Estonia national football team

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Estonia

Nickname(s)	Sinisärgid (Blue shirts)
Association	Estonian Football Association
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Tarmo Rüütli
Captain	Raio Piiroja
Most caps	Martin Reim (157)
Top scorer	Andres Oper (35)
Home stadium	A. Le Coq Arena
FIFA code	EST
FIFA ranking	112 [1]
Highest FIFA ranking	60 (December 2002)
Lowest FIFA ranking	137 (October 2008)
Elo ranking	112
Highest Elo ranking	51 (August 1927)
Home colours Away colours
First international
Estonia 0 – 6 Finland (Helsinki, Finland; 17 October 1920)
Biggest win
Estonia 6 – 0 Lithuania (Tallinn, Estonia; 26 July 1928)
Biggest defeat
Finland 10 – 2 Estonia (Helsinki, Finland; 11 August 1922)

The Estonia national football team is controlled by the Estonian Football Association. They played their first match in 1920. In 1940 Estonia was occupied by the Soviet Union and did not regain independence (and the possibility of a national football team) until 1991. As a newly independent nation, they played their first match against Lithuania in the Baltic Cup on November 15, 1991, and their first FIFA-recognized match against Slovenia on June 3, 1992, a 1–1 draw at Tallinn. Home matches are played at the A. Le Coq Arena in Tallinn.

Contents 1 Modern history 2 Stadium 3 Kit 4 Supporters 5 World Cup record 6 European Championship record 7 Olympic games 8 Most caps for Estonia 9 Top Estonia goalscorers 10 Results and Fixtures 10.1 Recent results 10.2 Forthcoming fixtures 10.3 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification 11 Current squad 11.1 Recent call-ups 12 Managers and performance throughout the years 12.1 1920–1940 12.2 1992–present 13 See also 14 References 15 External links

[edit] Modern history

After Estonia gained independence, the national team was initially the weakest of the three Baltic teams, suffering defeats such as a 7-1 loss to Croatia in the Euro 96 qualifiers. In the 1998 World Cup qualifiers, Estonia achieved notoriety when a home game against Scotland would be called off in bizarre circumstances.^[2] The replay in Monaco finished 0-0; goalkeeper Mart Poom earned a move to Derby County soon afterwards, with a move to Arsenal later on. The team's best FIFA World Ranking, is that of 60th in December 2002. This allowed Estonia's players to be granted a work visa by the British Home Office to play in the Premier League.^[3]

Estonia's fortunes have improved since. In the Euro 2004 qualifiers, Estonia proved remarkably obdurate with 8 points from as many games, only 4 goals scored and 6 conceded. The 2006 World Cup qualifiers saw further improvement with 5 wins, 2 draws and 5 defeats. Estonia have a number of players who have amassed an astonishing number of caps, including Mart Poom, Andres Oper, Marko Kristal and Martin Reim.

[edit] Stadium

The main stadium for home matches is A. Le Coq Arena, the stadium named after a beer made in Estonia. The stadium was opened in 2001 and the first match was against Netherlands which Estonia lost 4-2. The A. Le Coq Arena was opened in 2001. It is planned to add two more stories and complete the roof in the future.

The Estonian team also plays some of their matches at Kuressaare Linnastaadion. In the near future, Linnastaadion will be replaced by a new stadium to host the games of FC Kuressaare and to be the back-up stadium for the Estonian team. When the stadium is complete, Estonia hopes to host the 2011 and 2013 European Championships for different age class youth national teams.

[edit] Kit

Nike, Inc. has been the kit provider for the national team since 2000 and the current contract will last until 2011. Before Nike, the team was sponsored by Italy-based Lotto. Their sponsorship lasted from 1992 to 2000.

The national team's home dress has always been a blue jersey with black shorts and white socks, although a few kits have had white shorts and white socks. The blue-black-white colors are derived from the flag of Estonia. The away kit has changed several times but it has usually been a white jersey, black shorts and blue socks, occasionally it has been with white socks. The goalie usually wears a yellow jersey, black shorts and yellow socks.

[edit] Supporters

One of the biggest group of Estonian fans are collectively known as the Jalgpallihaigla, meaning "Football hospital" in translation. When joined, each member is given a "diagnosis" for staying in the "hospital". Each member can also buy a members card which allows to get fan goods cheaper from the shop.

Estonia fans are known as relatively calm but loud. They are probably best know for their good singing abilities and using old Estonian songs. Jalgpallihaigla is usually seated at the south tribune of A. Le Coq Arena while the visitors fans are seated at the north tribune. There isn't much history of violence, for example, when Estonia won against Russia 2-1 in 2001, Russian fans started rioting but Jalgpallihaigla stayed calm. The incident lead to the creation of riot police in Estonia. Another incident took place on 4th of June, after a friendly game against Faroe Islands which Estonia won 4-3. Before the game, the anthem of Estonia was sung by Ewert Sundja, an Estonian singer. After the anthem, many Estonians felt that the Estonian pop-star had ruined it. After the game, two Estonian fans beat up the singer,^[4] although it is not known if the fans were members of Jalgpallihaigla.

[edit] World Cup record 1930 - Did not enter 1934 to 1938 - Did not qualify 1950 to 1990 - Did not enter, was occupied by the USSR 1994 to 2006 - Did not qualify

[edit] European Championship record 1960 to 1992 - Did not enter, was occupied by the USSR 1996 to 2008 - Did not qualify

[edit] Olympic games

The Estonia national football team played once so far in the big tournament. It was on 1924 Summer Olympic Games. They played only one game in Preliminary round versus USA and lost 0-1 to a penalty scored by Andy Straden (United States) after ten minutes. Estonia had a chance for a draw against the United States, but the penalty given to Estonia on the 68th minute hit the crossbar. Over 7500 people came to see the match played in Paris.

[edit] Most caps for Estonia Correct as of June 10, 2009.[5] Pos. Player Years active Caps Goals 1 Martin Reim 1992–2009 157 14 2 Marko Kristal 1992–2005 143 9 3 Mart Poom 1992–2009 120 0 4 Andres Oper 1995– 112 35 5 Kristen Viikmäe 1997– 111 15 6 Indrek Zelinski 1994–2007 102 27 7 Sergei Terehhov 1997–2007 94 5 8 Raio Piiroja 1998– 87 6 9 Marek Lemsalu 1992–2007 86 3 10 Urmas Kirs 1992–2000 80 5

[edit] Top Estonia goalscorers Correct as of June 10, 2009.[6] Pos. Player Years active Caps Goals 1 Andres Oper 1995– 112 35 2 Indrek Zelinski 1994–2007 102 27 3 Eduard Ellman-Eelma 1921–1935 58 21 4 Richard Kuremaa 1933–1940 42 18 5 Arnold Pihlak 1920–1931 44 17 6 Kristen Viikmäe 1997– 111 15 7 Georg Siimenson 1932–1939 42 14 = Martin Reim 1992–2007 157 14 9 Friedrich Karm 1920–1927 13 9 = Marko Kristal 1992–2005 143 9

[edit] Results and Fixtures

[edit] Recent results

Date	Competition	Venue	Home Team	Result	Away Team	Scorers
June 10, 2009	Friendly	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	0 – 0	Portugal
June 6, 2009	Friendly	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	3 – 0	Equatorial Guinea	Viikmäe  8' Voskoboinikov  35' Zenjov  90'
May 29, 2009	Friendly	Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli	Wales	1 – 0	Estonia
April 1, 2009	FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	1 – 0	Armenia	S. Puri  83'
March 28, 2009	FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying	Hanrapetakan Stadium, Jerevan	Armenia	2 – 2	Estonia	Vassiljev  36' Zenjov  67'
February 11, 2009	Friendly	Top Kapi Stadium, Belek	Kazakhstan	2 – 0	Estonia
November 22, 2008	Mayors Cup	Linnastaadion, Kuressaare	Estonia	1 – 1	Lithuania	S. Puri  6'
November 18, 2008	Mayors Cup	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	1 – 0	Moldova	Voskoboinikov  56'
November 12, 2008	Friendly	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	1 – 1	Latvia	Kink  52'
October 15, 2008	FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	0 – 0	Turkey

[edit] Forthcoming fixtures

Date	Competition	Venue	Home Team	Away Team
August 12, 2009	Friendly	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	Brazil
September 5, 2009	FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying	Kadir Has Stadium, Kayseri	Turkey	Estonia
September 9, 2009	FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying	Estadio Romano, Merida	Spain	Estonia
October 10, 2009	FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	Bosnia and Herzegovina
October 14, 2009	FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	Belgium

[edit] 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification

Team v • d • e Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts  Spain 6 6 0 0 13 2 +11 18  Bosnia and Herzegovina 6 4 0 2 18 7 +11 12  Turkey 6 2 2 2 6 5 +1 8  Belgium 6 2 1 3 10 11 −1 7  Estonia 6 1 2 3 5 15 −10 5  Armenia 6 0 1 5 3 15 −12 1

Armenia  – 9 Sep 5 Sep 2 – 2 10 Oct 0 – 2 Belgium  2 – 0 – 2 – 4 3 – 2 1 – 2 10 Oct Bosnia and Herzegovina  4 – 1 2 – 1 – 7 – 0 14 Oct 9 Sep Estonia  1 – 0 14 Oct 10 Oct – 0 – 3 0 – 0 Spain  4 – 0 5 Sep 1 – 0 9 Sep – 1 – 0 Turkey  14 Oct 1 – 1 2 – 1 5 Sep 1 – 2 –

[edit] Current squad

Squad called up for a friendly match against  Portugal on July 10, 2009.

No. Pos. Player DoB (Age) Caps Goals Club 30 GK Mihkel Aksalu November 7, 1984 (1984-11-07) (age 24) 5 0 Flora GK Artur Kotenko August 20, 1981 (1981-08-20) (age 27) 19 0 Viking GK Pavel Londak May 14, 1980 (1980-05-14) (age 29) 16 0 Bodø/Glimt 12 GK Sergei Pareiko January 31, 1977 (1977-01-31) (age 32) 10 0 Tom 1 GK Mart Poom February 3, 1972 (1972-02-03) (age 37) 120 0 retired 16 DF Alo Bärengrub February 12, 1984 (1984-02-12) (age 25) 24 0 Bodø/Glimt 17 DF Enar Jääger November 18, 1984 (1984-11-18) (age 24) 63 0 Aalesunds 15 DF Ragnar Klavan October 30, 1985 (1985-10-30) (age 23) 56 1 AZ 5 DF Dmitri Kruglov May 24, 1984 (1984-05-24) (age 25) 42 1 Neftchi 4 DF Raio Piiroja July 11, 1979 (1979-07-11) (age 30) 87 6 Fredrikstad 3 DF Taavi Rähn May 16, 1981 (1981-05-16) (age 28) 45 0 Ekranas 2 DF Tihhon Šišov February 11, 1983 (1983-02-11) (age 26) 17 0 Levadia DF Taijo Teniste January 31, 1988 (1988-01-31) (age 21) 4 0 Levadia 8 MF Aleksandr Dmitrijev February 18, 1982 (1982-02-18) (age 27) 46 0 Hønefoss 9 MF Tarmo Kink October 6, 1985 (1985-10-06) (age 23) 34 3 Győri ETO 7 MF Sander Puri May 7, 1988 (1988-05-07) (age 21) 14 2 Levadia 6 MF Ats Purje August 3, 1985 (1985-08-03) (age 23) 12 1 Inter 14 MF Konstantin Vassiljev August 16, 1984 (1984-08-16) (age 24) 20 1 Nafta 13 MF Martin Vunk August 21, 1984 (1984-08-21) (age 24) 20 0 Flora FW Andres Oper November 7, 1977 (1977-11-07) (age 31) 112 35 Roda JC 10 FW Sergei Zenjov April 20, 1989 (1989-04-20) (age 20) 8 3 Karpaty 18 FW Kristen Viikmäe February 10, 1979 (1979-02-10) (age 30) 111 15 Södra IF 11 FW Vladimir Voskoboinikov February 2, 1983 (1983-02-02) (age 26) 17 2 Syrianska

[edit] Recent call-ups

The list of players that have been called up by the national team coach in the last 12 months. Retired players are not included.

Pos. Player DoB (Age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up DF Gert Kams May 25, 1985 (1985-05-25) (age 24) 9 0 Flora May 29, 2009 v Wales DF Kristian Marmor February 27, 1987 (1987-02-27) (age 22) 1 0 Levadia May 29, 2009 v Wales DF Igor Morozov May 27, 1989 (1989-05-27) (age 20) 3 0 Levadia May 29, 2009 v Wales DF Andrei Sidorenkov February 12, 1984 (1984-02-12) (age 25) 12 0 SønderjyskE November 18, 2008 v Moldova DF Andrei Stepanov March 16, 1979 (1979-03-16) (age 30) 79 1 free agent September 10, 2008 v Bosnia and Herzegovina MF Eino Puri May 7, 1988 (1988-05-07) (age 21) 1 0 Levadia May 29, 2009 v Wales MF Joel Lindpere October 5, 1981 (1981-10-05) (age 27) 68 5 Tromsø April 1, 2009 v Armenia MF Aivar Anniste February 18, 1980 (1980-02-18) (age 29) 45 3 Flora November 22, 2008 v Lithuania FW Alo Dupikov November 5, 1985 (1985-11-05) (age 23) 1 0 Flora May 29, 2009 v Wales FW Vitali Gussev March 16, 1983 (1983-03-16) (age 26) 1 0 Levadia May 29, 2009 v Wales FW Oliver Konsa March 4, 1985 (1985-03-04) (age 24) 12 0 Flora May 29, 2009 v Wales FW Kaimar Saag August 5, 1988 (1988-08-05) (age 20) 15 0 Silkeborg April 1, 2009 v Armenia FW Vjatšeslav Zahovaiko December 29, 1981 (1981-12-29) (age 27) 37 7 Flora November 18, 2008 v Moldova

[edit] Managers and performance throughout the years

As of June 10, 2009.

[edit] 1920–1940 Years Name M W D L 1920–1923 No manager 10 2 3 5 1924 Ferenc Kónya 2 0 0 2 1924 No manager 5 0 0 5 1925 Ferenc Nagy 2 2 0 0 1925–1926 No manager 7 2 3 2 1927 Antal Mally 4 3 0 1 1927–1929 No manager 12 3 4 5 1930 Fritz Kerr 6 1 1 4 1931 No manager 7 4 0 3 1932 Albert Vollrat 7 1 0 6 1933–34 No manager 9 3 2 4 1934 Bernhard Rein 2 0 2 0 1935 Antal Mally 8 0 5 3 1936–1938 Bernhard Rein 21 7 3 11 1939–1940 Elmar Saar 5 1 1 3

[edit] 1992–present Years Name M W D L 1992–1993 Uno Piir 19 2 4 13 1994–1995 Roman Ubakivi 22 0 1 21 1995 Aavo Sarapct 2 0 0 2 1996–1999 Teitur Thordarson 57 13 17 27 1999–2000 Tarmo Rüütli 10 6 2 2 2000 Aivar Lilleverect 2 0 0 2 2000–2004 Arno Pijpers 55 16 14 25 2004–2007 Jelle Goes 28 5 6 17 2007 Viggo Jensenct 8 2 2 4 2007– Tarmo Rüütli 20 6 6 8 ct – caretaker manager

[edit] See also

• Cat:Seasons in Estonian football

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Estonian Football Association Official Site
• Estonian Football Association at FIFA Official Site
• Estonian Football Association at UEFA Official Site
• Estonia national team from 1920 (Estonian)
• Estonia national team 1920-1940 details(Est.)
• RSSSF archive of results 1920-
• RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers
• sportnet.ee/national team players/:1920-1940;1992-2004 (Estonian)
• Records of Estonia national team matches (Estonian)
• Details of Estonia national team matches 1920-1940 (English)

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