Iceland national under-21 football team
National youth association football team From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Iceland men's national under-21 football team is a national under-21 football team of Iceland and is controlled by the Football Association of Iceland. The team is considered to be the feeder team for the senior Icelandic men's national football team. Since the establishment of the UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship in 1978, the team has reached the Euro Championship finals on two occasions, most recently in 2021. In the 2011 and 2021 tournaments they were knocked out in the group stages.[1]
| Nickname(s) | Strákarnir okkar | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Knattspyrnusamband Íslands | ||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
| Head coach | Davíð Snorri Jónasson | ||
| FIFA code | ISL | ||
| |||
| UEFA U-21 Championship | |||
| Appearances | 2 (first in 2011) | ||
| Best result | Round 1 (2011, 2021) | ||
The team is for Icelandic players aged under 21 at the start of the calendar year in which a two-year European Under-21 Football Championship campaign begins, so some players can remain with the squad until the age of 23. Players can represent Iceland at any level as long as they are eligible, giving them the option to compete for the U21s, senior team, and then U21s once more. This has been the case for several senior team players like Eiður Guðjohnsen, Heiðar Helguson, Jón Daði Böðvarsson and Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson.
From 1978 to 2009 the team never qualified for the UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship tournament finals. In late 2010, the team sealed qualification to the championships for the very first team in their history. During the qualification stage they finished second in their group behind the Czech Republic and qualified for the playoffs as a result of being one of the best runners-up in the whole qualification process. Their most notable win came in a 4–1 home victory over Germany.[2] In the next stage they played against Scotland in a two-legged affair in which they won 4–2 on aggregate over the two games.[3]
Their remarkable qualification campaign saw them qualify for the finals where they were drawn against Belarus, Denmark and Switzerland in Group A. In their first two group games they were comfortably beaten by Belarus and Switzerland. In their final group game they defeated Denmark who were the hosts of the tournament 3–1.[4] Iceland would finish third in the group, level on points with the second placed and fourth placed teams.[5] Following the end of the tournament, UEFA announced its Team of the Tournament with striker Kolbeinn Sigþórsson named on the list.[6]
Iceland qualified to the tournament for the second time in 2021.[7]
UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 to 2009 | did not qualify | ||||||||
 2011 |
Group Stage | 5th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | –2 |
| 2013 to 2019 | did not qualify | ||||||||
  2021 |
Group Stage | 15th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 8 | –7 |
| Total | 0 Titles | 0/2 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 13 | –9 |
2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portugal |
10 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 41 | 3 | +38 | 28 | Final tournament | — | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 6–0 | 11–0 | |
| 2 | Iceland |
10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 25 | 7 | +18 | 18 | Play-offs | 0–1 | — | 1–1 | 3–1 | 5–0 | 9–0 | |
| 3 | Greece |
10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 10 | +6 | 17 | 0–4 | 1–0 | — | 2–0 | 0–0 | 4–0 | ||
| 4 | Belarus |
10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 16 | 15 | +1 | 12 | 1–5 | 1–2 | 0–2 | — | 2–0 | 6–0 | ||
| 5 | Cyprus |
10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 11 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 0–1 | — | 6–0 | ||
| 6 | Liechtenstein |
10 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 63 | −63 | 0 | 0–9 | 0–3 | 0–5 | 0–4 | 0–6 | — |
2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship play-offs
The four play-off winners qualify for the final tournament.
All times are CEST (UTC+2), as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).
| Date | Competition | Location | Opponent | Result | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 September 2021 |
OSK Brestsky, Brest, Belarus | Belarus |
2–1 |
||
7 September 2021 |
Víkingsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland | Greece |
1–1 |
||
12 October 2021 |
Víkingsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland | Portugal |
0–1 |
||
12 November 2021 |
Sportpark Eschen-Mauren, Eschen, Liechtenstein | Liechtenstein |
3–0 |
||
16 November 2021 |
Theodoros Kolokotronis Stadium, Tripoli, Greece | Greece |
0–1 |
||
25 March 2022 |
Estádio Municipal de Portimão, Portimão, Portugal | Portugal |
1–1 |
||
29 March 2022 |
Dasaki Stadium, Achna, Cyprus | Cyprus |
1–1 |
||
3 June 2022 |
Víkingsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland | Liechtenstein |
9–0 |
Kristian Hlynsson (x2) Atli Barkarson (x2) Ísak Snær Þorvaldsson (x2) Brynjólfur Willumsson (x2) Kristall Máni Ingason | |
8 June 2022 |
Víkingsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland | Belarus |
3–1 |
||
11 June 2022 |
Víkingsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland | Cyprus |
5–0 |
||
23 September 2022 |
Víkingsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland |  Czech Republic |
1–2 |
||
27 September 2022 |
Stadion Střelecký ostrov, České Budějovice, Czech Republic | Czech Republic |
0–0 |
Current squad
The following players were called up for the friendly matches against 
Austria on 16 June and Hungary on 19 June 2023.[8]
Caps and goals updated as of 26 March 2023, after the match against 
Republic of Ireland.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Adam Ingi Benediktsson | 28 October 2002 | 2 | 0 |  IFK Göteborg | |
| GK | Ólafur Kristófer Helgason | 24 October 2002 | 2 | 0 | Fylkir | |
| DF | Róbert Orri Þorkelsson | 3 April 2002 | 13 | 0 |  Montréal | |
| DF | Valgeir Valgeirsson | 22 September 2002 | 4 | 0 | Örebro | |
| DF | Ólafur Guðmundsson | 18 March 2002 | 3 | 0 | FH | |
| DF | Jakob Pálsson | 7 January 2003 | 2 | 0 | KR | |
| DF | Oliver Stefánsson | 3 August 2002 | 2 | 0 | Breiðablik | |
| DF | Arnór Gauti Jónsson | 31 May 2002 | 1 | 0 | Fylkir | |
| MF | Örvar Logi Örvarsson | 30 July 2003 | 0 | 0 | Stjarnan | |
| MF | Andri Fannar Baldursson | 10 January 2002 | 12 | 0 |  NEC | |
| MF | Kristófer Jónsson | 3 March 2003 | 2 | 0 |  Venezia | |
| MF | Danijel Djuric | 5 January 2003 | 2 | 0 | Víkingur Reykjavík | |
| MF | Orri Hrafn Kjartansson | 5 February 2002 | 2 | 0 | Valur | |
| MF | Andi Hoti | 22 December 2003 | 1 | 0 | Leiknir Reykjavík | |
| FW | Kristall Máni Ingason | 18 January 2002 | 11 | 7 |  Rosenborg | |
| FW | Ísak Andri Sigurgeirsson | 11 September 2003 | 2 | 0 | Stjarnan | |
| FW | Úlfur Ágúst Björnsson | 12 June 2003 | 1 | 0 | FH | |
| FW | Ari Sigurpálsson | 17 March 2003 | 1 | 0 | Víkingur Reykjavík | |
| FW | Óskar Borgþórsson | 15 July 2003 | 0 | 0 | Fylkir | |
| FW | Andri Guðjohnsen | 29 January 2002 | 0 | 0 | IFK Norrköping | |
Recent call-ups
The following players are still eligible for and have previously been called up to the under-21 squad.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DF | Óli Valur Ómarsson | 9 January 2003 | 5 | 0 | Sirius |
v.  Scotland, 17 November 2022 |
| MF | Anton Logi Lúðvíksson | 13 March 2003 | 1 | 0 | Breiðablik |
v. Scotland, 17 November 2022 |
| MF | Davíð Snær Jóhannsson | 15 June 2002 | 1 | 0 | FH |
v. Scotland, 17 November 2022 |
| MF | Kristian Hlynsson | 23 January 2004 | 10 | 6 | Ajax |
v. Czech Republic, 27 September 2022 |
| FW | Arnar Breki Gunnarsson | 23 May 2002 | 1 | 0 | ÍBV |
v. Scotland, 17 November 2022 |
| FW | Eyþór Aron Wöhler | 28 February 2002 | 1 | 0 | ÍA |
v. Scotland, 17 November 2022 |
| FW | Orri Óskarsson | 29 August 2004 | 6 | 0 | Copenhagen |
v. Czech Republic, 27 September 2022 |
| FW | Hilmir Rafn Mikaelsson | 2 February 2004 | 1 | 0 | Venezia |
v. Czech Republic, 27 September 2022 |
Previous squads
Most caps
As of 17 November 2022, the 10 players with the most U-21 caps for Iceland are:[9]
| Rank | Name | Career | Caps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alfons Sampsted | 2017–2020 | 30 | 1 |
| 2 | Hólmar Örn Eyjólfsson | 2007–2012 | 27 | 2 |
| 3 | Bjarni Viðarsson | 2005–2011 | 26 | 6 |
| 4 | Birkir Bjarnason | 2006–2011 | 25 | 3 |
| 5 | Brynjólfur Andersen Willumsson | 2019–2022 | 25 | 5 |
| 6 | Jón Dagur Þorsteinsson | 2017–2021 | 23 | 5 |
| 7 | Orri Sigurður Ómarsson | 2013–2016 | 21 | 0 |
| Alex Þór Hauksson | 2017–2021 | 21 | 1 | |
| 9 | Ari Leifsson | 2017–2021 | 20 | 1 |
| 10 | Pétur Marteinsson | 1992–1995 | 19 | 0 |
| Bjarni Guðjónsson | 1996–2001 | 19 | 4 | |
| Ómar Jóhannsson | 2000–2003 | 19 | 0 | |
| Rúrik Gíslason | 2005–2011 | 19 | 6 | |
| Haraldur Björnsson | 2007–2011 | 19 | 0 | |
| Willum Þór Willumsson | 2018–2021 | 19 | 3 | |
| Kolbeinn Þórðarson | 2019–2022 | 19 | 1 | |
In bold players still playing or available for selection.
Top goalscorers
As of 17 November 2022, the 10 players with the most U-21 goals for Iceland are:
| Rank | Name | Career | Goals | Caps | GPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emil Atlason | 2012–2014 | 8 | 12 | 0.67 |
| 2 | Hannes Sigurðsson | 2002–2005 | 7 | 14 | 0.5 |
| Sveinn Aron Guðjohnsen | 2018–2021 | 7 | 17 | 0.41 | |
| 4 | Kristian Hlynsson | 2021– | 6 | 10 | 0.6 |
| Kristall Máni Ingason | 2021– | 6 | 10 | 0.6 | |
| Gylfi Sigurðsson | 2007–2011 | 6 | 14 | 0.43 | |
| Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson | 2008–2011 | 6 | 14 | 0.43 | |
| Albert Guðmundsson | 2015–2018 | 6 | 15 | 0.4 | |
| Rúrik Gíslason | 2005–2011 | 6 | 19 | 0.32 | |
| Bjarni Viðarsson | 2005–2011 | 6 | 26 | 0.23 |
In bold players still playing or available for selection.
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