Faroe Islands national football team

Faroe Islands

Association	Faroe Islands Football Association
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Lars Olsen
Asst coach	Jóannes Jakobsen
Captain	Fróði Benjaminsen
Most caps	Óli Johannesen (83)
Top scorer	Rogvi Jacobsen (10)
Home stadium	Tórsvøllur and Svangaskarð
FIFA code	FRO
FIFA ranking	161
Highest FIFA ranking	94 (December 1992)
Lowest FIFA ranking	198 (September 2008)
Elo ranking	157
Highest Elo ranking	144 (1 May 1991)
Lowest Elo ranking	173 (4 June 2008, 10 September 2008)
First colours Second colours
First international
Pre-1988:  Shetland 5–1 Faroe Islands (Lerwick, Shetland; June 9, 1930) Post-1988:  Iceland 1–0 Faroe Islands (Akranes, Iceland; August 24, 1988)
Biggest win
Unofficial: Faroe Islands 6–0 Greenland  (Sauðárkrókur, Iceland; 2 July 1980) Faroe Islands 6-0 Anglesey (Tórshavn, Faroe Islands; July 6, 1889) Faroe Islands 7–1 Åland Islands  (Tórshavn, Faroe Islands; July 12, 1989) Official: Faroe Islands 3–0 San Marino  (Toftir, Faroe Islands; May 25, 1995)
Biggest defeat
Pre-1988:  Iceland 9–0 Faroe Islands (Keflavík, Iceland; July 10, 1985) Post-1988:  Yugoslavia 7–0 Faroe Islands (Belgrade, Yugoslavia; May 16, 1991)  Romania 7–0 Faroe Islands (Bucharest, Romania; May 6, 1992) Faroe Islands 0–7 Norway  (Toftir, Faroe Islands; August 11, 1993) Faroe Islands 1–8 Yugoslavia  (Toftir, Faroe Islands; October 6, 1996)

Faroe Islands national football team in March 2013

Faroe Islands playing against Italy on 2 September 2011. The match ended in a 1–0 loss.

The Faroe Islands national football team represents the Faroe Islands in association football and is controlled by the Faroe Islands Football Association, the governing body of football in the Faroe Islands, which became a member of FIFA in 1988 and UEFA in 1990 and is the third smallest UEFA country by population. Faroe Islands have never advanced to the finals of the FIFA World Cup or UEFA European Championship. They took part in the Island Games in 1989 and 1991 and won both tournaments. They also took part in the Nordic Football Championship for the first time in 2000–01, but the competition hasn't been played since. In the Faroe Islands the team is known as the landsliðið. Home matches are played at the Tórsvøllur or Svangaskarð.

History [edit]

The Faroe Islands gained membership of FIFA on 2 July 1988 and joined UEFA on 18 April 1990.^[1]

Although the national team has been in existence since 1930, neither FIFA nor the Faroese FA considers matches before 1988 as official.^[2] The first official victory was a 1–0 win, in a friendly against Canada in 1989. Faroe Islands pulled one of the biggest upsets in footballing history when they beat Austria 1–0 in their first ever competitive international on 12 September 1990. The game, a Euro 92 qualifier, was played in Landskrona, Sweden because there were no grass pitches on the Islands. Their only other point of the campaign was from a draw against Northern Ireland. During both the Euro 2000 qualifiers and Euro 2004 qualifiers, they also held Scotland to a draw at home (they also drew with Lithuania and Bosnia in 2000, while the draw against the Scots was their only point of the 2004 campaign). The nation's only other wins in European Championship qualifying were in the 1996 tournament, with two wins against San Marino until they won against Estonia in UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying on June 7, 2011.

The team has participated in FIFA World Cup qualifying since 1992. They finished the qualification rounds for the 1994 finals without scoring any points and having 1–38 goal difference from 10 matches. In qualification for the 1998 finals, they improved their record with two victories against Malta, beating them 2–1 in both matches. Their most successful World Cup qualifying so far was the 2002 finals, where they held Slovenia to a 2–2 draw at home and beat Luxembourg twice, 2–0 on road and 1–0 at home. The 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying was, however, not a success for the team and they only earned a single point from a 2–2 away draw against Cyprus.

On 2 June 2007, in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Italy, the Faroes surprisingly took the sluggish world champions to the limit after netting a 77th-minute goal in a 2–1 loss. Overall, their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign was disastrous, as they conceded 43 goals and scored only four (all of which were scored by the same player, Rógvi Jacobsen, and half of which were against Italy) en route to losing all twelve matches.

During the summer of 2008 the Faroese side played two friendlies. First they lost 4–3 to Estonia on 1 June 2008, and this match has been credited at the only official international in which the Faroe Islands scored 3 goals and lost. Later they lost 5–0 to Portugal.

The Faroe Islands began the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying round with a 2–0 loss to Serbia. However, in the match against Romania a few days later, the Faroes' defence held out for almost an hour, but the match ended with a 1–0 defeat. Their next match, against Austria on 11 October 2008, ended 1–1, giving the Faroe Islands their first qualifying point for four years.

After announcing the squad to the matches against Austria and Lithuania, coach Jógvan Martin Olsen announced that he was to step down after three years in charge.

On March 22, 2009 the Faroe Islands played Iceland in a Friendly match and beat them 2–1. It was the first time they had ever won against Iceland.

On April 5, 2009 former Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr was appointed new manager of the team.^[3] On September 9, 2009, Faroe Islands recorded their first competitive win since the 2002 World Cup qualification stage after beating Lithuania 2–1.^[4]

On 11 August 2010, the Faroe Islands came close to an away win in Estonia during the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifiers. The Faroes took the lead in the first half with a goal by Jóan Símun Edmundsson. The score was still 1–0 after 90 minutes played, but Estonia scored twice during stoppage time and Faroe Islands lost the match 2–1.

Two Months later, on October 12, 2010, the Faroe Islands drew 1–1 with the higher ranked Northern Ireland at the Svangaskarð Stadion, Toftir. Striker Christian Holst scored for the Faroes in the 60th minute, before Kyle Lafferty equalised 16 minutes later for the visiting side, earning a point for both teams.

On 7 June 2011, the Faroe Islands defeated Estonia 2–0 at Svangaskarð. Captain Fróði Benjaminsen opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 43rd minute, before Arnbjørn Hansen then secured the win with a follow up after another Benjaminsen penalty. It was the Faroe Islands first UEFA Euro qualification win since 1995.

Faroe Islands were drawn against Kerr's former employers, the Republic of Ireland in Group C for the 2014 World Cup Qualifying. The other teams in the group are Germany, Sweden, Austria, and Kazakhstan.

On October 26, 2011 Brian Kerr stepped down as coach of the Faroe Islands national team, after Faroe Islands Football Association (FSF) announced that "it was not possible to agree a new contract with Brian Kerr".^[5]

On November 8, 2011 the Faroese Football Association announced that an agreement had been reached with the 50 year old former Denmark captain and European Champion from 1992, Lars Olsen, to become the next coach of the Faroe Islands. Lars Olsen is the third Dane to coach the Faroe Islands after Allan Simonsen and Henrik Larsen.^[6]

Achievements [edit]

• Island Games: Winners

1989, 1991

World Cup record [edit]

• 1930 to 1990 – Did not enter
• 1994 to 2010 – Did not qualify

European Championship record [edit]

UEFA European Championship record
Year	Round	Position	GP	W	D*	L	GS	GA
1960	Did Not Enter
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992	Did Not Qualify
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016

Coaches [edit]

Páll Guðlaugsson in 2012

Manager	Note	Year(s)
Páll Guðlaugsson		1988–93
Johan Nielsen & Jógvan Norðbúð	caretakers	1993
Allan Simonsen		1994–2001
Henrik Larsen		2002–05
Jógvan Martin Olsen		2006–08
Heðin Askham	caretaker	2009
Brian Kerr		2009–11
Lars Olsen		2011–

Team captains [edit]

• Jóannes Jakobsen
• Jens Martin Knudsen
• Jan Dam
• Jens Kristian Hansen
• Óli Johannesen
• Jákup Mikkelsen
• Fróði Benjaminsen (Current)

Most capped players [edit]

1. Óli Johannesen (83)
2. Fróði Benjaminsen (74)
3. Jákup Mikkelsen (73)
4. Jens Martin Knudsen (65)
5. Julian Johnsson (62)
6. Jákup á Borg (62)
7. John Petersen (57)
8. Allan Mørkøre (54)
9. Rógvi Jacobsen (52)
10. Øssur Hansen (51)^[7]

Top goalscorers [edit]

1. Rógvi Jacobsen (10)
2. Todi Jónsson (9)
3. Uni Arge (8)
3. John Petersen (8)
5. Fróði Benjaminsen (5)

Current squad [edit]

The squad called up for the training camp in Thailand and the friendly match that was played against the Thailand U23 team on 21 February 2013.^[8][9]

0#0 Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club 1 1GK Gunnar Nielsen (1986-10-07) October 7, 1986 (age 26) 13 0 Silkeborg 23 1GK Kristian Joensen (1992-12-21) December 21, 1992 (age 20) 0 0 NSÍ Runavík 1GK Hans Jørgensen (1990-08-13) August 13, 1990 (age 22) 0 0 HB Tórshavn 14 2DF Erling Jacobsen (1990-02-13) February 13, 1990 (age 23) 2 0 Víkingur 4 2DF Odmar Færø (1989-01-11) January 11, 1989 (age 24) 5 0 Forfar Athletic 5 2DF Rógvi Baldvinsson (1989-12-06) December 6, 1989 (age 23) 10 1 Bryne 2 2DF Jónas Tór Næs (1986-12-27) December 27, 1986 (age 26) 29 0 Valur 3 2DF Pól Jóhannus Justinussen (1989-01-13) January 13, 1989 (age 24) 9 0 NSÍ Runavík 19 2DF Viljormur Davidsen (1991-07-19) July 19, 1991 (age 21) 0 0 FK Jerv 3MF Pætur Dam Jacobsen (1982-12-05) December 5, 1982 (age 30) 4 0 EB/Streymur 20 3MF Karl Løkin (1991-04-19) April 19, 1991 (age 22) 0 0 NSÍ Runavík 15 3MF Høgni Madsen (1985-04-02) April 2, 1985 (age 28) 2 0 ÍF Fuglafjørður 22 3MF Kaj Leo í Bartalsstovu (1991-06-23) June 23, 1991 (age 21) 0 0 Víkingur 21 3MF Gilli Sørensen (1992-11-08) November 8, 1992 (age 20) 0 0 B36 Tórshavn 8 4FW Símun Samuelsen (1985-05-21) May 21, 1985 (age 27) 42 1 HB Tórshavn 17 4FW Arnbjørn Hansen (1986-02-27) February 27, 1986 (age 27) 15 3 EB Streymur 9 4FW Klæmint Olsen (1990-07-17) July 17, 1990 (age 22) 1 0 NSÍ Runavík 11 4FW Jóan Símun Edmundsson (1991-07-26) July 26, 1991 (age 21) 19 1 Viking 4FW Páll Klettskarð (1990-05-17) May 17, 1990 (age 22) 0 0 KÍ Klaksvík 4FW Andreas Lava Olsen (1987-10-09) October 9, 1987 (age 25) 7 1 BK Frem

Recent callups [edit]

The following players have also been called up to the Faroe Islands squad within the last twelve months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up GK René Tórgarð (1979-08-03) August 3, 1979 (age 33) 3 0 EB/Streymur Training camp squad, February-March 2012 GK Jákup Mikkelsen (1970-08-14) August 14, 1970 (age 42) 73 0 ÍF Fuglafjørður Thailand, February 2013 (withdrew) DF Atli Gregersen (1982-06-15) June 15, 1982 (age 30) 19 0 Víkingur Thailand, February 2013 (withdrew) DF Johan Troest Davidsen (1988-01-31) January 31, 1988 (age 25) 24 0 HB Tórshavn v.  Iceland, August 15, 2012 DF Rógvi Holm (1990-01-24) January 24, 1990 (age 23) 0 0 HB Tórshavn v.  Sweden & Ireland, October 2012 DF René Joensen (1993-02-08) February 8, 1993 (age 20) 1 0 Brøndby v.  Sweden & Ireland, October 2012 DF Hanus Jacobsen (1985-05-25) May 25, 1985 (age 27) 0 0 Víkingur Training camp squad, February-March 2012 DF Jan Ellingsgaard (1990-06-26) June 26, 1990 (age 22) 0 0 Víkingur v.  Sweden & Ireland, October 2012 MF Súni Olsen (1981-03-07) March 7, 1981 (age 32) 48 4 B36 Tórshavn v.  Sweden & Ireland, October 2012 MF Fróði Benjaminsen (c) (1977-12-14) December 14, 1977 (age 35) 74 5 HB Tórshavn Thailand, February 2013 (withdrew) MF Daniel Udsen (1983-09-02) September 2, 1983 (age 29) 11 0 Elite 3000 Helsingør v.  Sweden & Ireland, October, 2012 MF Jústinus Hansen (1991-04-19) April 19, 1991 (age 22) 4 0 NSÍ Runavík Training camp squad, February-March 2012 MF Sølvi Vatnhamar (1986-05-05) May 5, 1986 (age 27) 0 0 Víkingur Gøta Training camp squad, February-March 2012 MF Atli Danielsen (1983-08-15) August 15, 1983 (age 29) 42 0 B36 Tórshavn Training camp squad, February-March 2012 MF Jann Ingi Petersen (1984-01-07) January 7, 1984 (age 29) 23 0 B68 Toftir Training camp squad, February-March 2012 MF Bogi Løkin (1988-10-22) October 22, 1988 (age 24) 18 1 ÍF Fuglafjørður v.  Germany, September 7, 2012 (withdrew) MF Jákup á Borg (1979-10-26) October 26, 1979 (age 33) 62 2 B36 Tórshavn Training camp squad, February-March 2012 MF Hallur Hansson (1992-07-08) July 8, 1992 (age 20) 5 0 AaB Aalborg v.  Sweden & Ireland, October 2012 MF Hjalgrím Elttør (1983-03-03) March 3, 1983 (age 30) 27 0 KÍ Klaksvík v.  Sweden & Ireland, October 2012 FW Christian Holst (1981-12-25) December 25, 1981 (age 31) 36 3 Silkeborg v.  Sweden & Ireland, October 2012 FW Finnur Justinussen (1989-03-30) March 30, 1989 (age 24) 1 0 Jönköpings Södra IF v.  Iceland, August 15, 2012 FW Kristoffur Jakobsen (1988-11-07) November 7, 1988 (age 24) 1 0 KÍ Klaksvík Training camp squad, February-March 2012 Recent results and upcoming fixtures [edit] Competition Date Opponents H / A Result Scorers Referee Attendance UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group C 3 June 2011  Slovenia H 0–2 Oliver Darchta 974 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group C 7 June 2011  Estonia H 2–0 Benjaminsen, A. Hansen Antti Munukka 1,715 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group C 10 August 2011  Northern Ireland A 0–4 Emir Alecković 15,000 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group C 2 September 2011  Italy H 0–1 Tamás Bognar 5,654 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group C 6 September 2011  Serbia A 1–3 Benjaminsen Arman Amirkhanyan 9,000 Friendly 15 August 2012  Iceland A 0–2 Laurent Kopriwa 7,800 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 7 September 2012  Germany A 0–3 Bobby Madden 32,769 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 12 October 2012  Sweden H 1–2 Baldvinsson Anastasios Sidiropoulos 5,079 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 16 October 2012  Republic of Ireland H 1–4 A. Hansen Lorenc Jemini 4,300 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 22 March 2013  Austria A 0-6 Oleksandr Derdo 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 7 June 2013  Republic of Ireland A 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 11 June 2013  Sweden A 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 6 September 2013  Kazakhstan A 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 10 September 2013  Germany H 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 11 October 2013  Kazakhstan H 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification 15 October 2013  Austria H 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying [edit] Main article: 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group C Team v t e Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts  Germany 6 5 1 0 22 7 +15 16  Austria 5 2 2 1 13 4 +9 8  Sweden 4 2 2 0 8 5 +3 8  Republic of Ireland 5 2 2 1 9 10 −1 8  Kazakhstan 6 0 1 5 2 15 −13 1  Faroe Islands 4 0 0 4 2 15 −13 0   Austria  — 6–0 1–2 4–0 10 Sep 7 Jun Faroe Islands  15 Oct — 10 Sep 11 Oct 1–4 1–2 Germany  6 Sep 3–0 — 4–1 11 Oct 4–4 Kazakhstan  0–0 6 Sep 0–3 — 1–2 10 Sep Republic of Ireland  2–2 7 Jun 1–6 15 Oct — 6 Sep Sweden  11 Oct 11 Jun 15 Oct 2–0 0–0 — See also [edit] List of Faroe Islands national football team results Faroe Islands national under-21 football team Faroe Islands women's national football team References [edit] ^ http://nocdn.uefa.com/memberassociations/association=FRO/profile/index.html ^ Courtney, Barrie (16 May 2008). "Faroe Islands – List of International Matches". RSSSF. Retrieved 3 November 2010.  ^ "Kerr takes on Faroe Islands post". BBC Sport. 2009-04-06. Retrieved 2009-04-06.  ^ "Eight years of hurt ends". ESPN. 2009-09-09. Retrieved 2009-11-17.  ^ "Brian Kerr steps down as coach for the Faroese National Team". UEFA.com. 2011-10-26. Retrieved 2011-10-26.  ^ "Lars Olsen becomes coach of the Faroe Islands". UEFA.com. 2011-11-08. Retrieved 2011-11-08.  ^ Football.fo, Landsliðsleikarar 1988 - 2012 (List of all players who have played for the Faroe Islands national team, matches and goals) ^ http://www.fsf.fo/Default.aspx?ID=208&Action=1&NewsId=901&currentPage=2&PID=487 ^ http://www.soccerandequipment.com/faroe-islands-soccer-news.html External links [edit] Official website RSSSF archive of results 1930–2008 UEFA.com Footballsupporters.fo (12. Maður – "12th Man", the supporters of the Faroe Islands national football team) v t e Football in the Faroe Islands Faroe Islands Football Association League competitions Men: Premier League 1. deild 2. deild 3. deild Women: 1. deild kvinnur 2. deild kvinnur Cup competitions Men: Faroe Islands Cup Faroe Islands Super Cup Women: Faroese Women's Cup National teams Men: Faroe Islands (Results) U-21 U-19 U-17 Women: Faroe Islands List of clubs List of venues List of footballers List of competitions Foreign players v t e National football teams of Europe (UEFA) Active Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark England Estonia Faroe Islands Finland France Georgia Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Israel Italy Kazakhstan Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Malta Moldova Montenegro Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania Russia San Marino Scotland Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine Wales Provisional Gibraltar Defunct Czechoslovakia GDR Ireland (1882–1950) Saarland Soviet Union (CIS) Yugoslavia v t e International association football FIFA World Cup Confederations Cup U-20 World Cup U-17 World Cup Olympics Minor tournaments World Rankings Player of the Year FIFA Ballon d'Or Teams Debuts Competitions Federations Codes Asia AFC – Asian Cup U-22 U-19 U-16 Africa CAF – Africa Cup of Nations U-23 U-20 U-17 North America, Central America and the Caribbean CONCACAF – Gold Cup U-20 U-17 South America CONMEBOL – Copa América U-20 U-17 U-15 Oceania OFC – Nations Cup U-20 U-17 Europe UEFA – European Championship U-21 U-19 U-17 Non-FIFA NF-Board – Viva World Cup IGA Island Games Games All-Africa Games Asian Games CARIFTA Games East Asian Games Francophonie Games IOIG Lusophony Games Mediterranean Games Pan American Games Pan Arab Games Pacific Games South Asian Games Southeast Asian Games See also International women's football v t e Island Games football teams Åland Alderney Bermuda† Falkland Islands Faroe Islands† Frøya Gibraltar Gotland Greenland* Guernsey Hitra Isle of Man Isle of Wight Jersey Minorca Orkney Rhodes Saaremaa Sark Shetland Western Isles Ynys Môn † FIFA Member * N.F.-Board Member Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Faroe Islands national football team