Bulgaria national football team
Shirt badge/Association crest | |||
Nickname(s) | The Lions (Лъвовете), The Tricolours (Трикольорите) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Association | Bulgarian Football Union | ||
Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
Head coach | Plamen Markov | ||
Captain | Dimitar Berbatov | ||
Most caps | Borislav Mikhailov (102) | ||
Top scorer | Hristo Bonev (47) | ||
Home stadium | Vasil Levski National Stadium | ||
FIFA code | BUL | ||
| |||
FIFA ranking | |||
Current | 17 | ||
Highest | 4 (July 1994) | ||
Lowest | 58 (August 2002) | ||
First international | |||
Austria 6 - 0 Bulgaria (Vienna, Austria; 21 May, 1924) | |||
Biggest win | |||
Bulgaria 7 - 0 Norway (Sofia, Bulgaria, 1957) Bulgaria 7 - 0 Thailand (Mexico City, Mexico October, 1968 Bulgaria 7 - 0 Malta (Sofia, Bulgaria 14 October, 1982) | |||
Biggest defeat | |||
Spain 13 - 0 Bulgaria (Madrid, Spain; 21 May, 1933) | |||
World Cup | |||
Appearances | 7 (first in 1962) | ||
Best result | Fourth place, 1994 | ||
European Championship | |||
Appearances | 2 (first in 1996) | ||
Best result | Round 1, 1996 and 2004 |
Olympic medal record | ||
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Men’s Football | ||
1956 Melbourne | Team | |
1968 Mexico City | Team |
The Bulgaria national football team is the national football team of Bulgaria and is controlled by the Bulgarian Football Union. Bulgaria's best World Cup performance was in the 1994 World Cup in USA, where they beat Germany to reach the semi-finals, losing to Italy, and finishing in fourth place after a 4-0 defeat to Sweden in the third place play-off.
History
Bulgaria's first appearance in a World Cup was the 1962 World Cup in Chile, but failed to progress to the knockout stages. The same happened in England in 1966, Mexico in 1970, and West Germany in 1974. They progressed from the first round in Mexico 1986 but were beaten by the hosts in the round of 16.
Certainly one of the most important dates in Bulgarian football history is November 17, 1993, when Emil Kostadinov scored two goals against France in Paris, allowing Bulgaria to qualify for the World Cup in the USA in 1994. Under the management of Dimitar Penev, the Bulgarians, led by stars like Hristo Stoitchkov, Iordan Letchkov and Krassimir Balakov (along with a multitude of other talented players remembered in Bulgaria as "The [[Golden Generation#Bulgaria National Football Team|]]"), made a strong impression, sensationally eliminating the then defending world champions, Germany in the quarter-finals, with a 2-1 win. Millions of Bulgarians celebrated this win in Sofia and other Bulgarian cities. Having reached the semi-finals, Bulgaria played Italy, but they were knocked out in a controversial match. Hristo Stoitchkov won the Golden Boot as top scorer in the tournament with six goals. Bulgaria also has won the Balkan Cup four times.
Post-1994 history
In 1996, the team qualified for the European Football Championship for the first time, although they did not manage to progress beyond the group stage. It was believed the 1996 squad was stronger than the one in 1994, and that they did not progress to the quarter-finals due to misfortune. The Bulgarians, after a 1-1 draw against Spain (a fantastic Stoitchkov goal was controversially cancelled) and a 1-0 victory against Romania, played well but lost the third and decisive match to a very strong France (the future world champion), 1-3. At the same time Spain defeated a weak and already eliminated Romania 2-1 with the winner coming in the 84th minute.
The Bulgarians did not progress to the quarter-finals in the 1998 World Cup, despite the good form they were in. However, The "Golden Generation" was history. They earned a goalless draw against Paraguay and lost to both Nigeria and Spain.
Bulgaria failed to qualify for the Euro 2000 and for the 2002 World Cup, but did reach the Euro 2004. However, they disappointingly lost all their group matches and were once again sent home without reaching the knockout round.
Competitive record
World Cup record
Year | Result | Position | GP | W | D* | L | GS | GA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1930- 1934 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
1938- 1950 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
1954- 1958 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
1962 | Round 1 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
1966 | Round 1 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
1970 | Round 1 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 9 |
1974 | Round 1 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
1978- 1982 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
1986 | Round 2 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
1990 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
1994 | Fourth place | 4 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 12 |
1998 | Round 1 | 29 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
2002- 2006 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
Total | 7/18 | 26 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 25 | 54 |
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European Championship record
Year | Result | Position | GP | W | D* | L | GS | GA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1960-1992 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
1996 | Round 1 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
2000 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
2004 | Round 1 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
2008 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Total | 2/13 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 13 |
2010 FIFA World Cup
Template:2010 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group 8
Squad
The Bulgarian national squad
As of 26 March 2008
Goalkeepers
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | GK | Georgi Petkov | 14 April 1976 | 11 | 0 | PFC Levski Sofia |
27 | GK | Dimitar Ivankov | 30 October 1975 | 47 | 0 | Bursaspor |
Defenders
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 | DF | Mihail Venkov | 28 July 1983 | 3 | 0 | Litex Lovech |
3 | DF | Aleksandar Tunchev | 3 February 1981 | 14 | 1 | Leicester City F.C. |
4 | DF | Igor Tomašić | 14 December 1976 | 8 | 0 | Maccabi Tel-Aviv |
5 | DF | Valentin Iliev | 11 July 1980 | 11 | 0 | Terek Grozny |
16 | DF | Zhivko Milanov | 15 July 1984 | 4 | 0 | PFC Levski Sofia |
Midfielders
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 | MF | Stanislav Angelov | 12 April 1978 | 16 | 1 | Energie Cottbus |
7 | MF | Velizar Dimitrov | 13 April 1979 | 21 | 2 | FC Metalurh Donetsk |
14 | MF | Stanislav Genchev | 2 March 1981 | 1 | 1 | F.C. Vaslui |
15 | MF | Blagoy Georgiev | 21 December 1981 | 24 | 2 | MSV Duisburg |
18 | MF | Georgi Sarmov | 7 September 1985 | 1 | 0 | PFC Levski Sofia |
19 | MF | Stiliyan Petrov | 5 July 1979 | 72 | 7 | Aston Villa |
Strikers
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
9 | FW | Dimitar Berbatov (C) | 30 January 1981 | 63 | 39 | Tottenham Hotspur |
11 | FW | Zdravko Lazarov | 20 February 1976 | 31 | 3 | Shinnik Yaroslavl |
17 | FW | Martin Petrov | 15 January 1979 | 68 | 16 | Manchester City |
20 | FW | Georgi Kakalov | 18 July 1984 | 1 | 0 | FC Dinamo Minsk |
Recent callups
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GK | Ivaylo Petrov | 3 May 1973 | 0 | 0 | AEK Larnaca | |
DF | Petar Zanev | 18 October 1985 | 4 | 0 | Litex Lovech | |
DF | Lucio Wagner | 15 June 1976 | 10 | 0 | PFC Levski Sofia | |
DF | Yordan Todorov | 27 July 1981 | 1 | 0 | CSKA Sofia | |
MF | Chavdar Yankov | 30 January 1984 | 17 | 3 | Hannover 96 | |
FW | Ivelin Popov | 26 October 1987 | 3 | 0 | Litex Lovech | |
FW | Valeri Bojinov | 15 February 1986 | 21 | 5 | Manchester City | |
FW | Valeri Domovchiyski | 23 April 1986 | 2 | 0 | Hertha BSC Berlin | |
FW | Nikolay Dimitrov | 15 October 1987 | 1 | 0 | PFC Levski Sofia |
Players with most caps
# | Name | Career | Caps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Borislav Mikhailov | 1983-1998 | 102 | 0 |
2 | Hristo Bonev | 1967-1979 | 96 | 47 |
3 | Krasimir Balakov | 1988-2003 | 92 | 16 |
4 | Dimitar Penev | 1965-1974 | 90 | 2 |
5 | Hristo Stoichkov | 1986-1999 | 83 | 37 |
6 | Nasko Sirakov | 1983-1996 | 81 | 23 |
7 | Anyo Sadkov | 1981-1991 | 80 | 9 |
7 | Radostin Kishishev | 1996-2007 | 80 | 0 |
9 | Zlatko Yankov | 1989-1999 | 79 | 4 |
10 | Georgi Dimitrov | 1978-1987 | 77 | 6 |
Players with most goals
# | Player | Career | Goals | Caps |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Hristo Bonev | 1967-1979 | 47 | 96 |
2 | Dimitar Berbatov | 1999- | 39 | 63 |
3 | Hristo Stoichkov | 1987-1999 | 37 | 83 |
4 | Emil Kostadinov | 1988-1998 | 26 | 70 |
5 | Petar Zhekov | 1963-1972 | 25 | 44 |
6 | Ivan Kolev | 1950-1963 | 25 | 75 |
7 | Nasko Sirakov | 1983-1997 | 23 | 81 |
8 | Dimitar Milanov | 1948-1959 | 20 | 39 |
9 | Georgi Asparuhov | 1962-1970 | 19 | 50 |
10 | Dinko Dermendzhiev | 1966-1977 | 19 | 58 |
Stadium
Normally, the Bulgarian national football team's home stadium is the "Vasil Levski". It has a capacity of 43 634. Vasil Levski National Stadium was officially opened in 1953 and reconstructed in 1966 and 2002. It is currently eligible to host UEFA Cup final matches. During the 2006/2007 UEFA Champions League the stadium was used for the games of FC Levski Sofia with FC Barcelona , Chelsea F.C. and Werder Bremen. The Bulgaria national football team's home matches and the Bulgarian Cup finals are held at the venue, as well as athletics competitions.
The stadium also offers judo, artistic gymnastics, basketball, boxing, aerobics, fencing and table tennis halls, as well as a general physical training hall, two conference halls and three restaurants.
Coaches
- Krasimir Borisow ????-1992
- Dimitar Penev 1992 – 1996
- Hristo Bonev 1996 – 1998
- Dimitar Dimitrov 1998-2000
- Stoycho Mladenov 2000 – 2002
- Plamen Markov 2002-2004
- Hristo Stoickov 2004 – 2007
- Stanimir Stoilov 2007
- Dimitar Penev 2007
- Plamen Markov 2008-Present
Famous players
The Golden Bulgarian Football Generation: 1992-1996
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Current Players
See also
External links
- Bulgarian football - history, teams, stadiums, fan clubs
- RSSSF archive of results 1924-
- RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers
- Bulgarian football legends
- Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup
- Planet World Cup archive of squads in the World Cup
- Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup qualifiers