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Serbia

Nickname(s)	Оrlovi / Орлови (The Eagles)
Association	Football Association of Serbia
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Mladen Krstajić
Captain	Aleksandar Kolarov
Most caps	Branislav Ivanović (105)
Top scorer	Stjepan Bobek (38)
Home stadium	Rajko Mitić Stadium, Belgrade
FIFA code	SRB
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	29 (20 December 2018)[1]
Highest	6 (December 1998)
Lowest	101 (December 1994)
Elo ranking
Current	20 3 (28 December 2018)[2]
Highest	4 (June 1998)
Lowest	47 (October 2012)
First international
Czechoslovakia 7–0 Kingdom SCS (Antwerp, Belgium; 28 August 1920) as Serbia  Czech Republic 1–3 Serbia  (Uherské Hradiště, Czech Republic; 18 August 2006)
Biggest win
SFR Yugoslavia 10–0 Venezuela  (Curitiba, Brazil; 14 June 1972) as Serbia  Azerbaijan 1–6 Serbia  (Baku, Azerbaijan; 17 October 2007)  Serbia 5–0 Romania  (Belgrade, Serbia; 10 October 2009)  Serbia 6–1 Wales  (Novi Sad, Serbia; 11 September 2012)
Biggest defeat
Czechoslovakia 7–0 Kingdom SCS (Antwerp, Belgium; 28 August 1920)  Uruguay 7–0 Kingdom SCS (Paris, France; 26 May 1924)  Czechoslovakia 7–0 Kingdom SCS (Prague, Czechoslovakia; 28 October 1925) as Serbia  Czech Republic 4–1  Serbia (Vítkovice, Czech Republic; 13 November 2015)
World Cup
Appearances	12 (first in 1930)
Best result	Fourth place as Yugoslavia (1930, 1962)
European Championship
Appearances	5 (first in 1960)
Best result	Runners-up as Yugoslavia (1960, 1968)
Medal record Olympic Games 1960 Rome Team 1948 London Team 1952 Helsinki Team 1956 Melbourne Team 1984 Los Angeles Team Mediterranean Games 1971 Izmir Team 1979 Split Team

The Serbia national football team (Serbian: Фудбалска репрезентација Србије / Fudbalska reprezentacija Srbije) represents Serbia in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Serbia, the governing body for football in the country.

With the national team nicknamed the Orlovi (Орлови; the Eagles), football has a long history in both Serbia and neighbouring countries. Serbia competed under the various forms of Yugoslav national teams, where it achieved considerable success, finishing fourth at the 1930 and 1962 World Cups respectively. Considered by FIFA and UEFA to be the successor of both the Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro national teams, the achievements of the promising team of the 1990s which featured players such as Dragan Stojković, Dejan Savićević, Predrag Mijatović, Vladimir Jugović and Siniša Mihajlović was somewhat curbed due to international sanctions imposed against Yugoslavia at the time due to the Yugoslav Wars.

Following the dissolution of Serbia and Montenegro, Serbia has played as an independent nation since 2006, and qualified for the World Cup in 2010 and 2018.

The home ground of the national team is the Rajko Mitić Stadium of Red Star Belgrade, located in Belgrade. Their home stadium can also be the Partizan stadium as well.

Both FIFA and UEFA consider the Serbian national team to be the direct and sole successor of the Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro teams.^[3][4][5]

History

Kingdom of Yugoslavia

The first national team was in the kingdom that existed between the two world wars. The Football Federation of what was then the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was founded in Zagreb in 1919 under the name Jugoslovenski nogometni savez (and admitted into FIFA), and the national team played its first international game at the Summer Olympics in Antwerp in 1920. The opponent was Czechoslovakia, and the historic starting eleven that represented Kingdom of SCS on its debut were: Dragutin Vrđuka, Vjekoslav Župančić, Jaroslav Šifer, Stanko Tavčar, Slavin Cindrić, Rudolf Rupec, Dragutin Vragović and Jovan Ružić. They lost by a large margin, 0–7,^[6] but nonetheless entered their names in the history books.

1930 World Cup

In 1929, the country was renamed to Yugoslavia and the football association became Fudbalski Savez Jugoslavije and moved its headquarters to Belgrade. The national team participated at the 1930 FIFA World Cup, finishing in third place.^[7] In its first ever World Cup match in Montevideo's Parque Central, Yugoslavia managed a famous 2–1 win versus mighty Brazil, with the following starting eleven representing the country: Milovan Jakšić, Branislav Sekulić, Aleksandar Tirnanić, Milutin Ivković, Ivica Bek, Momčilo Đokić, Blagoje Marjanović, Milorad Arsenijević, Đorđe Vujadinović, Dragoslav Mihajlović, and Ljubiša Stefanović. The national team consisted of players based in Serbian football clubs, while the Zagreb Subassociation forbid players from Croatian clubs to play in the World Cup due to the relocation of the football association's headquarters from Zagreb to Belgrade.^[8]

Socialist Yugoslavia

The federation and football overall was disrupted by World War II. After the war, a socialist federation was formed and the football federation reconstituted.

Silver Medal at 1948 and 1952 Olympics

Yugoslavia begin their football campaign by defeating Luxembourg 6–1,^[9] with five different players scoring the goals. In the quarter-finals and the semi-finals, they would take out Turkey^[10] and Great Britain^[11] by the same score of 3–1. In the final though, they would lose to Sweden.^[12]

Having a team with many players from the 1948 generation, Yugoslavia was a formidable side at the 1952 Summer Olympics and finished as runners-up behind the legendary Hungary national team. Against the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia was 5–1 up with 15 minutes of their first round match to go. The Yugoslavs, understandably, put their feet up. Arthur Ellis, the match referee, recorded what happened next in his book, The Final Whistle (London, 1963): "The USSR forced the most honourable draw ever recorded! [Vsevolod] Bobrov, their captain, scored a magnificent hat-trick. After the Soviet Union had reduced the lead to 5–2, he, almost single-handed, took the score to 5–5, scoring his third in the last minute. For once, use of the word sensational was justified." Although Bobrov's early goal in their replay presaged a miraculous recovery, Yugoslavia recovered sufficiently to put out their opponents easily in the second half.

1960s through 1980s

Yugoslavia organized the 1976 European Championship played in Belgrade and Zagreb. The national team participated in eight World Cups and four Euros, and won the Olympic football tournament in 1960 at the Summer Games (they also finished second three times and third once).

Dissolution of Yugoslavia and UN sanctions

With the end of the Cold War, democratic principles were introduced to the country which brought about the end of Titoist rule. In the subsequent atmosphere, national tensions were heightened. At the Yugoslavia-Netherlands friendly in preparation for the 1990 World Cup, the Croatian crowd in Zagreb jeered the Yugoslav team and anthem and waved Dutch flags (owing to its resemblance to the Croatian tricolour). With the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the team split up and the remaining team of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) was banned from competing at Euro 92. The decision was made on 31 May 1992, just ten days before the competition commenced.^[13]

They had finished top of their qualifying group, but were unable to play in the competition due to United Nations Security Council Resolution 757. Their place was taken by Denmark, who went on to win the competition. Yugoslavia had also been drawn as the top seed in Group 5 of the European Zone in the qualifying tournament for the 1994 World Cup. FRY was barred from competing, rendering the group unusually weak.

Serbia and Montenegro

1998 World Cup

Although the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, consisting of Serbia and Montenegro, was formed on 27 April 1992, its teams were banned from all international sporting events, including the national football team. Consequently, the national team did not play its first game as a new country before 23 December 1994, a friendly match played in Porto Alegre and in which Brazil won 2–0. This was the first ever team composed of Serbian and Montenegrin players exclusively, while Slobodan Santrač, a former Yugoslavia national team player, was named the team's first ever manager. The next game was played three days later, this time in Buenos Aires, resulting in a 1–0 loss to Argentina.

Also due to the United Nations international sanctions, the team could not participate in 1994 World Cup qualifying nor the Euro 1996 qualifying process.

On 31 March 1995, the team recorded its first official win in history, a 1–0 friendly against Uruguay, simultaneously marking the team's first ever home game, played at Stadion Crvena Zvezda in Belgrade, and the first ever goal scored, courtesy of Savo Milošević. Slightly more than one year later, the team recorded its first ever win in a World Cup qualifying tournament in its first game in such a tournament, a 3–1 win over the Faroe Islands. Shortly after, the team also recorded its biggest win in history, once again against the Faroe Islands, 8–1. Yugoslavia finished second in Group 6, just behind Spain, meaning it had to go through the play-off system in order to qualify. Yugoslavia was paired up with Hungary, and what was believed would be a tough match turned out to be an easy win for Yugoslavia, 7–1 in Budapest and 5–0 in Belgrade, for an aggregate score of 12–1. This was enough to secure Yugoslavia its first ever World Cup appearance as a new country.

The 1998 World Cup seeding had Yugoslavia ranked in 21st position, but the Yugoslavia national team went to France as one of the shadow favorites for the World Cup. The New York Times stated that Yugoslavia could easily be a semi-finalist in that year's World Cup.^[14] The justification for such an estimation was partially found in the names of the Yugoslav players, members of great European teams and proven footballers. The draw put the team in Group F alongside Germany, the United States, and Iran. Yugoslavia won its first game 1–0 against Iran thanks to a goal from defender Siniša Mihajlović. The next game was a draw for Yugoslavia. After leading Germany 2–0, last game's hero, Mihajlović, scored an unlucky own goal following a German freekick, and Oliver Bierhoff equalised at 2–2 with only about ten minutes to the match. Nonetheless, Yugoslavia responded in the next game against the United States and won 1–0 due to an early goal in Nantes. Yugoslavia made easy work of Group 6, but despite an excellent record, the game against Germany would prove costly as Germany won the group thanks to a better goal difference.

Due to their second position, Yugoslavia saw itself face the Netherlands in the Round of 16. Yugoslavia entered in the match with a sole attacker, but its defensive tactics proved unsuccessful as Dennis Bergkamp put the Netherlands in front in the 38th minute. Immediately following the start of the second half, Yugoslavia pressured the Dutch, who inevitably conceded a header from Slobodan Komljenović. However, the turning point of this match was a penalty awarded to Yugoslavia after Vladimir Jugović was fouled in the penalty area. Predrag Mijatović's shot dazzled Edwin van der Sar, but not the crossbar, and the scoreline remained the same at 1–1. Such an event demoralized the Yugoslavs, as the Dutch took the initiative. In the late seconds of the game, as everybody was preparing for extra time, Edgar Davids' shot towards the Yugoslav net from a distance of 20 meters and beat goalkeeper Ivica Kralj, to the pure disbelief of the Yugoslav players and fans. This marked the end of Yugoslavia's run in the 1998 World Cup, since there was not much time left to do anything.

Unlucky events forced Yugoslavia out of the tournament, but the team definitely demonstrated its great ability and proved it had a spot among the world's best teams. This was also reflected in the FIFA World Rankings following the 1998 FIFA World Cup, in which Yugoslavia was constantly ranked in the Top 10 for a long period of time.

Euro 2000

The draw for the Euro 2000 qualifiers saw many eyebrows raised as first-seeded Yugoslavia was drawn in a group with Croatia, thus marking the first games between the two teams after the breakup of Yugoslavia. The other teams in the group were the Republic of Ireland, Macedonia, and Malta. When the qualifiers began, the coach was Milan Živadinović, but in July 1999 he resigned and was replaced by Vujadin Boškov.

The team started with a 1–0 win over Ireland in Belgrade, before beating Malta 3–0 in Ta' Qali. The home fixture against the Maltese followed, but was moved to Thessaloniki, Greece due to the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. The team nonetheless won 4–1. The first, highly anticipated match against Croatia took place in Belgrade shortly after the bombing ended, and was interrupted due to a power outage at the beginning of the second half, resuming after 43 minutes^[15] and eventually finishing 0–0. A 2–1 defeat against Ireland in Dublin was followed by victories home and away against Macedonia (3–1 and 4–2 respectively), meaning that Yugoslavia needed to win its final qualifier against Croatia in Zagreb, or to draw with Ireland failing to beat Macedonia in Skopje, in order to qualify automatically for Euro 2000. In the event, Ireland conceded an injury-time equaliser, meaning that Yugoslavia's 2–2 draw with the Croatians was good enough.

The draw for the finals placed Yugoslavia in Group C along with Spain, Norway and another former Yugoslav republic, Slovenia. The Slovenians took a surprise 3–0 lead in the first game at the Stade du Pays de Charleroi, but three goals in six second-half minutes enabled Yugoslavia to secure a 3–3 draw. The team then beat Norway 1–0 in Liège, thanks to an early Savo Milošević backheel strike. The final group game, against Spain in Bruges, saw the Yugoslavs take the lead three times, before a Gaizka Mendieta penalty and an Alfonso strike in injury-time secured a dramatic 4–3 win for the Spaniards and top spot in the group. Yugoslavia nonetheless finished second, level on points with Norway but ranked ahead due to its victory in Liège. In each of the three games, the team had one player sent off (Siniša Mihajlović, Mateja Kežman, and Slaviša Jokanović, respectively).

In the quarter-finals, Yugoslavia was once again paired with the Netherlands. Unlike the last time, the co-hosts made easy work of Yugoslavia, winning 6–1 in Rotterdam with Patrick Kluivert scoring a hat-trick.

Savo Milošević was crowned the joint top scorer of the tournament, alongside Patrick Kluivert. Both players scored five goals, although Milošević played one game fewer.^[16]

2002 World Cup

The 2002 qualifiers marked the first time that Yugoslavia failed to reach a major tournament ever since its return to the big stage after the UN sanctions. The problems started with the major political turmoil in the country as well in the Yugoslav FA, which prompted the new coach Ilija Petković to resign only after one game (2–0 away victory against Luxembourg).

Milovan Đorić took over the team, but under his leadership, the team managed only two draws (1–1 at home vs. Switzerland and also 1–1 away in Slovenia, in both games the opponents managed to equalise in late stages of the game) and a 0–1 home loss to Russia (which marked the team's first home defeat in official matches). After Ðorić's resignation, a three-man commission, consisting of Dejan Savićević, Vujadin Boškov, and Ivan Ćurković, took over the coaching duties, until Savićević ultimately took over on his own. The team managed to bounce back with a draw in Russia and a win in Switzerland, but failed to defeat Slovenia in the penultimate game, thus ended the qualifiers in third position.

2006 World Cup

After Savićević's disastrous spell as coach of Yugoslavia, the country went under a political transformation, and Ilija Petković became the newly named Serbia and Montenegro's new coach. Initially, the team under his lead experienced dragging failure in the Euro 2004 qualifiers while competing for the first time as Serbia and Montenegro. Despite drawing both games against group favorites and eventual group winners Italy and winning both games against runners-up Wales, Serbia and Montenegro failed to qualify, mostly due to an embarrassing 2–2 home draw and 2–1 away loss to Azerbaijan.

Qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, however, was different. Serbia and Montenegro began the campaign by finishing first with an undefeated record in their qualification group ahead of favourites Spain. The Serbia and Montenegro team also allowed only one goal in the ten matches, the best defensive record of all 51 teams participating in qualification.

For the 2006 qualifiers, Serbia and Montenegro was drawn in a group with Spain, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lithuania and San Marino. Led once again by Ilija Petković as coach, Serbia and Montenegro played some impressive defensive football—the "Famous Four" defense, consisting of Nemanja Vidić, Mladen Krstajić, Goran Gavrančić, and Ivica Dragutinović, with Dragoslav Jevrić as goalkeeper, conceded only one goal in ten games, finishing first with a 6–4–0 record, ahead of Spain.

On 3 June 2006, following a referendum, Montenegro declared its independence from Serbia. As the World Cup was about to start, it was decided that the Serbia and Montenegro team that had qualified for the tournament would compete, with the split into separate teams representing the new countries of Montenegro and Serbia to take place once the team was no longer in the tournament.

In the group stage, Serbia and Montenegro lost their opening game to joint group favourite, the Netherlands. The final score was 1–0 after Arjen Robben scored the only goal of the game. They also lost their second game to Argentina 6–0, Serbia and Montenegro's worst ever international result. With the team's two losses and with Netherlands and Argentina winning both their games, Serbia and Montenegro could no longer qualify for the knockout matches, and was playing for pride alone in their final group game against Ivory Coast. Despite having a 2–0 lead for much of the first half, the Elephants managed to come back and win 3–2, leaving Serbia and Montenegro with a disappointing 0–0–3 World Cup run.

Serbia

After Montenegro declared independence, Serbia marked their split from Montenegro with a 3–1 win over the Czech Republic. The Euro 2008 qualification process began not long after in 2007 and ended in disappointment for Serbia. A strong start in qualification was overshadowed by the final hurdle of matches where inconsistency took over, the side dropping points against the likes of Finland, Belgium, Armenia and Kazakhstan. They eventually finished third, three points behind runners-up Portugal and Group A winners Poland. Serbia's first ever foreign coach Javier Clemente was sacked after the failure.

Serbia replaced Clemente with Miroslav Đukić, who then left the position on 19 August of the following year without having played any official games, due to various disagreements with the Football Association of Serbia.

2010 World Cup

Stojković Ivanović Vidić Subotić Kolarov Krasić Kuzmanović Stanković Ninković Jovanović Žigić

Serbia's starting XI in their famous 1–0 win over Germany at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[17]

Subsequent to Ðukić's rapid departure, Radomir Antić was appointed coach and success followed. Serbia's World Cup qualification campaign began in 2008. Their qualification group featured former World Cup winners and 2006 FIFA World Cup runners-up France, traditionally powerful Romania, as well as Austria, Lithuania and the Faroe Islands. Serbia played consistently during the qualifiers and this led to the team automatically qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. They confirmed qualification with a commanding 5–0 win at home against Romania.

Like in 2006, Serbia went into the 2010 FIFA World Cup as the dark horses of the tournament. Key points justifying their potential surprise-team status included a star-studded defense that was composed by Nemanja Vidić, Neven Subotić, Aleksandar Kolarov and Branislav Ivanović. The captain of Serbia's 2010 World Cup campaign was stalwart Dejan Stanković, who became the only player to feature in a World Cup having played under three different national names (although he never changed nationality; this was a result of geopolitical events involving the identity of Yugoslavia).^[18] In their first tournament as an independent nation, they were to face Ghana, Germany and Australia.

Their opening group game was against Ghana and chances came to both sides but a red card to Aleksandar Luković and a handball by substitute Zdravko Kuzmanović in the second half gave Ghana a penalty to take all three points at the death. Asamoah Gyan converted eight minutes from full-time and Serbia were defeated 1–0.

In Serbia's second group match, they sensationally defeated Germany by a score of 1–0 with an acrobatic goal by Milan Jovanović late in the first half. FIFA's official YouTube channel called the win "the most famous day in Serbia's footballing history".^[19]

Serbia only needed a single point to reach the knockout stages but were defeated by Australia 2–1 in an entertaining match where Serbia's dominance in the first half and in periods of the second half would have made it look like a Serbia victory. Australia scored 2 goals in the second half through Tim Cahill and Brett Holman. A late Marko Pantelić goal served only as a consolation. They finished last in the group.

Radomir Antić was sacked two games into the Euro 2012 qualification process, a 1–1 draw at home to Slovenia spelling the end to his two-year stint. The sacking meant the bringing in of Vladimir Petrović to the job.

Euro 2012 campaign

Serbia once again failed to qualify for the European Championships, making it 12 years since the country last took part in the tournament. Serbia was drawn in Qualification Group C featuring Italy, Slovenia, Estonia, Northern Ireland and the Faroe Islands. The qualifying stage began with Radomir Antić as coach and finished with Vladimir Petrović. Serbia and Antić started the first two games positively with a 3–0 win away to Faroe Islands and a 1–1 draw at home to Slovenia but this result brought the end of Antić's reign as the country's coach. New coach Petrović faced setbacks immediately with an embarrassing 3–1 loss at home to Estonia and an abandoned match resulting in a 3–0 loss to Italy due to crowd trouble from the Serbian away supporters in Genoa.

Serbia returned to form with a 2–1 win at home over Northern Ireland but could only manage a 1–1 draw away to Estonia.

Afterwards, Serbia won back to back games with a 1–0 win away to Northern Ireland and a crucial 3–1 win at home against Faroe Islands. These results put Serbia in pole position to confirm a play-off spot behind Italy.

Serbia needed a win at home against Italy to confirm a play-off spot but their efforts only resulted in a 1–1 draw. The team, however, still had one more chance to confirm a play-off place when they faced Slovenia away. This game was a must win even though Serbia had a superior goal difference over Estonia, a draw was not good enough for progression. Serbia played positively and created a number of chances during the game but a long-range goal put Slovenia up 1–0 at half time. The Serbians then failed to convert numerous chances that they had in the second half, notably Nemanja Vidić's penalty miss midway through the second half. Serbia left empty handed after a 1–0 loss and exited the tournament for the third time in a row during the qualifying group stages, missing out by one point behind Estonia.

Vladimir Petrović was sacked after the team's failure to qualify.

2014 World Cup campaign

Dejan Stanković and Nemanja Vidić announced that they were retiring from international football. This meant that Serbia had lost two key players and that a new era had started. Branislav Ivanović became the new captain. Siniša Mihajlović, a former member of the national team, was appointed as the coach on 24 April 2012. Serbia was drawn in Group A in qualification for 2014 FIFA World Cup, together with Croatia, Belgium, Scotland, Macedonia, and Wales. The team began the qualification campaign with a goalless draw with Scotland and a 6:1 win over Wales. In the next two games, Serbia suffered two defeats, from Macedonia and Belgium.

In 2013, on 22 March, Serbia played in Zagreb against Croatia. The game was highly anticipated in both countries due to their rivalry both on and off the pitch. Croatia won 2–0 and sent Serbia down on the table.
Serbia then defeated Scotland 2–0 at home in a crucial qualifier, though their World Cup hopes were taken away after a 2–1 defeat to Belgium. Serbia drew with Croatia 1–1 in the corresponding fixture at home in a spiteful affair, where 18-year-old Aleksandar Mitrović scored an equalizer in the second-half after Mario Mandžukić opened the scoring. They then defeated Wales 0–3 in Cardiff. Dejan Stanković's farewell game was completed in a friendly against Japan, which Serbia won 2–0. He finished his career with 103 appearances for the national team, a record previously held by Savo Milošević, with 102 appearances. Serbia finished qualifying with a 5–1 home win against Macedonia, putting them in third in the group, three points from a playoff spot behind Croatia and group winners Belgium.

Euro 2016 campaign

Serbia once again failed to qualify for the European Championships, making it 16 years since the country last took part in the tournament. Dick Advocaat was appointed as the coach in 2014. Serbia was drawn in Group I in qualification for UEFA Euro 2016, together with Portugal, Denmark, Albania and Armenia. Advocaat started with a draw in a friendly 1–1 game against France. The team began qualification with a 1–1 draw against Armenia. In the next abandoned game against Albania in Belgrade, Serbia was originally awarded with a 3–0 victory, but was later deducted three points. On 14 November 2014, Serbia played against Denmark in Belgrade and lost, 1–3. After this game, Advocaat left, whereupon Radovan Ćurčić was announced as a new coach on 18 November.

In 2015, Serbia's first match was a qualifying match against Portugal in Lisbon, during which Serbia lost 2–1, cutting their chances for qualification to Euro 2016. On 13 June 2015, Serbia played a qualifying match against Denmark in Copenhagen, losing 2–0. On 10 July, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) announced that it had awarded a 0–3 victory to Albania in the abandoned match held on 14 October 2014, upholding Serbia's three-point penalization. As a result, Serbia became mathematically eliminated from Euro 2016 qualification. On 4 September 2015, Serbia made first victory in this qualification 2–0, against Armenia. On 8 October 2015, Serbia made a spectacular victory against Albania. Serbia beat Albania on Elbasan Arena thanks to Aleksandar Kolarov and Adem Ljajić goals in injury time (2–0). In the table of Group I, Serbia finished second to last place with four points in a five team group.

2018 World Cup: return

Serbia were drawn with Euro 2016 semi-finalists Wales, Austria, Ireland, Georgia and Moldova. They started off their campaign with a 2-2 draw against Ireland at the Rajko Mitic Stadium and continued this good form with wins over Austria, Georgia, Moldova.

Serbia beat Moldova in Belgrade with goals from Aleksandar Kolarov, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Mijat Gacinovic. This consolidated their first position going into their top-of-the group clash with Ireland. They won this match with a 55th-minute goal from Kolarov. Serbia finished with a 1-0 home win against Georgia, and ended top of Group D and therefore qualified for the 2018 tournament, its first major tournament after an eight-year absence.

In the World Cup, Serbia opened their match against Costa Rica, the team that four years ago had stunned big teams like Uruguay, Italy and England. Despite of Costa Rica's historic achievement four years ago, Kolarov's superb free kick at the second half had made Costa Rica to suffer not just their first defeat since 2006 World Cup, but it is also a historic win for Serbia after eight years. However, Serbia performed poorly in their later encounters, losing 1–2 to Switzerland on a 90-minute goal scored by Xherdan Shaqiri >and 0–2 to Brazil, thus once again eliminated from the group stage of a big tournament. Serbia's elimination came out as for the result of lacking experience, since most of Serbia's squad has not played in any big tournaments for eight years.

Rivalries

Serbia has a fierce rivalry with Croatia. This rivalry stems from political roots, and is listed as one of the ten greatest international rivalries by goal.com^[20] and as the most politically-charged football rivalry by the Bleacher Report.^[21] The two sides have a politically turbulent history, which started this rivalry in the 1990s. Both were part of Yugoslavia, which dissolved after war broke out between the constituent republics, including Serbia and Croatia. The two nations have played four times, with Croatia winning one and drawing the other three games.^[22]

Team image

Nicknames

When Serbia played its first international match as a resurrected national team (against the Czech Republic), the team is called the Орлови (Eagles).^[23] The name refers to the white double-headed eagle found on the coat of arms of Serbia, a national symbol of Serbia and Serbs.

Kit sponsorship

In July 2014, a partnership was announced between the Football Association of Serbia and English manufacturer Umbro which is Serbia's official supplier before Puma took over with their home and away kits, debuting 7 September 2014 in the friendly match against France. On 7 September 2014, Serbia unveiled their latest kits also worn at the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers campaign.^[24]

Kit Supplier	Period
Nike	2006–2014
Umbro	2014–2018
Puma	2018–present

Record in major tournaments

The Football Association of Serbia is deemed the direct successor to both SFR Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro by FIFA, and therefore the inheritor to all the records of the defunct nations.

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup qualification in temple

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
as  Kingdom of Yugoslavia
1930	Fourth place	4th	3	2	0	1	7	7		Invited
1934	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	3	4
1938										2	1	0	1	1	4
as  SFR Yugoslavia (until 1962 as FPR Yugoslavia)
1950	Group stage	5th	3	2	0	1	7	3		2	2	0	0	11	2
1954	Quarter-finals	7th	3	1	1	1	2	3		4	4	0	0	4	0
1958	Quarter-finals	5th	4	1	2	1	7	7		4	2	2	0	7	2
1962	Fourth place	4th	6	3	0	3	10	7		2	1	1	0	3	2
1966	Did not qualify									6	3	1	2	10	8
1970										6	3	1	2	19	7
1974	Second group stage	7th	6	1	2	3	12	7		5	3	2	0	8	4
1978	Did not qualify									4	1	0	3	6	8
1982	Group stage	16th	3	1	1	1	2	2		8	6	1	1	22	7
1986	Did not qualify									8	3	2	3	7	8
1990	Quarter-finals	5th	5	3	1	1	8	6		8	6	2	0	16	6
as  FR Yugoslavia
1994	Suspended									Suspended
1998	Round of 16	10th	4	2	1	1	5	4		12	9	2	1	41	8
2002	Did not qualify									10	5	4	1	22	8
as  Serbia and Montenegro
2006	Group stage	32nd	3	0	0	3	2	10		10	6	4	0	16	1
as  Serbia
2010	Group stage	23rd	3	1	0	2	2	3		10	7	1	2	22	8
2014	Did not qualify									10	4	2	4	18	11
2018	Group stage	23rd	3	1	0	2	2	4		10	6	3	1	20	10
2022	Future events									Future events
2026
Total	Fourth place	12/21	46	18	8	20	66	63		123	71	29	22	256	108

* Draw for 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifiers was made on 8 December 1991, however due to break-up of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and consequent military conflict, which broke in early 1991, FSJ ceased to exist as football organization of the SFR Yugoslavia. Organization that remained based in Belgrade, Serbia, was excluded from taking part as FSJ or its successor due to UN sanctions.^[25]

UEFA European Championship

UEFA European Championship qualifying in temple

UEFA European Championship record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
as  SFR Yugoslavia (1960 as FPR Yugoslavia)
1960	Runners-up	2nd	2	1	0	1	6	6		4	2	1	1	10	4
1964	Did not qualify									4	2	1	1	6	5
1968	Runners-up	2nd	3	1	1	1	2	3		6	4	1	1	14	5
1972	Did not qualify									8	3	4	1	7	5
1976	Fourth Place	4th	2	0	0	2	4	7		8	6	1	1	15	5
1980	Did not qualify									6	4	0	2	14	6
1984	Group Stage	8th	3	0	0	3	2	10		6	3	2	1	12	11
1988	Did not qualify									6	4	0	2	13	9
1992	Qualified/Suspended									8	7	0	1	24	4
as  FR Yugoslavia
1996	Suspended									Suspended
2000	Quarter-final	8th	4	1	1	2	8	13		8	5	2	1	18	8
as  Serbia and Montenegro
2004	Did not qualify									8	3	3	2	11	11
as  Serbia
2008	Did not qualify									14	6	6	2	22	11
2012										10	4	3	3	13	12
2016										8	2	1	5	8	13
2020	Future event									Future event
2024
Total	Runners-up	5/15	14	3	2	9	22	39		104	55	25	24	187	10

UEFA Nations League record

Last update : 20 November 2018

UEFA Nations League record
Season	Division	Group	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	P/R	RK
2018–19	C	4	6	4	2	0	11	4		27
2020–21	B	To be determined
Total		1/2	6	4	2	0	11	4	—

Recent results and forthcoming fixtures

For more result see: Serbia national football team results

Head to head records (2006 onward)

As of 20 November 2018

Opponent	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Albania	2	1	0	1[note 1]	2	3	–1
Algeria	1	1	0	0	3	0	+3
Armenia	5	3	2	0	8	1	+7
Australia	2	0	1	1	1	2	–1
Austria	4	3	0	1	9	6	+3
Azerbaijan	3	3	0	0	11	2	+9
Belgium	4	1	0	3	4	8	–4
Bolivia	1	1	0	0	5	1	+4
Brazil	2	0	0	2	0	3	–3
Bulgaria	2	2	0	0	7	1	+6
Cameroon	1	1	0	0	4	3	+1
Chile	2	1	0	1	3	2	+1
China PR	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2
Colombia	1	0	0	1	0	1	–1
Costa Rica	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1
Croatia	2	0	1	1	1	3	–2
Cyprus	4	3	1	0	7	2	+5
Czech Republic	2	1	0	1	4	5	–1
Denmark	2	0	0	2	1	5	–4
Estonia	3	1	1	1	3	4	–1
Faroe Islands	4	4	0	0	10	1	+9
Finland	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2
France	5	0	2	3	4	8	–4
Georgia	2	2	0	0	4	1	+3
Germany	2	1	0	1	2	2	0
Ghana	1	0	0	1	0	1	–1
Greece	2	1	0	1	2	1	+1
Honduras	1	0	0	1	0	2	–2
Israel	2	2	0	0	5	1	+4
Italy	2	0	1	1[note 2]	1	4	–3
Jamaica	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1
Japan	2	2	0	0	5	0	+5
Kazakhstan	2	1	0	1	2	2	0
Lithuania	4	3	0	1	9	3	+6
Morocco	1	0	0	1	1	2	–1
Moldova	2	2	0	0	6	0	+6
Macedonia	3	1	1	1	6	3	+3
Mexico	1	0	0	1	0	2	–2
Montenegro	2	2	0	0	4	1	+3
Nigeria	1	1	0	0	2	0	+3
Northern Ireland	3	3	0	0	4	1	+3
Norway	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
New Zealand	1	0	0	1	0	1	–1
Panama	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Poland	5	0	3	2	3	5	–2
Qatar	1	0	0	1	0	3	–3
Portugal	4	2	0	2	4	6	–2
Republic of Ireland	5	2	3	0	6	4	+2
Romania	4	2	2	0	10	4	+6
Russia	4	0	2	2	3	5	–2
Scotland	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2
Slovenia	2	0	1	1	1	2	–1
South Africa	1	1	0	0	3	1	+2
South Korea	2	1	1	1	3	3	0
Spain	1	0	0	1	0	2	–2
Sweden	2	1	0	1	3	2	+1
Switzerland	1	0	0	1	1	2	–1
Ukraine	3	0	0	3	0	5	–5
United States	1	0	1	0	0	0	0
Wales	4	2	2	0	11	3	+8
Total (60)	136	61	31	44	199	138	+61

Head coaches

As of 20 November 2018

Manager	Period	Record							Major competitions
		Matches	Won	Drawn	Lost	Win %	Draw %	Loss %
Mladen Krstajić	2017–	15	8	3	4	53.33	20.00	26.66	2018 World Cup – Group stage
Slavoljub Muslin	2016–2017	15	8	5	2	53.33	33.33	13.33
Radovan Ćurčić	2014–2016	11	5	0	6	45.45	0.00	55.55	Euro 2016 – Failed to qualify
Dick Advocaat	2014	4	0	2	2	0.00	50.00	50.00
Ljubinko Drulović	2014	4	2	1	1	50.00	25.00	25.00	& —
Siniša Mihajlović	2012–2013	19	7	4	8	36.84	21.05	42.10	2014 World Cup – Failed to qualify
Radovan Ćurčić	2011–2012	5	2	1	2	40.00	20.00	40.00	& —
Vladimir Petrović	2010–2011	13	5	3	5	38.46	23.08	38.46	Euro 2012 – Failed to qualify
Radomir Antić	2008–2010	28	17	3	8	60.71	10.71	28.57	2010 World Cup – Group stage
Miroslav Đukić	2007–2008	5	0	2	3	0.00	40.00	60.00	& —
Javier Clemente	2006–2007	16	7	7	2	43.75	43.75	12.50	Euro 2008 – Failed to qualify
Ilija Petković	2003–2006	30	11	10	9	36.66	33.33	30.00	2006 World Cup – Group stage
Dejan Savićević	2001–2003	17	4	3	10	23.53	17.65	58.82	Euro 2004 – Failed to qualify
Boškov-Ćurković-Savićević	2001	8	4	2	2	50.00	25.00	25.00	2002 World Cup – Failed to qualify
Milovan Đorić	2001	3	0	2	1	0.00	66.66	33.33
Ilija Petković	2000–2001	4	2	1	1	50.00	25.00	25.00	& —
Vujadin Boškov	1999–2000	15	6	5	4	40.00	33.33	26.66	Euro 2000 – Quarter final
Milan Živadinović	1998–1999	6	3	2	1	50.00	33.33	16.66	& —
Slobodan Santrač	1994–1998	43	26	10	7	60.46	23.25	16.28	1998 World Cup – Round of 16
	TOTAL	261	117	66	78	44.82	25.28	29.88	5 out of 11

For the period before 1992 see: Yugoslavia national football team#Head coaches

Current coaching staff

As of 3 September 2018 ^[35]

Serbian coaching staff

Head coach: Mladen Krstajić Assistant coach: Ljubiša Ranković Assistant coach: Zoran Filipović Coach: Milan Obradović Coach: Goran Đorović Coach: Marko Stojanović Goalkeeping coach: Nemanja Jovšić Doctor: Dr. Slobodan Srđanović Physiotherapist: Filip Petrović Physiotherapist: Vukan Vukčević Physiotherapist: Viktor Vujošević Physiotherapist: Dejan Bogdanović Kitman: Đorđe Prerad Kitman: Danijel Dragaš Team manager: Pavle Simić

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for UEFA Nations League games against  Montenegro and  Lithuania on 17 November and 20 November 2018.^[36][37][38]
Caps and goals updated as of 20 November 2018 after the game against Lithuania.

.mw-parser-output .nat-fs-player th{background-color:inherit;border:0}.mw-parser-output .nat-fs-player td{text-align:center;border:0}

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Predrag Rajković	(1995-10-31) 31 October 1995 (age 23)	11	0	Maccabi Tel Aviv
23	1GK	Aleksandar Jovanović	(1992-12-06) 6 December 1992 (age 26)	1	0	Huesca
12	1GK	Nikola Vasiljević	(1996-06-24) 24 June 1996 (age 22)	0	0	Radnik Surdulica
11	2DF	Aleksandar Kolarov (captain)	(1985-11-10) 10 November 1985 (age 33)	82	11	Roma
2	2DF	Antonio Rukavina	(1984-01-26) 26 January 1984 (age 34)	55	0	Astana
4	2DF	Nikola Milenković	(1997-10-12) 12 October 1997 (age 21)	10	0	Fiorentina
13	2DF	Miloš Veljković	(1995-09-26) 26 September 1995 (age 23)	9	0	Werder Bremen
15	2DF	Jagoš Vuković	(1988-06-10) 10 June 1988 (age 30)	8	0	Olympiacos
5	2DF	Uroš Spajić	(1993-02-13) 13 February 1993 (age 25)	6	0	Krasnodar
3	2DF	Milan Rodić	(1991-04-02) 2 April 1991 (age 27)	5	0	Red Star Belgrade
21	2DF	Nemanja Miletić	(1991-01-16) 16 January 1991 (age 27)	1	0	Partizan
21	3MF	Nemanja Matić (vice-captain)	(1988-08-01) 1 August 1988 (age 30)	46	2	Manchester United
22	3MF	Adem Ljajić	(1991-09-29) 29 September 1991 (age 27)	35	8	Beşiktaş
20	3MF	Ljubomir Fejsa	(1988-08-14) 14 August 1988 (age 30)	24	0	Benfica
14	3MF	Mijat Gaćinović	(1995-02-08) 8 February 1995 (age 23)	11	2	Eintracht Frankfurt
6	3MF	Nemanja Maksimović	(1995-01-26) 26 January 1995 (age 23)	11	0	Getafe
16	3MF	Saša Lukić	(1996-08-13) 13 August 1996 (age 22)	6	0	Torino
—	3MF	Branko Jovičić	(1993-03-18) 18 March 1993 (age 25)	1	0	Red Star Belgrade
10	4FW	Dušan Tadić (Third captain)	(1988-11-20) 20 November 1988 (age 30)	61	14	Ajax
9	4FW	Aleksandar Mitrović	(1994-09-16) 16 September 1994 (age 24)	46	23	Fulham
7	4FW	Andrija Živković	(1996-07-11) 11 July 1996 (age 22)	14	0	Benfica
8	4FW	Aleksandar Prijović	(1990-04-21) 21 April 1990 (age 28)	12	2	PAOK
18	4FW	Nemanja Radonjić	(1996-02-15) 15 February 1996 (age 22)	9	0	Marseille
19	4FW	Luka Jović	(1997-12-23) 23 December 1997 (age 21)	3	0	Eintracht Frankfurt
—	4FW	Danijel Aleksić	(1991-04-30) 30 April 1991 (age 27)	2	0	Yeni Malatyaspor

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team in the last twelve months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Marko Dmitrović INJ	(1992-01-24) 24 January 1992 (age 26)	5	0	Eibar	v.  Montenegro, 15 November 2018
GK	Vladimir Stojković	(1983-07-28) 28 July 1983 (age 35)	84	0	Partizan	2018 FIFA World Cup
DF	Branislav Ivanović	(1984-02-22) 22 February 1984 (age 34)	105	13	Zenit Saint Petersburg	2018 FIFA World Cup
DF	Duško Tošić	(1985-01-19) 19 January 1985 (age 33)	26	1	Guangzhou R&F	2018 FIFA World Cup
DF	Matija Nastasić WD	(1993-03-28) 28 March 1993 (age 25)	27	0	Schalke 04	2018 FIFA World Cup PRE
DF	Ivan Obradović	(1988-07-25) 25 July 1988 (age 30)	27	1	Anderlecht	v.  Nigeria, 27 March 2018
DF	Nikola Maksimović	(1991-11-25) 25 November 1991 (age 27)	20	0	Napoli	v.  Nigeria, 27 March 2018
DF	Dušan Basta	(1984-08-18) 18 August 1984 (age 34)	18	2	Lazio	v.  Nigeria, 27 March 2018
DF	Vujadin Savić INJ	(1990-07-01) 1 July 1990 (age 28)	0	0	Red Star Belgrade	v.  Morocco, 23 March 2018
MF	Filip Kostić INJ	(1992-11-01) 1 November 1992 (age 26)	28	2	Eintracht Frankfurt	v.  Montenegro, 15 November 2018
MF	Sergej Milinković-Savić INJ	(1995-02-27) 27 February 1995 (age 23)	10	0	Lazio	v.  Montenegro, 15 November 2018
MF	Nenad Krstičić INJ	(1990-07-03) 3 July 1990 (age 28)	4	0	AEK Athens	v.  Montenegro, 11 October 2018
MF	Luka Milivojević WD	(1991-04-07) 7 April 1991 (age 27)	30	1	Crystal Palace	2018 FIFA World Cup
MF	Marko Grujić	(1996-04-13) 13 April 1996 (age 22)	8	0	Hertha Berlin	2018 FIFA World Cup

Previous squads

Player statistics

Most capped players

As of 17 November 2018 ^[39]

#	Player	Pos.	Period	Caps	Goals
1	Branislav Ivanović	DF	2005–	105	13
2	Dejan Stanković	MF	1998–2013	103	15
3	Savo Milošević	FW	1994–2008	102	37
4	Dragan Džajić	MF	1964–1979	85	23
5	Dragan Stojković	MF	1983–2001	84	15
	Vladimir Stojković	GK	2006–	84	0
7	Aleksandar Kolarov	DF	2008–	82	11
8	Zoran Tošić	MF	2007–2016	76	11
9	Predrag Mijatović	FW	1989–2003	73	26
10	Zlatko Vujović	FW	1979–1990	70	25

Top goalscorers

As of November 17, 2018^[40]

#	Player	Period	Goals	Caps	Average
1	Stjepan Bobek	1946–1956	38	63	0.60
2	Savo Milošević	1994–2008	37	102	0.36
	Blagoje Marjanović	1926–1938	37	58	0.64
	Milan Galić	1959–1965	37	51	0.72
5	Rajko Mitić	1946–1957	32	59	0.54
6	Dušan Bajević	1970–1977	29	37	0.78
7	Todor Veselinović	1953–1961	28	37	0.76
	Predrag Mijatović	1989–2003	28	73	0.39
9	Borivoje Kostić	1956–1964	26	33	0.79
10	Zlatko Vujović	1979–1990	25	70	0.36

Captains (after 1994)

Name	Period	Major tournaments as the captain
Dragan Stojković	1994–2001	1998 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2000
Savo Milošević	2001–2006	2006 FIFA World Cup
Dejan Stanković	2006–2011	2010 FIFA World Cup
Nikola Žigić	2011	—
Branislav Ivanović	2012–2018	—
Aleksandar Kolarov	2018–	2018 FIFA World Cup

Notable players

• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Aleksandar Tirnanić played in the 1930 World Cup and managed the team from 1953–1960
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Rajko Mitić played for Yugoslavia between 1946 and 1957
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Milan Galić played 51 match and scored 37 goals for the team
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Dragan Džajić was considered by many to be the best player in history of Yugoslavia
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Dragan Stojković, fantastic dribbler played 18 years for the national team
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Dejan Savićević played for the team from 1986–1999 and managed the team from 2001–2003
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Predrag Mijatović was the best goalscorer in 1998 World Cup qualifiers with 13 goals
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Siniša Mihajlović played 63 matches for the team from 1993–2003 and managed team in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Savo Milošević played 102 matches, scored 37 goals and was UEFA Euro 2000 Golden Boot
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Darko Kovačević played 59 matches and scored 10 goals from 1994–2004
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Dejan Stanković is Serbian player who won the most trophies. Played in three World Cups and one European Championship
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Mateja Kežman was top goal scorer for the team in 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Nemanja Vidić legendary defender, played 56 matches, and was participant in two World Cups
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Branislav Ivanović is the former captain, and also the most capped player in the team's history
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Aleksandar Kolarov is the current captain of the team
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Vladimir Stojković is the most capped goalkeeper in the team's history
  

  
  

  
  


• 
  

  

  
  

  
  

  Nemanja Matić, current star player, playing for the team since 2008
  

  
  

  
  

Honours

• 
  FIFA World Cup
  
  
  
  • Semi-final: 1930
    
  
  
  • Fourth place: 1962
    
  
  
  
  


• 
  UEFA European Championship
  
  • Runners-up: 1960, 1968
    
  
  


• 
  Summer Olympics
  
  
  
  • 
    Gold Medal: 1960
    
  
  
  • Silver Medal: 1948, 1952, 1956
    
  
  
  • Bronze Medal: 1984
    
  
  
  
  


• 
  Mediterranean Games
  
  • 
    Winners: 1971, 1979
    
  
  

See also

• Serbia national football team results


• Serbia national under-23 football team


• Serbia national under-21 football team


• Serbia national under-20 football team


• Serbia national under-19 football team


• Serbia national under-17 football team


• List of Serbia international footballers (including predecessor teams)


• Yugoslavia national football team

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Serbia national football team.

Official

• 
  Football Association of Serbia – official site (in Serbian)
  


• FIFA profile


• 
  Serbian National Football Team (in Serbian)
  


• UEFA team profile


• FIFA team profile

Unofficial

• 
  Beli Orlovi (in Serbian)
  


• Serbian football at xtratime.org


• 
  BeliOrlovi.rs – fan site (in Serbian)
  


• 
  RSSSF – Serbia men's national football team international matches (in English)