2024 Friendly	Portugal	4–2	Finland	Lisbon, Portugal
19:45 UTC+1	Dias 17' Jota 45+4' (pen.) Fernandes 55' 84'	Report	Pukki 73' 77'	Stadium: Estádio José Alvalade Attendance: 43,125 Referee: Christian-Petru Ciochirca (Austria)

Scotland v Finland

7 June 2024 Friendly	Scotland	2–2	Finland	Glasgow, Scotland
19:45 UTC+1	Hoskonen 54' (o.g.) Shankland 58'	Report	Källman 72' Antman 85' (pen.)	Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 40,519 Referee: Łukasz Kuźma (Poland)

Greece v Finland

7 September 2024 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B Group 2	Greece	3–0	Finland	Athens, Greece
20:45 UTC+3	Ioannidis 23' 76' Källman 37' (o.g.)	Report		Stadium: Agia Sophia Stadium Attendance: 17,293 Referee: Urs Schnyder (Switzerland)

England v Finland

10 September 2024 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B Group 2	England	2–0	Finland	London, England
19:45 UTC+1	Kane 57' 76'	Report		Stadium: Wembley Stadium Attendance: 70,221 Referee: Morten Krøgh (Denmark)

Finland v Republic of Ireland

10 October 2024 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B Group 2	Finland	1–2	Republic of Ireland	Helsinki, Finland
19:45 UTC+1	Pohjanpalo 17'	Report	Scales 57' Brady 88'	Stadium: Helsinki Olympic Stadium Attendance: 16,105 Referee: Aleksandar Stavrev (North Macedonia)

Finland v England

13 October 2024 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B Group 2	Finland	1–3	England	Helsinki, Finland
19:00	Hoskonen 87'	Report	Grealish 18' Alexander-Arnold 74' Rice 84'	Stadium: Helsinki Olympic Stadium Attendance: 32,411 Referee: Giorgi Kruashvili (Georgia)

Republic of Ireland v Finland

14 November 2024 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B Group 2	Republic of Ireland	v	Finland	Dublin, Ireland
19:45 UTC+0		Report		Stadium: Aviva Stadium

Finland v Greece

17 November 2024 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B Group 2	Finland	v	Greece	Helsinki, Finland
19:00		Report		Stadium: Helsinki Olympic Stadium

Coaching staff

Position	Name
Head coach	Markku Kanerva
Assistant coach	Jani Honkavaara
	Tim Sparv
	Teemu Tainio
Goalkeeping coach	Antti Niemi
Fitness coach	Jari-Pekka Keurulainen
	Joni Ruuskanen
Doctor	Heikki Kinnunen
Kit manager	Sami Miettinen
Team manager	Joonas Vilkki
Press officer	Timo Walden

Coaching history

As of 7 June 2024.

Tenure	Nat	Coach	Record
G	W	D	L	Win %
1911–21		None	17	6	2	9	035.29
1922		Jarl Öhman	4	1	0	3	025.00
1923–35		None	77	22	12	43	028.57
1936–37		Ferdinand Fabra	8	1	1	6	012.50
1937–38		None	9	3	0	6	033.33
1939		Gábor Obitz	6	1	0	5	016.67
1939–43		None	7	0	1	6	000.00
1945		Axel Mårtensson	2	0	0	2	000.00
1946		Niilo Tammisalo	3	0	0	3	000.00
1947–55		Aatos Lehtonen	51	7	9	35	013.73
1955–58		Kurt Weinreich	23	3	1	19	013.04
1959–61		Aatos Lehtonen	19	3	0	16	015.79
1962–74		Olavi Laaksonen	91	16	21	54	017.58
1975		Martti Kosma	2	0	1	1	000.00
1975–78		Aulis Rytkönen	30	8	4	18	026.67
1979–81		Esko Malm	27	4	6	17	014.81
1982–87		Martti Kuusela	53	9	11	33	016.98
1988–92		Jukka Vakkila	48	7	21	20	014.58
1993–94		Tommy Lindholm	25	5	7	13	020.00
1994–96		Jukka Ikäläinen	21	7	4	10	033.33
1996–99		Richard Møller Nielsen	34	9	12	13	026.47
2000–05		Antti Muurinen	72	34	12	26	047.22
2005		Jyrki Heliskoski (caretaker)	6	2	2	2	033.33
2006–07		Roy Hodgson	22	6	11	5	027.27
2008–10		Stuart Baxter	31	8	6	17	025.81
2010–2011		Olli Huttunen (caretaker)	1	1	0	0	100.00
2011		Markku Kanerva (caretaker)	2	0	1	1	000.00
2011–2015		Mixu Paatelainen	45	17	11	17	037.78
2015		Markku Kanerva (caretaker)	4	2	2	0	050.00
2016		Hasse Backe	11	0	2	9	000.00
2016–		Markku Kanerva	83	36	14	33	043.37
Total			804	203	168	433	025.25

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for UEFA Nations League matches against Republic of Ireland and England on 10 and 13 October 2024, respectively.

Caps and goals as of 13 October 2024, after the match against England.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Lukas Hradecky (captain)	(1989-11-24) 24 November 1989	96	0	Bayer Leverkusen
12	1GK	Jesse Joronen	(1993-03-21) 21 March 1993	19	0	Venezia
23	1GK	Viljami Sinisalo	(2001-10-11) 11 October 2001	3	0	Celtic
2	2DF	Tomas Galvez	(2005-01-28) 28 January 2005	5	0	LASK
4	2DF	Robert Ivanov	(1994-09-19) 19 September 1994	33	0	Eintracht Braunschweig
5	2DF	Arttu Hoskonen	(1997-04-16) 16 April 1997	15	1	Cracovia
13	2DF	Adam Ståhl	(1994-10-08) 8 October 1994	3	0	Djurgården
14	2DF	Juhani Pikkarainen	(1998-07-30) 30 July 1998	0	0	Ilves
15	2DF	Miro Tenho	(1995-04-02) 2 April 1995	4	0	Djurgården
17	2DF	Nikolai Alho	(1993-03-12) 12 March 1993	38	0	Asteras Tripolis
18	2DF	Jere Uronen	(1994-07-13) 13 July 1994	69	1	Charlotte FC
	2DF	Ilmari Niskanen	(1997-10-12) 12 October 1997	21	1	Exeter City
3	3MF	Matti Peltola	(2002-07-03) 3 July 2002	13	0	D.C. United
6	3MF	Glen Kamara	(1995-10-28) 28 October 1995	63	2	Rennes
11	3MF	Rasmus Schüller (3rd captain)	(1991-06-18) 18 June 1991	79	0	Djurgården
16	3MF	Urho Nissilä	(1996-04-04) 4 April 1996	14	0	Puskás Akadémia
22	3MF	Leo Walta	(2003-06-24) 24 June 2003	6	0	Sirius
	3MF	Anssi Suhonen	(2001-01-14) 14 January 2001	8	0	Hamburger SV
7	4FW	Oliver Antman	(2001-08-15) 15 August 2001	16	6	Go Ahead Eagles
8	4FW	Robin Lod	(1993-04-17) 17 April 1993	72	6	Minnesota United
9	4FW	Fredrik Jensen	(1997-09-09) 9 September 1997	33	8	FC Augsburg
10	4FW	Teemu Pukki (vice-captain)	(1990-03-29) 29 March 1990	125	42	Minnesota United
19	4FW	Benjamin Källman	(1998-06-17) 17 June 1998	25	7	Cracovia
20	4FW	Joel Pohjanpalo	(1994-09-13) 13 September 1994	75	16	Venezia
21	4FW	Topi Keskinen	(2003-03-07) 7 March 2003	4	0	Aberdeen

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team within the last twelve months and are still available for selection.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Hugo Keto	(1998-02-09) 9 February 1998	0	0	Sandefjord	v. San Marino, 20 November 2023
DF	Tuomas Ollila	(2000-04-25) 25 April 2000	3	0	Paris FC	v. England, 10 September 2024
DF	Leo Väisänen	(1997-07-24) 24 July 1997	27	0	Austin FC	v. England, 10 September 2024
DF	Richard Jensen	(1996-03-17) 17 March 1996	14	0	Vejle	v. Scotland, 7 June 2024
DF	Pyry Soiri	(1994-09-22) 22 September 1994	45	7	Athens Kallithea	v. Scotland, 7 June 2024
DF	Noah Pallas	(2001-02-09) 9 February 2001	3	0	HJK	v. San Marino, 20 November 2023
DF	Diogo Tomas	(1997-07-31) 31 July 1997	4	0	ADO Den Haag	v. Kazakhstan, 17 October 2023
MF	Kaan Kairinen	(1998-12-22) 22 December 1998	17	0	Sparta Prague	v. Republic of Ireland, 10 October 2024 INJ
MF	Niilo Mäenpää	(1998-01-14) 14 January 1998	4	0	Halmstad	v. Scotland, 7 June 2024
MF	Robert Taylor	(1994-10-21) 21 October 1994	34	2	Inter Miami	v. Wales, 21 March 2024 WD
MF	Lucas Lingman	(1998-01-25) 25 January 1998	11	0	HJK	v. San Marino, 20 November 2023
FW	Santeri Haarala	(1999-12-17) 17 December 1999	0	0	Djurgården	v. England, 10 September 2024
FW	Daniel Håkans	(2000-10-26) 26 October 2000	8	4	Lech Poznań	v. Greece, 7 September 2024 INJ
FW	Juho Talvitie	(2005-03-25) 25 March 2005	2	0	Heracles Almelo	v. Scotland, 7 June 2024
FW	Casper Terho	(2003-06-24) 24 June 2003	2	0	Union SG	v. Scotland, 7 June 2024
FW	Marcus Forss	(1999-06-18) 18 June 1999	21	2	Middlesbrough	v. Wales, 21 March 2024 INJ
Notes INJ = Withdrew due to an injury WD = Withdrew due to a non-injury issue PRE = Preliminary squad / standby RET = Retired from international duty

Player records

As of 13 October 2024.

  Players still active are highlighted in blue

Most appearances

Jari Litmanen is Finland's most capped player with 137 appearances.

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Jari Litmanen	137	32	1989–2010
2	Teemu Pukki	125	42	2009–present
3	Jonatan Johansson	106	22	1996–2010
4	Sami Hyypiä	105	5	1992–2010
5	Ari Hjelm	100	20	1983–1996
6	Joonas Kolkka	98	11	1994–2010
7	Lukas Hradecky	96	0	2010–present
8	Mikael Forssell	87	29	1999–2014
9	Erkka Petäjä	84	0	1983–1994
	Tim Sparv	84	1	2009–2021

Top goalscorers

Teemu Pukki is Finland's top scorer with 42 goals.

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Teemu Pukki	42	125	0.34	2009–present
2	Jari Litmanen	32	137	0.23	1989–2010
3	Mikael Forssell	29	87	0.33	1999–2014
4	Jonatan Johansson	22	106	0.21	1996–2010
5	Ari Hjelm	20	100	0.2	1983–1996
6	Mixu Paatelainen	18	70	0.26	1986–2000
7	Verner Eklöf	17	32	0.53	1919–1927
8	Aulis Koponen	16	39	0.41	1924–1935
	Gunnar Åström	16	44	0.36	1923–1937
	Joel Pohjanpalo	16	75	0.21	2012–present

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA		Campaign	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930	Did not enter									Declined invitation
1934										Did not enter
1938	Did not qualify									1938	3	0	0	3	0	7
1950	Withdrew during qualifying									1950	2	0	1	1	1	4
1954	Did not qualify									1954	4	0	2	2	7	13
1958										1958	4	0	0	4	2	19
1962										1962	4	0	0	4	3	12
1966										1966	6	1	0	5	5	20
1970										1970	6	1	0	5	6	28
1974										1974	6	1	1	4	3	21
1978										1978	6	2	0	4	11	16
1982										1982	8	1	0	7	4	27
1986										1986	8	3	2	3	7	12
1990										1990	6	1	1	4	4	16
1994										1994	10	2	1	7	9	18
1998										1998	8	3	2	3	11	12
2002										2002	8	3	3	2	12	7
2006										2006	12	5	1	6	21	19
2010										2010	10	5	3	2	14	14
2014										2014	8	2	3	3	5	9
2018										2018	10	2	3	5	9	13
2022										2022	8	3	2	3	10	10
2026	To be determined									To be determined
2030
2034
Total		0/22									137	35	25	77	144	297

UEFA European Championship

Main article: Finland at the UEFA European Championship

UEFA European Championship record											Qualifying record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		Campaign	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1960	Did not enter										Did not enter
1964
1968	Did not qualify										1968	6	0	2	4	5	12
1972											1972	6	0	1	5	1	16
1976											1976	6	0	1	5	3	13
1980											1980	6	2	2	2	10	15
1984											1984	6	0	1	5	3	14
1988											1988	6	1	1	4	4	10
1992											1992	8	1	4	3	5	8
1996											1996	10	5	0	5	18	18
2000											2000	8	3	1	4	13	13
2004											2004	8	3	1	4	9	10
2008											2008	14	6	6	2	13	7
2012											2012	10	3	1	6	16	16
2016											2016	10	3	3	4	9	10
2020	Group stage	17th	3	1	0	2	1	3	Squad		2020	10	6	0	4	16	10
2024	Did not qualify										2024 (PO)	11	6	0	5	19	14
2028	To be determined										To be determined
2032
Total	Group stage	1/17	3	1	0	2	1	3	—		—	125	39	24	62	144	186

UEFA Nations League

UEFA Nations League record
Season	Division	Group	Pos	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	P/R	RK
2018–19	C	2	1st	6	4	0	2	5	3		28th
2020–21	B	4	2nd	6	4	0	2	7	5		21st
2022–23	B	3	2nd	6	2	2	2	8	6		21st
2024–25	B	2	To be determined
Total				18	10	2	6	20	14	21st

Olympic Games

Olympic Games record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
As Grand Duchy of Finland
1896	No football tournament was held
1900	Did not enter
1904
1908
1912	Fourth place	4th	4	2	0	2	5	16	Squad
Since 1917, Declaration of Independence
1920	Did not enter
1924
1928
1932	No football tournament was held
1936	Round of 16	14th	1	0	0	1	3	7	Squad
1948	Did not enter
1952	Round of 16	9th	1	0	0	1	3	4	Squad
1956	Did not enter
1960	Did not qualify
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980	Group stage	9th	3	1	1	1	3	2	Squad
1984	Did not qualify
1988
Since 1992	Olympic football has been an under-23 tournament
Total	Fourth place	4/17	9	3	1	5	14	29	—

Nordic Football Championship

Nordic Football Championship record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1929–32	Fourth place	4th	12	2	2	8	23	52
1933–36			12	3	1	8	18	36
1937–47			12	1	1	10	12	51
1948–51			12	1	3	8	11	28
1952–55			12	1	1	10	13	53
1956–59			12	0	1	11	8	44
1960–63			12	2	2	8	14	37
1964–67	Third place	3rd	12	5	2	5	14	17
1968–71	Fourth place	4th	12	0	4	8	10	31
1972–77			12	1	4	7	10	26
1978–80			6	1	4	7	10	26
1981–85			6	1	1	4	7	11
2000–01	Champions	1st	5	4	0	1	7	3
Total	1 Title	13/14	137	21	24	92	150	401

Baltic Cup

Baltic Cup record
Year	Result	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
2012	Runners-up	2	1	1	0	3	2
2014	Third place	2	1	0	1	2	1
Total		4	2	1	1	5	3

Head-to-head record

This list is Finland national team complete records, both friendlies and competitive matches.

As of 13 October 2024.

Opponent	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
All Nations	782	207	158	417	925	1,627	−702	026.47

Against	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	GF	GA	GD	% Won
Albania	7	4	1	2	8	6	+2	057.14
Algeria	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	000.00
Andorra	2	1	1	0	3	0	+3	050.00
Armenia	6	5	1	0	11	1	+10	083.33
Austria	11	1	2	8	11	24	−13	009.09
Azerbaijan	8	7	0	1	15	5	+10	087.50
Bahrain	5	4	1	0	9	1	+8	080.00
Barbados	1	0	1	0	0	0	+0	000.00
Belarus	5	2	3	0	7	4	+3	040.00
Belgium	12	4	4	4	19	22	−3	033.33
Bermuda	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	100.00
Bolivia	2	0	1	1	2	5	−3	000.00
Bosnia and Herzegovina	7	2	2	3	11	12	−1	028.57
Brazil	3	0	0	3	3	9	−6	000.00
Bulgaria	10	2	1	7	3	19	−16	020.00
Cameroon	2	0	1	1	0	2	−2	000.00
Canada	1	1	0	0	3	2	+1	100.00
Chile	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	000.00
China	4	1	0	3	7	6	+1	025.00
Colombia	1	0	0	1	1	3	−2	000.00
Costa Rica	1	0	0	1	1	2	−1	000.00
Croatia	2	0	1	1	1	2	−1	000.00
Cyprus	4	2	1	1	7	4	+3	050.00
Czech Republic	11	3	3	5	14	22	−8	027.27
Denmark	62	12	10	40	62	155	−93	019.35
East Germany	7	2	1	4	8	21	−13	028.57
Ecuador	1	0	0	1	1	3	−2	000.00
Egypt	2	0	0	2	2	4	−2	000.00
England	15	0	2	13	8	49	−41	000.00
Estonia	34	16	10	8	76	42	+34	047.06
Faroe Islands	5	5	0	0	15	1	+14	100.00
France	11	1	0	10	3	22	−19	009.09
Georgia	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	050.00
Germany	23	1	6	16	19	82	−63	004.35
Greece	19	6	3	10	22	32	−10	031.58
Honduras	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Hungary	17	3	3	11	15	48	−33	017.65
Iceland	14	7	3	4	21	15	+6	050.00
India	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2	050.00
Indonesia	1	0	0	1	1	3	−2	000.00
Iraq	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3	100.00
Ireland	8	2	2	4	5	13	−8	025.00
Israel	5	2	1	2	6	6	+0	040.00
Italy	13	1	1	11	7	32	−25	007.69
Japan	2	0	0	2	1	7	−6	000.00
Jordan	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Kazakhstan	7	5	1	1	9	3	+6	071.43
Kosovo	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	050.00
Kuwait	7	3	2	2	6	5	+1	042.86
Latvia	17	10	3	4	32	18	+14	058.82
Liechtenstein	5	3	2	0	9	3	+6	060.00
Lithuania	5	3	0	2	15	5	+10	060.00
Luxembourg	5	4	0	1	12	4	+8	080.00
Malaysia	1	0	0	1	1	2	−1	000.00
Malta	7	4	2	1	9	5	+4	057.14
Mexico	4	0	1	3	2	7	−5	000.00
Moldova	4	2	1	1	7	5	+2	050.00
Montenegro	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4	100.00
Morocco	2	1	1	0	1	0	+1	050.00
Netherlands	14	1	2	11	14	43	−29	007.14
North Korea	1	1	0	0	3	0	+3	100.00
North Macedonia	7	3	3	1	12	3	+9	042.86
Northern Ireland	11	5	2	4	18	12	+6	045.45
Norway	67	9	17	41	82	182	−100	013.43
Oman	6	3	3	0	7	2	+5	050.00
Peru	1	0	0	1	3	7	−4	000.00
Poland	29	3	8	18	25	67	−42	010.34
Portugal	11	1	4	6	8	18	−10	009.09
Qatar	4	1	3	0	4	3	+1	025.00
Romania	13	0	5	8	6	29	−23	000.00
Russia	21	1	5	15	13	67	−54	004.76
San Marino	6	6	0	0	23	1	+22	100.00
Saudi Arabia	4	2	1	1	7	4	+3	050.00
Scotland	9	0	3	6	7	20	−13	000.00
Serbia	10	2	2	6	10	32	−22	020.00
Slovakia	3	0	1	2	1	4	−3	000.00
Slovenia	4	2	1	1	5	4	+1	050.00
South Korea	3	0	0	3	0	5	−5	000.00
Spain	8	1	2	5	5	16	−11	012.50
Sweden	90	11	11	68	96	296	−200	012.22
Switzerland	6	2	0	4	7	10	−3	033.33
Thailand	5	1	1	3	6	12	−6	020.00
Trinidad and Tobago	5	3	1	1	8	7	+1	060.00
Tunisia	3	2	1	0	6	2	+4	066.67
Turkey	15	6	4	5	22	24	−2	040.00
United Arab Emirates	1	0	1	0	1	1	+0	000.00
Ukraine	4	0	1	3	3	6	−3	000.00
United States	2	0	0	2	1	3	−2	000.00
Uruguay	2	0	0	2	1	8	−7	000.00
Wales	14	4	5	5	13	21	−8	028.57
Yemen	1	0	1	0	0	0	+0	000.00
Total	782	203	159	420	919	1,633	−714	025.96

Honours

Regional

• Baltic Cup
  • Runners-up (1): 2012
  • Third-place (1): 2014
• Nordic Football Championship
  • Champions (1): 2000–01

Friendly

• King's Cup
  • Runners-up (2): 2000, 2013
• Cyprus International Football Tournament
  • Champions (1): 2005

See also

• Finland men's national under-21 football team
• Finland men's national under-19 football team
• Finland men's national under-18 football team
• Finland men's national under-17 football team
• Finland men's national under-16 football team
• Finland women's national football team
• Finland women's national under-20 football team
• Finland women's national under-17 football team
• Football in Finland
• Finnish "Workers" football team
• Åland official football team
• Sápmi football team

External links

• Official website (in Finnish)
• Finland at FIFA
• Finland at UEFA
• RSSSF archive of results 1911–present
• RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers
• RSSSF archive of coaches
• The Finnish National Team Supporters' Association
• Reports for all official matches
• Russian fan site about Finnish football and national team Archived 7 October 2022 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian)