The Greece national football team ( el, Εθνική Ελλάδας, ) represents
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
in men's international
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
matches and is controlled by the
Hellenic Football Federation
The Hellenic Football Federation (HFF), also known as the Greek Football Federation ( el, Ελληνική Ποδοσφαιρική Ομοσπονδία; ΕΠΟ, translit=Ellinikí Podosferikí Omospondía; EPO) is the governing body of associat ...
, the governing body for
football in Greece
Football is the most popular sport in Greece, followed by basketball.
History of Greek football
The Ancient Greeks are known to have played many ball games, some of which involved the use of the feet. The Roman game '' harpastum'' is believed ...
. Greece play most of their home matches in
Attica
Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Se ...
, either in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
at the
Olympic Stadium
''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games. An Olympic stadium is the site of the opening and closing ceremonies. Many, though not all, of these venues actually contain the words ''Olympic Stadium'' as ...
in the
Marousi section of the city or in the port city of
Piraeus
Piraeus ( ; el, Πειραιάς ; grc, Πειραιεύς ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens' city centre, along the east coast of the Saronic ...
at the
Karaiskakis Stadium
The Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium ( el, Στάδιο Γεώργιος Καραϊσκάκης), commonly referred to as the Karaiskakis Stadium ( el, Στάδιο Καραϊσκάκη, ), is a football stadium in Piraeus, Attica, Greece, and the ...
. Greece is one of only
ten national teams to have been crowned
UEFA European Champions.
Greece had a small presence in international football. From the 1980s they have experienced the first taste of, but not a banquet, of football achievement. Their first appearance in a major tournaments was at
UEFA Euro 1980
The 1980 UEFA European Football Championship finals tournament was held in Italy. This was the sixth UEFA European Championship, which is held every four years and endorsed by UEFA. It was the first European Championship to feature eight teams i ...
. They never made it through the group stage. Their qualification to the then eight-teams
tournaments
A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses:
# One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...
gave them a position in the top eight European football nations that year. Greece did not qualify for another major tournament until the
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States ...
and after an undefeated qualifying campaign, they produced a poor performance in the finals tournaments, losing all three group matches without scoring.
UEFA Euro 2004
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial association football, football competition contested by the List of men's national associatio ...
marked the highest point in Greece's football history when they were crowned
European Championship in only their second participation in the tournaments. Dismissed as rank outsiders before the tournaments, Greece defeated some of the favourites in the competition including defending European Championship
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and hosts
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
. During the tournaments, Greece defeated the hosts in both the
opening game of the tournaments and again in the
finals
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
. Their triumph earned them a place in the
2005 FIFA Confederations Cup.
In the decade after the 2004 victory, Greece qualified for the finals tournaments of all but one major competitions entered, reaching the
quarter-finals
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
at the
UEFA Euro 2012
The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
and the
round of 16
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
at the
2014 FIFA World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
. During that period, they occupied a place in the top 20 of the
FIFA World Rankings
The FIFA Men's World Ranking is a ranking system for men's national teams in association football, led by Brazil . The teams of the men's member nations of FIFA, football's world governing body, are ranked based on their game results with the ...
for all but four months, and reached an all-time high of eighth in the world from April to June 2008, as well as in October 2011.
History
First years
On 12 April 1896, a Greek XI represented by Podilatikos Syllogos Athinon lost to a
Denmark XI by either
9–0 or 15–0, at the
Neo Phaliron Velodrome
The Neo Phaliron Velodrome (New Phaleron) was a velodrome and sports arena in the Neo Faliro District of Piraeus, Greece, used for the cycling events at the Athens 1896 Summer Olympics.Quote from page 194/241: ''The bicycle match took place in th ...
in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
in a demonstration game during the
1896 Olympic Games.
The first three editions of the
Olympic football event (1900–06) had an unofficial status, as the event was not yet open for national football teams to compete, and only had limited participation of three or four club teams from a few nations. Greece had no club team invited in the
1900 Olympics and the
1904 Olympics, but then hosted the
1906 Olympics, competing against a Danish club team again (
DBU Copenhagen) and two club teams from the Ottoman Empire (
Smyrna
Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...
and
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
). The team to represent Greece compiled of players from
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, hence the Athens City selection, and in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
they conceded 9 goals from the Denmark XI in the first half alone, and thereby they withdrew from the final at half time, and were then invited to a play-off in a match to decide the second place, but Athens declined and were promptly ejected from the tournament.
Greece had to wait 13 years for their next (unofficial) appearance when they participated in the
Inter-Allied Games
The Inter-Allied Games was a one-off multi-sport event held from 22 June to 6 July 1919 at the newly constructed Pershing Stadium just outside Paris, France following the end of World War I. The host stadium had been built near the Bois de Vin ...
in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
in 1919, following the end of
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, and once again it was a disaster as the team conceded twenty goals without reply in their first two games, although this time with a silver lining since Greece managed to beat
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
in their third and final match with a dramatic 3–2 win. In the following year, Greece participated in the
1920 Summer Games of
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, , being knocked out in the first round by
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
with yet another heavy defeat (9–0). This match is recognized as their first official match by
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
. Notable figures during these years was
Giorgos Kalafatis
Giorgos Kalafatis ( el, Γιώργος Καλαφάτης; 17 March 1890 – 19 February 1964) was a Greek football pioneer, player, coach, track and field athlete and the founder of Panathinaikos Athens multi-sports club.
Sports career
Bein ...
, player and later manager of the team, and
Giannis Andrianopoulos
Giannis Andrianopoulos (Greek: Γιάννης Ανδριανόπουλος; 1900 – 6 November 1952) was a Greek footballer and one of the founding members of Greece's most successful football club, Olympiacos CFP.
Club career
Born in Piraeus, ...
.
The Greece national team's first official match came on 7 April 1929 in a 1-4 loss to
Italy B, with
Alvertos Nahmias being the author of the nation's first-ever official goal.
1930s Balkan Cups
Between 1929 and 1936, Greece participated in six
Balkan Cup
The Balkan Cup was an international association football competition contested on and off from 1929 to 1980 by countries from the Balkans region. The most successful team was Romania with four titles.
Overview
The first edition featured Romania, ...
s, with their best campaign coming in the
1934–35 Balkan Cup when they finished second just one point short of
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
. A notable figure during these years was
Kostas Choumis
Kostas Choumis ( el, Κώστας Χούμης, ro, Constantin "Costică" Humis, born 20 November 1913 in Piraeus, Greece – deceased 20 July 1981 in Athens) was a Greek-Romanian football player who played as a striker. He is often regarded i ...
, who scored a total of 7 goals in the Balkan Cup, being among the
all-time top goal scorers in the competition's history.
1950s Mediterranean Cups
Between 1949 and 1958, Greece participated in three
Mediterranean Cup
On 11 July 1998 the first ever 13 a side rugby league match was played between Italia and Lebanon, which took place at Leichhardt Oval - Sydney - Australia, the match was known as 'The Mediterranean Cup'. A crowd of almost 10,000 watched as these ...
s, with their best campaign coming in the
1950–53 Mediterranean Cup when they finished second just one point short of
Italy B. A notable figure during these years was
Georgios Darivas
Georgios Darivas ( el, Γεώργιος Δαρίβας; born 12 March 1926) is a Greek former footballer. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1952 Summer Olympics
The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska ...
, who was the top goal scorer of the 1950-53 edition with 4 goals, a tally that includes a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
against
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
.
In 1951, Greece also won the 1st edition of the
Mediterranean Games men's football tournament, held in
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, defeating both
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
and the hosts
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
on their way to the title. The star of the Greece team was
Nikos Lekatsas, who was the top goal scorer with 4 goals, a tally that includes a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
against Syria.
1970s World Cups near misses
During the next decades, Greece had passion but little international success in the sport, as the nation's economical and social situations after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
did not allow for successful development of a national team.
At its best, Greece narrowly missed qualifying for two
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
competitions:
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...
(despite a quality team, including some of its greatest-ever players, such as
Mimis Domazos
Dimitris "Mimis" Domazos ( el, Δημήτρης "Μίμης" Δομάζος, born 22 January 1942) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. His nickname was ''"The General"'' ''( el, "Ο Στρατηγός ...
,
Giorgos Sideris
Giorgos Sideris ( el, Γιώργος Σιδέρης, born 5 April 1938-) is a Greek former Association football, footballer, who played as striker (association football), striker.
Club career
Sideris began his youth career at Atromitos Piraeus ...
,
Giorgos Koudas
Giorgos Koudas ( el, Γιώργος Κούδας; born 23 November 1946) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He spent his entire career in PAOK. Due to his fierce competitiveness and his Macedonian h ...
and
Mimis Papaioannou
Dimitrios "Mimis" Papaioannou ( el, Δημήτριος "Μίμης" Παπαϊωάννου; born 23 August 1942) is a Greek former professional football player, who played as a forward, mostly for AEK Athens and a former manager. His nickname w ...
), and
1978.
Euro 1980
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
, under the guidance of
Alketas Panagoulias
Alketas 'Alkis' Panagoulias ( el, Αλκέτας 'Άλκης' Παναγούλιας; 30 May 1934 – 18 June 2012) was a Greek association football player and manager. He managed the national teams of both Greece and the United States. He also ...
, made its first appearance in a major tournament at the
Euro 1980
The 1980 UEFA European Football Championship finals tournament was held in Italy. This was the sixth UEFA European Championship, which is held every four years and endorsed by UEFA. It was the first European Championship to feature eight teams i ...
in Italy, after
qualifying top of a group that included the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
and
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, both world football powers. In the final tournament, Greece was drawn into group A with
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
, the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, and
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
. In their first game, Greece held the Dutch until the only goal of the game was scored with a
penalty kick
A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...
by
Kist
Kist or KIST may refer to:
Abbreviations
* Kigali Institute of Science and Technology, a former university in Kigali, Rwanda, now part of the new University of Rwanda
* K. International School in Tokyo, Japan
*Konark Institute of Science and Tech ...
, in the 65th minute. Three days later Greece played Czechoslovakia in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
. After holding the Czechoslovakians 1–1 at the end the first half, Greece eventually lost 3–1. In their last game, Greece earned a 0–0 draw against eventual winners West Germany, concluding what was considered a decent overall performance in the team's maiden presence in a final phase of any football competition.
1994 World Cup
The team's success in qualifying for the
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States ...
in the United States, marked the first time they had made it to the
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
finals. Greece finished first and undefeated in their
qualifying group, surpassing
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
in the final game. In the final tournament Greece were drawn into
Group D with
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
,
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
, and
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
. After the successful qualifying campaign, expectations back in Greece were high as no one could imagine the oncoming astounding failure. Most notable reason for this complete failure was the fact that
Alketas Panagoulias
Alketas 'Alkis' Panagoulias ( el, Αλκέτας 'Άλκης' Παναγούλιας; 30 May 1934 – 18 June 2012) was a Greek association football player and manager. He managed the national teams of both Greece and the United States. He also ...
opted to take a squad full of those players – though most of them aging and out of form – that helped the team in the qualifying instead of new emerging talents seeing it as a reward for their unprecedented success. Furthermore, they had the disadvantage of being drawn into a "
group of death
A group of death in a multi-stage tournament is a group which is unusually competitive, because the number of strong competitors in the group is greater than the number of qualifying places available for the next phase of the tournament. Thus, i ...
", with runners-up at the
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event for a second time (the first being Me ...
Argentina, later semifinalists Bulgaria, and Nigeria, one of the strongest African teams. It is worth mentioning that all players of the squad, including the three goalkeepers, took part in those three games, something very rare. This tournament was humiliating for the Greece squad, though it was understandable given its first maiden appearance and the vast disparity of quality of opponents. In their first game against Argentina at
Foxboro Stadium
Foxboro Stadium, originally Schaefer Stadium and later Sullivan Stadium, was an outdoor stadium in the New England region of the United States, located in Foxborough, Massachusetts. It opened in 1971 and served as the home of the New England ...
just outside Boston, they lost 4–0. Four days later Greece suffered another 4–0 blow from Bulgaria at
Soldier Field
Soldier Field is a multi-purpose stadium on the Near South Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Opened in 1924 and reconstructed in 2003, the stadium has served as the home of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) since ...
in Chicago, and then, in what would be their final game, they lost to Nigeria 2–0 at Foxboro Stadium again. In the end, Greece were eliminated in the first round by losing all three games, scoring no goals and conceding ten.
Near misses
Greece failed to qualify for the
Euro 1996
The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...
finishing third in the group behind
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. In their
1998 World Cup qualifying tournament the team finished only one point shy of second-placed
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
after a 0–0 draw by the eventual Group winners, the
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
. Croatia and Denmark would make the Semi-Finals and Quarter-Finals respectively, of that World Cup. In their
Euro 2000 qualifying group, Greece finished again in third place, two points behind second-placed
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
in a highly disappointing campaign that saw the team lose at home to
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
. In the
2002 World Cup qualifying Greece finished a disappointing fourth in their group behind
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
, which led to the sacking of coach
Vasilis Daniil, replaced by
Otto Rehhagel
Otto Rehhagel (; born 9 August 1938) is a German former football coach and player.
Rehhagel is one of only two people who, as player and manager combined, has participated in over 1,000 Bundesliga matches (the other being Jupp Heynckes). In t ...
. Highlights of the campaign included a 5–1 defeat in Finland and the 2–2 draw that followed in England, the first of two games the Greece national team would be under the reins of the German coach.
European Champions: Euro 2004 triumph
Qualification
Greece started the
UEFA Euro 2004
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial association football, football competition contested by the List of men's national associatio ...
qualification
Qualification is either the process of qualifying for an achievement, or a credential attesting to that achievement, and may refer to:
* Professional qualification, attributes developed by obtaining academic degrees or through professional exper ...
campaign with defeats at home to
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
and away to
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
, both with a 2–0 scoreline. The team went on to win their remaining six games, including a 1–0 away win over Spain in
Zaragoza
Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributari ...
, securing first place in the group and an appearance in the
European Championship finals for the first time in 24 years.
Before the tournament
Greece were the second-least favorite in the competition to win, with
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
being the least favorite. Greece were also considered as outsiders and underdogs and were given odds of 150–1 of winning before the tournament. They were drawn in Group A, ending up with
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, Spain and
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, a "group of death"; Portugal, hosts and favourites to win, Spain, former European champions, and Russia, who won the first-ever Euro as the Soviet Union. Very few people expected Greece to proceed to the quarter-finals, let alone win the tournament.
Group stage
In the opening match against hosts
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, Greece achieved a surprise 2–1 victory, receiving the nickname "pirate ship" (Το Πειρατικό) used by Greek sportscasters in reference to the floating ship used in the tournament's opening ceremony. Greece won with a 25-yard strike by
Giorgos Karagounis
Georgios Karagkounis ( el, Γεώργιος Καραγκούνης; born 6 March 1977), known as Giorgos Karagounis ( el, Γιώργος Καραγκούνης), is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
In his club ...
and a penalty by
Angelos Basinas
Angelos Basinas ( el, Άγγελος Μπασινάς , born 3 January 1976) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He could also operate as a central midfielder and a centre back. He is best remembered ...
. Four days later, Greece stunned Spain in front of a largely Spanish crowd with a 1–1 draw after being down 1–0 at half time. Greece fell behind from a defensive lapse, which allowed
Fernando Morientes
Fernando Morientes Sánchez (; born 5 April 1976) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a striker, currently a manager.
He played for a number of clubs during his career, including Real Madrid, Monaco, Liverpool and Valenci ...
to score. However a sublime diagonal pass by playmaker
Vasilis Tsiartas allowed
Angelos Charisteas
Angelos Charisteas ( el, Άγγελος Χαριστέας, ; born 9 February 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. He works as sporting director for Aris Thessaloniki.
At club level he played for Aris Thessa ...
to score an equaliser in the second half, giving Greece hope of qualifying. In the final group match Greece fell behind 2–0 to Russia (who were already eliminated) within the first ten minutes of the game but managed to pull one back through
Zisis Vryzas
Zisis Vryzas ( el, Ζήσης Βρύζας; born 9 November 1973) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward for various teams in Greece and abroad, as well as for the Greece national football team, when they won the Euro ...
and thus progressed to the next round, at the expense of Spain, on goals scored.
Dmitri Kirichenko
Dmitri Sergeyevich Kirichenko (russian: Дмитрий Сергеевич Кириченко; born 17 January 1977) is an association football coach and a former player – a striker, he is a former Russian international. He is an assistant co ...
had the chance to eliminate Greece in the final minutes of this match, but his stretched effort squeezed just wide.
Quarter-finals
In the quarter-finals Greece faced off with the undefeated and reigning champions
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. At 65 minutes Greece took the lead. Angelos Basinas played a perfect pass to captain
Thodoris Zagorakis
Theodoros Zagorakis ( el, Θεόδωρος Ζαγοράκης ; born 27 October 1971) is a Greek politician and former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was the captain of Greece that won UEFA Euro 2004, and was also presid ...
, who flicked the ball high in the air, past veteran French defender
Bixente Lizarazu
Bixente Jean-Michel Lizarazu (, born 9 December 1969) is a French former professional footballer who played as a left back for Bordeaux and Bayern Munich, among other teams. He also had 97 caps for the France national team.
In a twelve-year ...
, and sent a perfect cross to
Angelos Charisteas
Angelos Charisteas ( el, Άγγελος Χαριστέας, ; born 9 February 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. He works as sporting director for Aris Thessaloniki.
At club level he played for Aris Thessa ...
for the header and goal. Greece held on to win despite a late French onslaught, with close efforts by
Thierry Henry
Thierry Daniel Henry (born 17 August 1977) is a French professional football coach, pundit, and former player who is an assistant coach for the Belgium national team. Considered one of the best strikers of all time and one of the best player ...
, thus knocking France out of Euro 2004 and becoming the first team ever to defeat both the hosts and defending champions in the same tournament.
Semi-finals
Greece reached the semi-finals to face the
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
, who were the only team to defeat all of their opponents to that point. The Czech record included a convincing 3–2 win over the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, a 2–1 win over
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, and a 3–0 win over
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
in the quarter-finals. At this stage in the tournament the Czechs were favourites to take the trophy. The game began nervously for Greece, as the Czech Republic applied much pressure.
Tomáš Rosický
Tomáš Rosický (; born 4 October 1980) is a Czech former professional footballer who was the captain of the Czech Republic national team for a ten-year period. He played club football for Sparta Prague, Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal.
He s ...
hit the bar in the opening minutes, and
Jan Koller
Jan Koller (; born 30 March 1973) is a Czech former professional footballer who played as a striker. He was noted for his height, strong physique, and heading ability.
He began his career at Sparta Prague, then moved to Belgium, where he becam ...
had several efforts saved by
Antonis Nikopolidis
Antonis Nikopolidis ( el, Αντώνης Νικοπολίδης; born 14 January 1971) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper, and former manager of the Greece under-21 national team.
He is regarded among the best ...
. The Czechs chances were dealt a blow when influential midfielder
Pavel Nedvěd
Pavel Nedvěd (; born 30 August 1972) is a Czech former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He is regarded as one of the most successful players to emerge from the Czech Republic, winning domestic and European accolades with Ital ...
left the pitch injured in the first half. After 90 minutes the game ended 0–0, despite the Czechs having most of the game's missed chances. In the final minute of the first half of extra time, a close range silver goal header by Traianos Dellas from a
Vasilis Tsiartas corner ended the Czech campaign, putting Greece into the final of UEFA Euro 2004, Euro 2004 and sending their fans into euphoria.
Final
![Charisteas' Siegtreffer im Finale der Euro 2004](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Charisteas%27_Siegtreffer_im_Finale_der_Euro_2004.jpg)
For the first time in history the final was a repeat of the opening match, with Greece and hosts Portugal facing off in a rematch. In the 57th minute Charisteas gave Greece the lead with a header from a corner by
Angelos Basinas
Angelos Basinas ( el, Άγγελος Μπασινάς , born 3 January 1976) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He could also operate as a central midfielder and a centre back. He is best remembered ...
. Portugal had much of the possession, but the Greece defence was solid and dealt with most attacks. Cristiano Ronaldo had a good chance to equalise in the dying moments, but could not apply a finish. Greece held on to win 1–0, winning the tournament, an achievement considered by many to be one of the greatest football upsets in history, if not the greatest. Greece captain Zagorakis was named the player of the tournament, having led Greece and made the most tackles in the entire tournament.
Recognition
Greece's victory shot them up in the FIFA World Rankings from 35th in June 2004 to 14th in July 2004. This is one of the largest upward moves in a single month in the top echelon of the rankings. The triumph of Greece at Euro 2004 is the biggest sporting achievement in the country's history for a team sport, along with the successes of the Greece national basketball team in the EuroBasket, European Championships of EuroBasket 1987, 1987, EuroBasket 2005, 2005 and 2006 FIBA World Championship and the Water polo at the World Aquatics Championships#Women's tournament, World Championship title of Greece women's national water polo team in Water polo at the 2011 World Aquatics Championships – Women's tournament, 2011. The team has appeared on stamps and received medals from Konstantinos Stephanopoulos (the President of Greece), Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens, and an ecstatic ovation from the country's population which came out to see the team drive with the trophy from the Athens International Airport, Athens airport to the Panathenaic Stadium where the Greek political and religious leadership was awaiting them. The Euro 2004 winners were selected as "World Team of the Year" at the 2005 Laureus World Sports Award for Team of the Year.
2005 Confederations Cup
As European champions, Greece qualified for the
2005 FIFA Confederations Cup in Germany and were drawn into 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup Group B, Group B along with 2002 FIFA World Cup champions Brazil national football team, Brazil, 2004 AFC Asian Cup champions Japan national football team, Japan, and 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup champions Mexico national football team, Mexico. Greece lost their first two matches 3–0 to Brazil and 1–0 to Japan before drawing 0–0 with Mexico to finish at the bottom of the group. The squad included players such as Efstathios Tavlaridis, Stathis Tavlaridis, Loukas Vyntra, Michalis Sifakis, Ioannis Amanatidis, Giannis Amanatidis and Theofanis Gekas, Fanis Gekas, all of whom earned their first call ups or maiden caps in the national squad.
2006 World Cup qualifying
After winning the UEFA Euro 2004, Euro 2004, Greece faced
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
,
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
, Albania national football team, Albania, Georgia national football team, Georgia and Kazakhstan national football team, Kazakhstan in 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2, Group 2 of the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification tournament. Greece opened their campaign with a 2–1 loss to Albania in Tirana before draws with Turkey (0–0) and Ukraine (1–1) followed by a 3–1 victory over Kazakhstan.
In 2005, Greece resumed their campaign with three victories, defeating Denmark 2–1; Georgia 3–1; and Albania 2–0; before earning a goalless away draw with Turkey. Just prior to the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, Greece lost 1–0 at home to Ukraine after a late goal from Andriy Husin. Following a 2–1 away win against Kazakhstan national football team, Kazakhstan, the team experienced a setback after a 1–0 defeat to Denmark in Copenhagen diminished their chances of qualification.
In their last game, Greece defeated Georgia, finishing in fourth place, four points behind first-placed Ukraine, two behind Turkey, and a point behind Denmark. Throughout the match, fans in the
Karaiskakis Stadium
The Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium ( el, Στάδιο Γεώργιος Καραϊσκάκης), commonly referred to as the Karaiskakis Stadium ( el, Στάδιο Καραϊσκάκη, ), is a football stadium in Piraeus, Attica, Greece, and the ...
chanted the name of
Otto Rehhagel
Otto Rehhagel (; born 9 August 1938) is a German former football coach and player.
Rehhagel is one of only two people who, as player and manager combined, has participated in over 1,000 Bundesliga matches (the other being Jupp Heynckes). In t ...
in their utmost support and he said afterwards ''"Even if 10 years pass, part of my heart will be Greek"''.
Euro 2008
![Euro 2008 em-stadion wals-siezenheim 9](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Euro_2008_em-stadion_wals-siezenheim_9.jpg)
Greece was the highest-ranked seed for the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying tournament and was drawn with
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
, Norway national football team, Norway, Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, Moldova national football team, Moldova and Malta national football team, Malta.
They began their UEFA Euro 2008, Euro 2008 qualification campaign with victories over Moldova, Norway and Bosnia and Herzegovina before suffering a 4–1 home loss against Turkey in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
. Greece went on to win away to Malta, with the only goal coming in the 66th minute from an
Angelos Basinas
Angelos Basinas ( el, Άγγελος Μπασινάς , born 3 January 1976) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He could also operate as a central midfielder and a centre back. He is best remembered ...
penalty, beat Hungary and Moldova at home and drew 2–2 away to Norway despite having hit the goalpost three times in this match. The draw in Oslo was followed by a 3–2 home win against Bosnia-Herzegovina and a 1–0 away win to Turkey, securing its presence to the Euro 2008 finals at their old rival's home ground. In the last two matches, Greece overcame Malta 5–0 in Athens and defeated Hungary with an away 2–1 win, finishing first in their group with a total of 31 points, the most points gained among any team in qualifying.
As defending European champions, Greece were top seed for the final tournament and were drawn with
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, and
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
in UEFA Euro 2008 Group D, Group D.
In the tournament, Greece team lost all three games and scored only one goal. Greece underperformed in the opening match against
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
and lost 2–0 before losing 1-0 to
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
. Having already been eliminated,
Angelos Charisteas
Angelos Charisteas ( el, Άγγελος Χαριστέας, ; born 9 February 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. He works as sporting director for Aris Thessaloniki.
At club level he played for Aris Thessa ...
opened the scoring for Greece against
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, but lost 2–1, becoming the first defending champion not to earn a single point in the next European Championship.
2010 World Cup
Despite the scoring prowess of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)#Goalscorers, Europe's top 2010 World Cup qualifying goal-scorer Theofanis Gekas, Fanis Gekas—who produced 10 goals in as many games—Greece took second place to Switzerland in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2, Group 2 of UEFA qualification, thus advancing to a home-and-away 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Second Round, playoff round, where they faced
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
. After a scoreless draw at home in the first match, the second leg in Donetsk saw Greece triumph with a 1–0 win, sending the Greece to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. At the 2010 World Cup draw in Cape Town, South Africa on 4 December 2009, Greece found itself grouped with two familiar opponents from its first World Cup appearance in 1994.
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
were yet again drawn into group stage play alongside Greece, this time into 2010 FIFA World Cup Group B, Group B with Korea Republic national football team, South Korea replacing Greece's third 1994 opponent,
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
.
In its World Cup opener, Greece lost 2–0 to South Korea after a dismal performance characterized by excessive long-ball attacks and a lack of offensive creativity. In the second fixture against Nigeria, Greece won 2–1, coming from behind after conceding an early goal. Dimitris Salpingidis scored Greece's first-ever goal in the World Cup finals in the 44th minute of the first half to tie the match at 1–1. Vasilis Torosidis scored the winning goal in the 71st minute, securing the first points and first victory for Greece in tournament history. In the third match against heavily favoured Argentina, Greece needed a combination of results to advance to the next round. As expected, in what would be his final game as Greece's national team head coach,
Otto Rehhagel
Otto Rehhagel (; born 9 August 1938) is a German former football coach and player.
Rehhagel is one of only two people who, as player and manager combined, has participated in over 1,000 Bundesliga matches (the other being Jupp Heynckes). In t ...
conjured up a very defensive-minded strategy, leaving Georgios Samaras with nearly all offensive responsibilities as the lone striker. The strategy nearly paid off in the second half with the score still locked at 0–0 when Samaras beat the last Argentine defender on a quick long-ball counter-attack but curled a rushed shot just wide of the far post. Greece held Argentina scoreless until the 77th minute but ultimately lost 2–0, finishing third in Group B.
Greece moved from 13th to 12th in the FIFA World Rankings following the tournament. Russia, Croatia and France dropped lower than Greece while Uruguay and Chile jumped ahead of
![20150616 - Portugal - Italie - Genève - Fernando Santos](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/20150616_-_Portugal_-_Italie_-_Gen%C3%A8ve_-_Fernando_Santos.jpg)
Twenty-four hours removed from Greece's World Cup loss to Argentina, Otto Rehhagel stepped away from his post as Greece national team manager. Eight days later a new era in Greece football was ushered in as the
Hellenic Football Federation
The Hellenic Football Federation (HFF), also known as the Greek Football Federation ( el, Ελληνική Ποδοσφαιρική Ομοσπονδία; ΕΠΟ, translit=Ellinikí Podosferikí Omospondía; EPO) is the governing body of associat ...
named former AEK Athens F.C., AEK Athens and PAOK FC, PAOK boss Fernando Santos (footballer, born 1954), Fernando Santos the new manager. Under Santos the Greece immediately went to work on an unprecedented streak of success, setting a senior-club record by going unbeaten in Santos' first seventeen matches as manager. While Greece's proficiency in stifling opposition attacks seemed to wane toward the end of Rehhagel's tenure, the emergence of Santos seemed to galvanize Greece defending once more. Through seven international friendlies and ten Euro 2012 qualifiers, Greece kept nine clean sheets and conceded just one goal in each of the remaining eight contests. From start to end of their unbeaten run, Santos' national side moved from No. 12 to No. 8 in FIFA's world rankings, equaling the highest mark in history credited by FIFA to Greece. Only one match from their streak featured a team (other than Greece) that appeared at the 2010 World Cup, a 1–0 defeat of Serbia in Belgrade.
Euro 2012
Qualifying
With its late-game comeback victory over Georgia national football team, Georgia in October 2011, Greece padded its historic football tournament résumé, most importantly by sealing an automatic berth into UEFA Euro 2012, UEFA's 2012 European Football Championship tournament. For the second time in team history the national side won its qualifying group for a major football tournament without a single loss incurred, as Greece also went undefeated in 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA – Group 5), 1994 World Cup qualifiers. Adding to its UEFA Euro 1980 qualifying Group 6, 1980, UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying Group 6, 2004 and UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group C, 2008 Euro qualifying campaigns, the Georgia triumph marked the fifth time overall that Greece has won its qualification group for a major tournament. Although their tendency to produce positive results remained steady throughout qualifying, so too did the Greece proclivity to start games slowly and concede early goals. This habit would plague Greece through qualifying and eventually tarnish their Euro 2012 performances.
Over two qualifying contests, Greece trailed Georgia on the scoreboard for 130 of 180 minutes and still managed to grab four of six possible points in the standings by way of three late strikes. Goals scored in the dying minutes of games, often coming from defenders, became somewhat of a Greek signature on UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group F, Group F's table. In fact Greece was able to take and keep a first-half lead just once in ten games, the 3–1 home defeat of Malta national football team, Malta which was UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying#Seedings, ranked 50th of 53 teams in Europe. In Malta, a last-second tie-breaking strike from defender Vasilis Torosidis pocketed a crucial extra two points in the standings for Greece, the same number of points it held over
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
at the end of qualifying. Despite allowing weaker teams in the group to bring the game to them, Greece admirably held powerful Croatia scoreless through two meetings and deservedly won Group F four days after a decisive 2–0 home win versus the second-place Croats. Theofanis Gekas, Fanis Gekas, who retired from national team service in 2010 after Fernando Santos' third game as manager, came out of retirement in time to contribute a goal to the result. Gekas was eventually included in Santos's 23-man Euro 2012 roster, leaving out Euro 2004 hero
Angelos Charisteas
Angelos Charisteas ( el, Άγγελος Χαριστέας, ; born 9 February 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. He works as sporting director for Aris Thessaloniki.
At club level he played for Aris Thessa ...
who scored the group-clinching goal in the aforementioned Greece qualifying victory in Georgia.
Group stage in Poland
![Greece team POL-GRE 8-6-2012](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Greece_team_POL-GRE_8-6-2012.jpg)
"Shades of 2004" was a commonly perceived theme regarding the buildup to Euro 2012 for Greece and their progression through the tournament. As in 2004 Greece was drawn into the same group as the host nation, Poland national football team, Poland on this occasion, and also had the pressure of playing in the tournament's opening match. Two familiar foes from its 2004 championship run,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
, joined Greece and Poland in Group A on 2 December 2011 at the tournament's final draw in Kiev. Upon drawing the lowest-ranked teams from Pots 1 and 2 as well as the second-lowest from Pot 4, Greece's prospects of passing the group stage at Euro 2012 were given a boost.
Ideas of steering "To Piratiko" to a dream start in host-nation territory as Greece did in Portugal eight years before, rapidly turned sour during the opening match's first half. From the outset Greece appeared uncomfortable holding the ball for long spells and seemed content to allow hosts Poland to push numbers forward with the ball, hoping to score through counter-attacks. However, Poland made the most of its early possession, as top scorer Robert Lewandowski converted a header from a goal line cross past a scurrying Kostas Chalkias. Hope and momentum continued to tip in favor of Poland when Sokratis Papastathopoulos received his second yellow card of the game in just the 44th minute from Spanish referee Carlos Velasco Carballo. Greece began to boss the game after halftime while playing down a man. Dimitris Salpingidis made the greatest impact on the game for Greece as a second-half substitute, making brilliant penetrating runs behind the Polish defense, eventually bringing the game level 1–1 on a mistake by Poland keeper Wojciech Szczęsny. Salpingidis was then responsible for levelling up the numbers for Greece when Szczęsny made a red-card foul on Salpingidis' breakaway attempt on goal in the 68th minute. But Greece captain
Giorgos Karagounis
Georgios Karagkounis ( el, Γεώργιος Καραγκούνης; born 6 March 1977), known as Giorgos Karagounis ( el, Γιώργος Καραγκούνης), is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
In his club ...
' subsequent penalty kick was turned away by substitute keeper Przemysław Tytoń. A second goal by Salpingidis was disallowed as he was assisted by an offside Kostas Fortounis, denying Greece's best opportunity to take three points from what ended as an improbable 1–1 draw.
The Czech Republic exploited Greece's weakness at the left-defender position early in the second group stage match, notching two goals in the first six minutes. Just as Poland had, the Czechs repeatedly penetrated Greece back line behind left-side defender José Holebas, José Cholevas, scoring on a through-ball and a cross from Cholevas' side. Petr Čech's gaffe on a Georgios Samaras cross in the second half turned into a gift goal for Theofanis Gekas, Fanis Gekas. The Czechs then eased off on their early pressure, opting to sit back and guard their lead for much of the second half, but Gekas' goal was too little too late. Greece lost the match 2–1, placing them at the foot of Group A in need of a victory over the attack-minded Russians to advance to the knockout rounds.
After thrashing the Czech Republic 4–1 and displaying more offensive potency in a 1–1 draw with Poland, the Russians were favored to earn the one point they needed to advance against the Greeks, especially since defeating the team in both of the previous two European Championships. However, Greece delivered a trademark 1–0 defensive victory and advanced to the Euro 2012 quarterfinals. Greece scored when Russia defender Sergei Ignashevich errantly headed a Greece throw-in behind the Russian defense for Giorgos Karagounis to pounce on. Greece's captain sprinted in on goal and struck the ball at the back post under keeper Vyacheslav Malafeev in first-half stoppage time to send the Russians reeling into the locker rooms. Ignashevich appeared to have conceded an additional golden scoring opportunity for Greece upon tripping Karagounis in the Russian penalty area early in the second half, but referee Jonas Eriksson (referee), Jonas Eriksson instead booked Karagounis for what he believed to be Diving (association football), simulation. This being Karagounis' second yellow card of the tournament, Greece was to be without its suspended captain in the next round. With that victory, Greece qualified to the quarterfinals for a second time after their successful Euro 2004 campaign.
Quarter-finals
![Gdansk PGE Arena GER-GRE Euro 2012 17](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/Gdansk_PGE_Arena_GER-GRE_Euro_2012_17.jpg)
In the quarter-finals, Greece met with a German national football team, Germany side that won all three of its group matches against
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
,
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
and the Netherlands national football team, the Netherlands. Greece applied very little pressure in the midfield in the opening period, slowing the tempo of the game and affording Germany the majority of possession. Young Sotiris Ninis switched off momentarily in defence, allowing German captain Philipp Lahm to cut infield and open the scoring with a long-distance strike. Greece remained calm as in Georgios Samaras they carried a constant threat. On the counter-attack, they pulled level early in the second half; regaining possession in their defensive third, Georgios Fotakis, Giorgos Fotakis found Dimitris Salpingidis streaking 40 yards deep into German territory. Salpingidis delivered a ball five yards in front of goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, which Samaras was able to meet and power underneath Neuer for the equalizer. Twenty minutes later, however, the Germans led 4–1. Greece scored an 89th-minute penalty kick by Salpingidis, but the match ended 4–2 to the Germans, ending Greece's Euro 2012 campaign.
2014 World Cup
Qualifying
![20130814 AT-GR Nationalteam Griechenland 2414](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/20130814_AT-GR_Nationalteam_Griechenland_2414.JPG)
To reach the 2014 FIFA World Cup, 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Greece had to contend with a team on the rise in Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team, Bosnia and Herzegovina and a dangerous Slovakia national football team, Slovakian side seemingly in decline since its memorable 2010 World Cup qualifying and finals performances.
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
, a familiar qualification foe for Greece in its previous two major tournaments (2010 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2, 2010 World Cup, UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group F, Euro 2012), joined the fray as well. Ahead of those aforesaid tournaments, Bosnia twice narrowly missed out on its first major international tournament appearance due to Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team#Blažević leads team to World Cup 2010 play-offs, consecutive playoff defeats at the hands of Portugal. No playoff would be necessary for Bosnia in 2013, as it 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group G, won its qualifying group over Greece on goal difference. The decisive match was in Bosnia on 22 March, when Greece succumbed to three set-piece goals (two free-kick headers and one penalty miss rebound) in a 3–1 defeat. Greece's defense proved rigid throughout qualifying, conceding zero goals in open play. Four goals were allowed by Greece in ten games, the first of which was a penalty by Latvia, and yet four goals were too many for a relatively unproductive Grece attack to overcome. Though Greece was shut out just once, the team only managed to score 12 goals, an output Bosnia reached in its second game.
Following group play
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
, which claimed second place over
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
and
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
in a group dominated by the Netherlands national football team, Dutch, awaited Greece in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Second Round#Matches, two-legged playoff. The last time the two sides met in late 2011, Romania came into Greece and dealt Fernando Santos (Portuguese footballer), Fernando Santos his first defeat as Greece manager in his 18th game at the helm. Greece reversed the prior 3–1 result in their favour this time, scoring each goal through skillful one-touch passing and finishing. Kostas Mitroglou accounted for three of Greece's four goals in a 4–2 aggregate playoff victory, though none were actual game-winners. Dimitris Salpingidis notched the game winner in Athens, while the second leg finished 1–1 in Bucharest.
Finals
![Arena das Dunas 19062014](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Arena_das_Dunas_19062014.JPG)
Aracaju was chosen as the team's base camp for the tournament in Brazil. Greece was drawn into 2014 FIFA World Cup Group C, Group C with Colombia national football team, Colombia, Ivory Coast national football team, Côte d'Ivoire and Japan national football team, Japan and ultimately created an extraordinarily similar tournament experience as it did two years prior at Euro 2012. Greece conceded an early goal in their first game against Colombia, but Panagiotis Kone narrowly missed equalizing just one minute after Colombia's fifth-minute goal. Trailing 2–0 in the 63rd minute, Theofanis Gekas, Fanis Gekas' header from six yards struck the crossbar for Greece's best chance of the match. The Colombians proved to be the more clinical finishers, prevailing 3–0 despite an even number of shots for both teams and a slight possession advantage in Greece's favor. To stave off the threat of elimination, the Greece needed to earn at least a point in their second match with Japan, who sat alongside them at the bottom of Group C. The task grew more difficult once captain Kostas Katsouranis received two yellow cards, reducing Greece to ten men in the 38th minute. Greece held out for a 0–0 draw and remained tied with Japan on points. The draw made it necessary for Greece to defeat Ivory Coast in their final group match in order to reach the round of 16 for the first time in their history. An early injury to midfielder Panagiotis Kone brought on young Olympiacos F.C., Olympiacos midfielder Andreas Samaris, who would score his first international goal after intercepting a poor back-pass by an Ivorian defender. Swansea City F.C., Swansea City striker Wilfried Bony equalized for Ivory Coast in the 73rd minute. In the first minute of stoppage time, Ivory Coast striker Giovanni Sio obstructed a Samaras shot by clipping him from behind in the Ivorian penalty area, resulting in a Greece penalty kick which Samaras converted with 30 seconds remaining in the game, prompting wild celebrations in Greece.
As Group C runners-up Greece was paired in the 2014 FIFA World Cup knockout stage#Costa Rica vs Greece, round of 16 with 2014 FIFA World Cup Group D, Group D shock winners Costa Rica national football team, Costa Rica, who won their first-ever World Cup group stage ahead of former world champions Uruguay, Italy and England. Trailing 1–0 but handed an advantage by the dismissal of Costa Rican Óscar Duarte (Costa Rican footballer), Óscar Duarte, Greece forced extra time through a Sokratis Papastathopoulos equalizer ten seconds into stoppage time. This was the only goal that Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas conceded in open play throughout the tournament. Navas thwarted several opportunities for Greece throughout the 30 minutes of extra time and saved Theofanis Gekas, Fanis Gekas' penalty in the game's concluding penalty shootout. Costa Rica claimed its first World Cup knockout stage victory and denied Greece its first by defeating Greece 5–3 on penalties.
Post Brazil 2014
Euro 2016 qualifying: Reorganization and decline
The team appointed Claudio Ranieri as head coach in July 2014. He was sacked in November of the same year after a shocking home defeat to the Faroe Islands national football team, Faroe Islands. Sergio Markarián was appointed in his place, but he too has come under fire, after the team's terrible performances in the remaining UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying. The team's form after September 2014 proved to be abysmal, with no wins in over a year. Greece finished in bottom place in their Euro Qualifying group, earning just one victory against
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
in the final round, and failing to qualify for the tournament. Greece, along with Netherlands national football team, the Netherlands and Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team, Bosnia and Herzegovina were the only nations from UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying#Qualifying group stage, Pot 1 not to qualify for the UEFA Euro 2016, finals. Those three had taken part in the
2014 FIFA World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
. Incidentally, the three teams would also fail to qualify for the World Cup in 2018.
2018 World Cup qualifying: Resurgence
In attempting to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Greece would suffer a second successive failure to reach a major tournament, despite improvements and some positive results. They finished second in Group H of the European qualifying stages, nine points behind runaway leaders Belgium national football team, Belgium and two points clear of third placed Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Greece were subsequently drawn against Croatia in the play-off round, where they were knocked out over two legs; a 4–1 away defeat set the tone for Greece's campaign, and in the second leg they drew a blank in a 0–0 stalemate against the Croats to signify the end of their World Cup hopes.
2018–19 Nations League and Euro 2020 qualifying: Inconsistency, fall and promising finish
Greece had to start their UEFA Nations League in 2018–19 UEFA Nations League C, League C due to previously poor performance. Greece won and lost three games each to these opponents altogether, and only finished third in the Nations League and was unable to promote to 2020–21 UEFA Nations League B, League B when the UEFA revised the format.
Greece's qualification campaign for UEFA Euro 2020 commenced with the team being placed in UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying Group J, Group J. Due to disappointing results, John van 't Schip decided not to call-up some of the leading members of the squad, such as Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Kostas Manolas for their final matches. A more youthful Greek showed a massive improvement in their attacking and pressing style of play. In the final three games Greece achieved successive victories. Greece finished third in the final table but this was still not enough to earn a play-off spot.
2020–21 Nations League and 2022 World Cup Qualifying
Having been forced to remain in 2020–21 UEFA Nations League C, League C due to poor performance, Greece had to start its campaign on their quest to be promoted. Greece needed a win in the last game against Slovenia at home to achieve promotion to 2022–23 UEFA Nations League B, League B. The match ended on 0-0, with Greece failing to promote a second consecutive time, despite being unbeaten and having conceded just one goal.
Greece was put in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group B, Group B for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. The campaign started with an upset away 1-1 draw against group favourites
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, but was followed by two 1-1 draws to Georgia national football team, Georgia at home and Kosovo national football team, Kosovo away. A 2-1 home win over
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
kept the hopes for qualification alive, and was followed by a 2-0 away win against Georgia. At the crucial away match in Stockholm, Greece made a good performance in the first half but eventually lost 2-0 to Sweden. Another loss, 1-0 at home to group winners Spain ratified Greece's elimination from the finals, with Greece failing to qualify for a World Cup for the second consecutive time.
2022–23 UEFA Nations League
Under the instructions of manager Gus Poyet, Greece had a successful run in the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C#Group 2, Group C2 of the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League, 2022–23 competition. The Galanolefki secured promotion to League B by topping the group ahead of Kosovo national football team, Kosovo, Northern Ireland national football team, Northern Ireland and Cyprus national football team, Cyprus.
Home stadium
![Argentina Vs Italy 3-0 2004 Olympics Athens](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Argentina_Vs_Italy_3-0_2004_Olympics_Athens.jpg)
Traditionally, Greece have spent most of their history playing their home matches in different stadiums primarily in or near
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, but also in a number of other cities around the country. The home ground of the national team was the
Karaiskakis Stadium
The Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium ( el, Στάδιο Γεώργιος Καραϊσκάκης), commonly referred to as the Karaiskakis Stadium ( el, Στάδιο Καραϊσκάκη, ), is a football stadium in Piraeus, Attica, Greece, and the ...
in
Piraeus
Piraeus ( ; el, Πειραιάς ; grc, Πειραιεύς ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens' city centre, along the east coast of the Saronic ...
, since its reconstruction in 2004 until 2017.
Since their first international fixture in 1929 and for the next 33 years, Greece regularly used Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium as their home ground. Their first home match away from it was played at the Nikos Goumas Stadium in 1962, while the Karaiskakis Stadium was used for the first time in 1964, when it was renovated. In 1966, Kaftanzoglio Stadium in
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
became the first stadium outside of the Athens area to be used. Since then all of these stadiums were alternately used until the early 1980s, while a few other stadiums were inaugurated by the national team as well such as Thessaloniki's Toumba Stadium and Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium, Harilaou Stadium in 1975 and 1977 respectively. Greece also held matches at other home grounds outside of the two major cities in 1976, such as Kostas Davourlis Stadium, Panachaiki Stadium in Patras and Anthi Karagianni Stadium, Kavala Stadium in Kavala. In 1982, Georgios Kamaras Stadium was added to the list of home grounds for the national team, the first in Athens out of the three major stadiums.
On 16 November 1983, the newly built Olympic Stadium (Athens), Athens Olympic Stadium, to date the largest stadium in the country, housed the national team for the first time in a qualifier for UEFA Euro 1984 against Denmark. It served as the primary home ground for the team for the rest of the 1980s and the 1990s, until 2001 when it was closed for renovations. Meanwhile, a large number of matches were held in various stadiums including old choices and some new in provincial cities all over the country, something that did not change until the early 2000s, when the Athens Olympic Stadium was almost abandoned. From the start of the 2000 until the qualifiers games of UEFA Euro 2004, Euro 2004, the Greek National Team uses Leoforos Alexandras Stadium, Leoforos Stadium as its home. Since 2004 Greece has mainly used Karaiskakis Stadium, with very few of Greece's matches being played in other stadiums. They returned to Olympic Stadium (Athens), OAKA in 2018 for a friendly against Switzerland and announced they would play their home matches for the new UEFA Nations League there, as well. For the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers, they were slated to split time between OAKA in Athens, and the Pankritio Stadium in Heraklion on the island of Crete, but with the latter requiring upgrades to be fit for FIFA standards, the entire campaign was held in Athens.
Team image
Greece's traditional colours are blue and white, originating from the Flag of Greece, Greece flag. Although blue was used as the home kit since the team's inception, white became the primary home color following
UEFA Euro 2004
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial association football, football competition contested by the List of men's national associatio ...
. In recent decades, Greece wear either a set of white jerseys, shorts and socks, or an all-blue combination. Formerly, the kit consisted of a combination of blue jerseys and white shorts and vice versa. Meanwhile, Greece's kit has occasionally featured stripes, crosses or other designs, as well as various values of blue.
On 10 April 2013, the
Hellenic Football Federation
The Hellenic Football Federation (HFF), also known as the Greek Football Federation ( el, Ελληνική Ποδοσφαιρική Ομοσπονδία; ΕΠΟ, translit=Ellinikí Podosferikí Omospondía; EPO) is the governing body of associat ...
announced a partnership with American manufacturer Nike, Inc., Nike, which is Greece's current official supplier, with their first kit debuting on 7 June 2013 in the away match to Lithuania national football team, Lithuania. On 4 March 2014, Greece unveiled their latest kit also worn at the
2014 FIFA World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
.
The crest (''εθνόσημο'' means "national sign"), which is used in the kit, is the official emblem of the national team.
Kit sponsorship
Nicknames
![Flaga Grecji](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Flaga_Grecji.jpg)
Traditionally, Greece is referred to by the media and the Greeks in general simply as ''Ethniki'' (Εθνική) in Greek, which literally means 'National'. The team is often called ''Galanolefki'' (Sky blue-white) due to the use of the colours of the Flag of Greece, Greece flag as kit colours. Both nicknames are used for the country's national teams in other sports as well.
During the opening ceremony at the
UEFA Euro 2004
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial association football, football competition contested by the List of men's national associatio ...
, which took place right before the inaugural game of the tournament between Greece and hosts
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, a replica of a 16th-century ship was used referring to the expeditions of the Portuguese explorers of that time. Greek radio sports journalist Georgios Helakis, while broadcasting the opening match, commented that ''"since the Portuguese team appeared in such a ship, it's time for us to become pirates and steal the victory"''. Eventually, Greece beat the hosts and the team was described as ''Piratiko'', meaning the 'Pirate ship', which emerged as the new nickname of the team repeated at every win during the tournament. Especially after Greece won in the UEFA Euro 2004 Final, final to Portugal, the new nickname was established to commemorate the coronation of Greece as UEFA European Championship, European champions.
Rivalries
Greece has a historical rivalry with
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
; having played them a total of 13 matches, winning three, drawing three and losing seven games. Both countries have been described as "punching above their weight"; with Greece winning UEFA Euro 2004, Euro 2004 despite being classified as underdogs prior to the competition, and Turkey followed-up their 2002 FIFA World Cup, World Cup semi-final appearance in 2002 by advancing to the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 2008, Euro 2008, where they were knocked out by
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. The relationship with Turkey is very intense overall. It is fueled by a dispute between the two countries, the dispute over Cyprus, and several incidents occurring during matches between Turkish and Greece clubs, it has been described as one of the international football rivalries.
Greece has also a football rivalry with
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
, because it is the team that has been met the most times in their history (36 times). Greece has won 8 matches and Romania has won 18 matches (10 matches between them ended in draw).
Media coverage
Greece's qualifying matches and friendlies are currently televised by Nova Sports and Alpha TV, a trademark of Digea.
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results from the previous 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
''For all past match results of the national team, see the team's Greece national football team results (2020–29), results page.''
2022
2023
Coaching staff
Coaching history
The following table lists all assigned football managers for the national team and their record since Greece's first international game in April 1929.
![Alketas Panagoulias (1986)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Alketas_Panagoulias_%281986%29.jpg)
''Updated 20 November 2022''
[*] Greece sanctioned for fielding ineligible player (Apostolos Giannou) in the international friendly match played between Turkey and Greece on 17 November 2015. The match is declared to be lost by forfeit and awarded 3–0 in favor of
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
.
Players
Current squad
The following players were called for the Exhibition game, friendly matches matches against Malta national football team, Malta on 17 November 2022 and
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
on 20 November 2022.
''Caps and goals correct as of 20 November 2022, after the match against
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
.''
Recent call-ups
The following players have also been called up to the Greece squad within the last twelve months.
PRE
;Notes
*
PRE = Preliminary squad/standby.
Player records
:''Players in bold are still active, at least at club level.''
Most capped players
Top goalscorers
Captains
List of Captain (sports), captaincy periods of the various captains throughout the years.
Competitive record
Competitive results
These are Greece's results in the major competitions that they have participated in. The results in the main tournaments have been listed directly in the total column.
''Updated 27 September 2022''
FIFA World Cup
:''*Draws include knockout matches decided on Penalty shoot-out (association football), penalty kicks.''
UEFA European Championship
:''*Draws include knockout matches decided on Penalty shoot-out (association football), penalty kicks.''
UEFA Nations League
:''*Draws include knockout matches decided on Penalty shoot-out (association football), penalty kicks.''
FIFA Confederations Cup
:''*Draws include knockout matches decided on Penalty shoot-out (association football), penalty kicks.''
Olympic Games
FIFA ranking history
Greece's history in the FIFA World Rankings. The table shows the position that Greece held in December of each year (and the current position as of 2021), as well as the highest and lowest positions annually.
* FIFA-ranking yearly averages for Greece
Head-to-head record
:, after the match against .
a) The game against Great Britain's Olympic Team (1952) was recognised as official game of the Greece National Team by the Hellenic Football Federation
Honours
Competitions
![Griechische Nationalmannschaft bei der Siegerehrung](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Griechische_Nationalmannschaft_bei_der_Siegerehrung.jpg)
* UEFA European Championship
** Champions (1): UEFA Euro 2004, 2004
* Football at the Mediterranean Games, Mediterranean Games
** Champions (2): Football at the 1951 Mediterranean Games, 1951, Football at the 1991 Mediterranean Games, 1991
*
Mediterranean Cup
On 11 July 1998 the first ever 13 a side rugby league match was played between Italia and Lebanon, which took place at Leichhardt Oval - Sydney - Australia, the match was known as 'The Mediterranean Cup'. A crowd of almost 10,000 watched as these ...
** Runners-up (1): 1950–53 Mediterranean Cup, 1950-53
* UEFA Nations League
** Promotion (1): 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C#Group 2, 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C
*
Balkan Cup
The Balkan Cup was an international association football competition contested on and off from 1929 to 1980 by countries from the Balkans region. The most successful team was Romania with four titles.
Overview
The first edition featured Romania, ...
** Runners-up (1): 1934–35 Balkan Cup, 1934–35
** Third place (3): 1929–31 Balkan Cup, 1929–31, 1935 Balkan Cup, 1935, 1936 Balkan Cup, 1936
Other
* World Soccer (magazine), ''World Soccer'' (magazine) – Men's World Team of the Year
** Champions (1): World Soccer (magazine), 2004
* Laureus World Sports Award for Team of the Year
** Champions (1): Laureus World Sports Award for Team of the Year, 2005
* 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, FIFA Confederations Cup FIFA Fair Play Trophy
** Champions (1): 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, 2005
*Unofficial Football World Championships
**Matches won as Champions: 11
See also
*List of Greece international footballers
*Greece national under-23 football team (Greece Olympic team)
*Greece national under-21 football team
*Greece national under-20 football team
*Greece national under-19 football team
*Greece national under-17 football team
References
Further reading
* Αρβανίτης, Στάθης (2004). ''Εθνική Ελλάδος Ποδοσφαίρου 1929-2004'' . Εκδόσεις Καστανιώτης. .
* Μαμουζέλος, Γιάννης Ν. & Νταβέλος, Θοδωρής (2007). ''100 χρόνια Εθνική Ελλάδας'' . Αθήνα, Ελλάδα: Εκδόσεις Άγκυρα. .
* Φασούλας, Χρήστος & Κοντολέων, Δομήνικος (2008). ''Εθνική Ελλάδος γεια σου!'' . Εκδόσεις Παπαδόπουλος. .
* Σαμπράκος, Βασίλης (2018). ''Εξηγώντας το Θαύμα'' . Εκδόσεις Τόπος. .
External links
Official website
Greeceat
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
Greeceat UEFA
greecechampion.comGreece Champions UEFA Euro 2004, Euro 2004
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greece National Football Team
Greece national football team
European national association football teams
Football in Greece, National team
UEFA European Championship-winning countries
Laureus World Sports Awards winners
1920 establishments in Greece