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Bulgaria national football team

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Bulgaria
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Лъвовете (The Lions)
AssociationBulgarian Football Union
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachPetar Hubchev
CaptainIvelin Popov
Most capsStiliyan Petrov (106)
Top scorerDimitar Berbatov
Hristo Bonev (48)
Home stadiumVasil Levski National Stadium
FIFA codeBUL
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current38 Increase 14 (14 September 2017)
Highest8 (June 1995)
Lowest96 (August 2012)
First international
 Bulgaria 0–6 Austria 
(Vienna, Austria; 21 May 1924)
Biggest win
Bulgaria Bulgaria 10–0 Ghana 
(Leon, Mexico; 14 October 1968)
Biggest defeat
 Bulgaria 0–13 Spain 
(Madrid, Spain; 21 May 1933)
World Cup
Appearances7 (first in 1962)
Best resultFourth place, 1994
European Championship
Appearances2 (first in 1996)
Best resultGroup stage, 1996 and 2004
Olympic medal record
Men’s Football
Silver medal – second place 1968 Mexico City Team
Bronze medal – third place 1956 Melbourne Team

The Bulgaria national football team (Template:Lang-bg) is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home stadium is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Petar Hubchev is the current national manager. Their best achievmenets are — one FIFA World Cup semi-final in 1994, one UEFA Euro quarter-final in 1968, one Summer Olympics final in 1968, and three Balkan Cup titles. Although defeating strong top ranked teams in many international friendlies throughout the years, the team's strength has slowly diminished, failing to qualify for any major tournament since 2004.

History

The beginning

The Bulgaria national team was founded in 1922. In 1923, the Bulgarian Football Union was established and the team's first match was held in Vienna on 21 May 1924, against Austria a 6–0 defeat. The result was not surprising since Austria was at that time an avangarde of the Central–European school which dominated football in that period. To bring Bulgaria closer to that level, the Bulgarian FA has brought Austrian coaches Nitsch and Stejskal in the 1920s, and Hungarians Nemes, Fogl and German Feist in the 1930s.

Bulgaria was invited to participate in the 1930 FIFA World Cup in Uruguay, but eventually rejected the invitation because the players were incapable of having an extended leave of absence from work.

1930 to 1960

The Bulgarian team at this time could not progress in qualifying for any major tournaments from 1930 to 1960. They would end up finishing, on many occasions, in second or third place in their qualifying group and proceeding to the play-offs, but in the end, failing to qualify. Bulgaria, however, did defeat many strong teams in international games during those years. The only tournaments they were able to qualify for were smaller tournaments, such as the Balkan Cup, which they have won four times. They qualified for the World Cup for the second time in 1962

1960s and 1970s

Bulgaria qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 1962 and followed that up with consecutive appearances in 1966, 1970 and 1974. The team, however finished third in their group three out of the four times.

At the 1968 Summer Olympics, the team won the silver medal. They finished first in Group D by beating Thailand 7–0, Guatemala 2–1, and drawing 2–2 against Czechoslovakia. They advanced to the quarterfinals by beating Israel and the semifinals by beating host Mexico. In the final, the team was defeated by Hungary.

In 1976, the team won the Balkan Cup by beating Romania in the two-legged final 1–0 and 3–2.

1962 World Cup

Bulgaria finally qualified to their first international tournament, the 1962 World Cup, and this would be the first time that they qualified, after not doing so for 32 years. Bulgaria was placed in a group alongside England, Argentina and Hungary. Bulgaria would open up their campaign with a narrow 0–1 loss to Argentina then would lose their second match 1–6 to Hungary. Mathematically eliminated from progressing to the next round, Bulgaria drew England 0–0 to finish fourth in the group with only one point.

1966 World Cup

Bulgaria would qualify for their second World Cup in 1966. They were placed in a group, alongside Hungary, Portugal and a Pelé-led Brazil. Bulgaria would open their campaign match with a 0–2 loss to Brazil thanks to two free-kick goals by Pelé and Garrincha. Later on, Bulgaria would lose 0–3 to the Eusébio-led Portugal, then lost again to Hungary (1–3). They would finish fourth in their group zero points earned.

1968 Summer Olympics

A month-and-a-half after the Euro came the Olympics, which Bulgaria had qualified for the fifth time in their history. They were drawn in a group with Thailand, Guatemala and Czechoslovakia. Bulgaria began with a 7–0 win over Thailand. They would later go on and draw with Czechoslovakia 2–2. Their final match would determine if they would go on to the quarterfinals. Bulgaria defeated Guatemala 2–1 and win their first round Olympic group. They passed on to the Quarterfinals to face Israel. That game would remain 1–1 for most of the match until a drawing of lots determined who would go to the semi-finals of the tournament. Bulgaria won the draw and advanced to play Mexico. They won in overtime with a 3–2 victory. Bulgaria advanced to the finals for the first time in their Olympic history. They then suffered a 1–4 loss to Hungary. Bulgaria won the silver medal in the end.

1970 World Cup

Bulgaria qualified for their third-straight World Cup in 1970, held in Mexico. They were drawn in a group with Western Germany, Peru, and Morocco. Playing their first match against Peru, Bulgaria were leading 2–0 until near the end when the Peruvians came back to win Peru 2–3. In the second match, Bulgaria would fall to West Germany 5–2, ensuring Bulgaria would need to defeat Morocco to progress to the next round. A 1–1 draw, however, resulted in a third-place group finish and elimination from the tournament.

1974 World Cup

Four years later, in Germany, Bulgaria would qualify for their fourth-straight World Cup. They were drawn in a group with the Netherlands, Sweden and Uruguay. Bulgaria would start off with Sweden and after 90 minutes the game would remain goalless in a 0–0 draw. Although no goals, Bulgaria were down set from the disallowed goal they scored, that was ruled offside by the side referee. Later on, Bulgaria tied with Uruguay 1–1. Bulgaria remained in contention; all they needed to do was tie against the Netherlands. As the final match came, Bulgaria fell by a 1–4 score. The Netherlands scored all the goals including an own goal for Bulgaria. Bulgaria remained in 3rd place in the group and did not move on to the next round.

The 1980s and 1990s

1986 World Cup

Bulgaria qualified for the World Cup in Mexico by finishing second in Group Four, behind France with 11 points, but worse goal difference, ahead of the teams of Yugoslavia, East Germany, and Luxembourg. This was their fifth World Cup appearance. They were drawn in Group A with Italy, Argentina, and South Korea. In the opening match of the World Cup, the Bulgarians held the defending champions Italy to a 1–1 draw. Alessandro Altobelli gave the Italians the lead, but an 85th minute equalizer by Nasko Sirakov gave the Bulgarians the point. The next match was another 1–1 draw against South Korea with the goal for Bulgaria coming from Plamen Getov in the 11th minute. They lost the final match of the group 2–0 against Argentina, who ended up winning the tournament. Despite not recording a win, the Bulgarians advanced to the knockout stage by being the third-best third placed team. That way, Bulgaria and also Uruguay became the first nations to qualify for the knockout stage without winning a game in the first round. In the Round of 16, they faced World Cup hosts Mexico and lost the match 2–0. Ivan Vutsov was the manager of the team.

1994 World Cup: Final Four Triumph

File:Stoiko muzeum.jpg
The retired jersey and Ballon D'or of Bulgarian football legend Hristo Stoichkov. Considered Bulgaria's all-time Greatest Player, Stoichkov led his team to a 1994 World Cup Final Four Finish alongside winning the European Golden Boot.

On 17 November 1993, Emil Kostadinov scored two goals to beat France in Paris, thus allowing Bulgaria to qualify for the World Cup in the United States in 1994, and disallowing France to qualify for that tournament. Under the management of Dimitar Penev, the team led by players such as Hristo Stoichkov, Yordan Lechkov and Krasimir Balakov was referred to as the "Golden Generation". They entered Group D with Argentina, Nigeria and Greece. Prior to 1994, the Bulgarians had not won a single match in the previous five World Cup finals appearances. The first match ended with a 3–0 defeat by Nigeria in Dallas. Later, the team won 4–0 against World Cup-debuting Greece in Chicago and 2–0 against Argentina in Dallas. Bulgaria continued to the next round, where they faced Mexico at Giants Stadium just outside New York City. The match ended 1–1 and after no goals were scored in extra time, penalties would decide which team would go through. Team captain Borislav Mihaylov saved two penalty kicks and Bulgaria won 3–1 on penalties. In their quarter-final match, again in New York City, Bulgaria faced defending World Cup champions Germany. Lothar Matthäus scored in a penalty kick. The Bulgarians, however, managed to turn the game over with two goals by Stoichkov and Yordan Lechkov, giving them a 2–1 win. Millions of Bulgarians celebrated this win in the Bulgarian capital city of Sofia and other Bulgarian cities. In their semi-final match again in New York, they lost 2–1 to Italy. Bulgaria then traveled across the country and three time zones to the Pasadena Rose Bowl just outside Los Angeles to play Sweden, who did not have to travel because their semi-final match against Brazil had been held in the Rose Bowl. Sweden beat Bulgaria 4–0, so the team finished the tournament in 4th place. Stoichkov was awarded the Golden Boot (along with Russia's Oleg Salenko) for scoring six goals and finishing as joint top goal scorer of the tournament. Later in December, Stoitchkov was awarded the FIFA Ballon d'Or, becoming the first ever Bulgarian to win it. Krasimir Balakov was named in the all-star team along with Stoichkov.

European Football Championship 1996

In 1996, the team qualified for the European Football Championship for the first time, after some good results in the qualifying group, including a stunning 3–2 turnaround win against future Euro 1996 champions Germany. They were drawn in Group B with France, Spain and Romania. Bulgaria started with a 1–1 draw against the Spanish. They would score a second with a volley by Stoitchkov. After losing against Spain, Bulgaria went on to a 1–0 win against Romania. Stoitchkov scoring in the third minute adding a second goal to the list. In the final group match, they lost 3–1 against France, Stoitchkov scoring from a free kick to give Bulgaria there only goal of the game. At the same time, Spain defeated Romania 2–1 with the winning goal coming in the 84th minute, and the Bulgarians subsequently failed to qualify for the quarter-finals.

1998 World Cup

Bulgaria qualified for the World Cup in France by finishing first in the Group 5, followed by Russia. They entered the competition with a new manager, Hristo Bonev. Bulgaria drew Spain, Nigeria and Paraguay in Group D. The first match ended in a 0–0 draw against Paraguay. In the second match, the Bulgarians lost 1–0 for a second-straight World Cup to Nigeria. The final match ended with a disappointing 6–1 defeat to Spain, even though two offside goals were ruled out. Following the bad results, Bulgaria finished fourth in the group, with only one point, and didn't go through the next round. This was the last major appearance at World Cup level for Bulgaria.

Main article: 1998 FIFA World Cup Group D

2000 Euro Cup qualification

Bulgaria was drawn in a tough qualifying group with teams like England, Sweden and Poland. The campaign started bad with a draw and a defeat by Poland and Sweden. The most memorable match for Bulgaria in the group was the 1–1 draw against England, which was also the last one for Bulgarian legend Hristo Stoichkov before his international retirement. Bulgaria finished third with eight points and failed to make the final stages of Euro 2000.

New millennium

Berbatov training with Bulgaria Right Before Euro 2004

2002 World Cup qualification: Beginning of a drought

Bulgaria, Denmark, and Czech Republic were among the main contenders for the qualifying spots. This is also the debut of Bulgaria's top scoring player Dimitar Berbatov. Bulgaria won the matches against the weaker teams, but lost 2–0 to Denmark and one match with the Czech Republic. That way, Bulgaria finished third with 17 points and three points behind second-placed Czech Republic, thus failing to make the World Cup in South Korea and Japan.

Euro 2004

Bulgaria managed to qualify for the Euro 2004 in Portugal by finishing first in the group ahead of teams like Croatia and Belgium with 17 points. They drew Sweden, Italy and Denmark in Group C. They started off with a defeat by Sweden, followed by a 2–0 defeat by Denmark. The last match against Italy was a 2–1 defeat. Near the end of the match, the score was 1–1 after goals from Bulgarian winger Martin Petrov and Simone Perrotta, but a last minute goal by Antonio Cassano gave the Italians the win. They finished fourth with zero points and were sent home without reaching the knockout round.

2006 World Cup qualification: Failure

Bulgaria failed to qualify for the World Cup in Germany after a run of poor results. They began with a win over Hungary and "weaker" teams in the group. They tied with Sweden and Croatia the first run but lost the other meetings to the two sides. Although Berbatov scored many key goals in the qualifier including a last minute equaliser against Croatia, Bulgaria finished third in Group Eight, behind Sweden and Croatia with 15 points.

2006 Kirin Cup

Although not making it to the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Bulgaria found themselves in a minor tournament in Japan, known as the Kirin Cup, which Bulgaria entered for the first time. They started off well with a 2–1 victory over the hosts Japan. Later, they lost 5–1 to Scotland, the eventual champions of the Kirin Cup. Bulgaria became the Runners Up and received the silver medal.

2008 European qualification: Near miss

Group G had Netherlands, Romania, and Bulgaria as the main contestants for a qualifying spot for the Euro 2008 in Switzerland and Austria. Bulgaria performed well after a run of good results from Romania that gave them the first place. Bulgaria would go on to the playoffs but draw the first match 1–1 with a goal by Petrov in the tenth minute and lose the second 2–0. Bulgaria failed to qualify to the competition, finishing with 25 points, after Romania and the Netherlands, with only one lost match against the Dutch.

2010 World Cup qualification: Close call

The Bulgaria National Football Team in 2010

Bulgaria were drawn against Italy and the Republic of Ireland in qualifying Group Eight. Bulgaria started the campaign with a series of draws in the 2010 qualifiers. The manager Plamen Markov was replaced by Stanimir Stoilov in January 2009. The Bulgarians then recorded their first win in the group against Cyprus, and also won against Montenegro and Georgia. They finished in third place in the group with 14 points, therefore failing to qualify directly or for a play-off place. Bulgarian top scorer Berbatov resigned from the national side after this result.

Era of Decline

2012 European qualification

The Bulgaria National Team in 2012

Bulgaria were drawn in Group G along with England, Switzerland, Wales and Montenegro. Bulgaria started off horribly with an opening away loss to England. They later on drew level with Switzerland along with defeating Wales and Montenegro. However, Bulgaria finished fifth in their group reaching their nadir in their football history, marking the fourth instance during 2000s that the nation had failed to finish in third (or better).

2014 World Cup Qualification

In the qualification phase for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Bulgaria were placed in Group B together with the teams of Italy, Denmark, Czech Republic, Armenia and Malta. Under the guidance of former player Lyuboslav Penev as head coach, Bulgaria enjoyed a 2–1 victory over 2010 World Cup runners-up Netherlands in Amsterdam. The qualifications started with a 2–2 draw against the Euro 2012 runners-up Italy. Bulgaria then defeated Armenia, which ended 1–0. Later on Bulgaria drew 1–1 against Denmark. Four days later, Bulgaria earned a 0–0 draw away against the Czech Republic. As a result of these performances, the team climbed from 96th in the FIFA Ranking, their lowest position in history, to 40th in November 2012, earning FIFA best mover of the year. Penev's players hosted and defeated Malta 6–0 under heavy snowfall. Four days later, Bulgaria once again set a draw with Denmark 1–1 in Copenhagen. This result left Bulgaria second in the group with ten points and still undefeated. Bulgaria traveled to Italy, a game where they lost 1–0. Further on, the lions secured three more points with a 2–0 away win against Malta. After that Bulgaria was defeated by Armenia 2–1 and the Czech Republic 1–0 at home.

2016 Euro Cup Qualification: Continuation of the drought

Bulgaria were placed in a group with Italy, Croatia, Norway, Azerbaijan and Malta. Bulgaria opened up their first match with a 2–1 victory over Azerbaijan. They were defeated 1–0 by Croatia, which was followed by a 2–1 defeat to Norway. Bulgaria then drew with Malta 1–1 at home, but this cost Head Coach Lyuboslav Penev his position and he was replaced by former Ludogorets Razgrad Coach Ivaylo Petev. In his debut match in February 2015, Petev's squad drew Romania 0–0 in a friendly, which was then followed at the end of March by a 2–2 qualifier match draw with Italy, a match which Bulgaria had led till the 84th minute. In June, Bulgaria defeated Malta 1–0 to move within 2 points of the third place playoff position. They then, however, lost their next three matches against Norway, Italy and Croatia before winning their final match 2–0 over Azerbaijan, thus failing to qualify for the finals tournament..

2018 World Cup qualification - Resurgence

Main article: 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group A

Bulgaria have been drawn in a World Cup qualification group with Netherlands, France and Sweden, Belarus and Luxembourg. Bulgaria has already had a recent meeting with the Netherlands within the year 2013 in which Bulgaria came out on top with a 2–1 victory. Bulgaria has also had a 100 percent record history against Luxembourg while recently defeating Belarus 2–1 in a friendly in 2014. To add to this aspect, the last time Bulgaria was drawn within a world cup qualification group with Sweden and France was in 1994. Bulgaria drew level with Sweden once, and defeated France twice, decisively, to reach the 1994 World Cup in the U.S. where Bulgaria reached its all-time high of going to the Semi-finals. Bulgaria has luckily drawn Luxembourg at home for their first match in September. This will give them the brief opportunity to re-group hoping to earn an early victory. This can lead the team on to starting off their qualifying campaign on a very positive level at the top of the group while building momentum overtime for when the time comes to face the stronger and tougher opponents. In the beginning, Bulgaria earned a hard-fought 4-3 win against Luxembourg at home, a frustrating scoreline despite the victory. It was followed by two heavy 1-4 and 0-3 losses to France and Sweden, respectively. In November 2016, the Lions secured the three points against Belarus in Sofia with a narrow 1-0 win. On Matchday 5, the Bulgarian team put up arguably its' best performance in recent years, beating the Netherlands 2-0, thus claiming the 3rd spot in the group. On Thursday the 31st of August, 2017 Bulgaria pulled off another famous shock result defeating 1st place Sweden who had recently defeated heavy favourites France, 3-2 in Sofia. This result sent Bulgaria to 3rd place, 1 point below now first-placed Sweden and put them in a really good position to claim a play-off place which could assure them a ticket for Russia 2018. However, the Lions lost the key match against the Netherlands at Amsterdam Arena by the scoreline of 1-3, thus falling back to 4th place and possibly putting an end to their hopes of qualifying, as now Bulgaria is 4 points away from second-placed Sweden and 5 behind leaders France.Bulgaria then lost 0-1 at home to France, ending their streak of being undefeated, and ending their World Cup hopes.

Standings

Template:2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group A table

Team image

Colours

The Bulgarian Tri-Color Flag

Traditionally the Bulgarian squad plays at home entirely in the colours of the Bulgarian tricolore. Their nickname is The Lions, in tribute of the lions represented in the Bulgarian coat of arms.

Kit suppliers

Kit Provider Period
Bulgaria Tomy Sport 1922–1988
Germany adidas 1988–1996
Germany Puma 1996–2010
Italy Kappa 2010–2014
Spain Joma 2014–

Historical Kits

Throughout the football nation's sartorial history, the outfield players wore equipment with the following color patterns of white, green or red signifying the Bulgarian flag.

Home Kits
1922–1950 1950–1985 1985–1993 1993–1995 1995–1998 1998–2000 2004–2007 2007–2009 2009–2011 2011–2012 2012–2014
Away Kits
1922–1950 1950–1985 1985–1993 1993–1995 1995–1998 1998–2000 2004–2007 2007–2009 2009–2011 2011–2012 2012–2014

National Stadium

The National Stadium

Normally, the Bulgarian national football team's home stadium is the Vasil Levski National Stadium with a capacity of 45,000. Vasil Levski was officially opened in 1953 and reconstructed in 1966 and 2002. It is currently eligible to host UEFA Europa League final matches. It is the second largest stadium in Bulgaria just behind the Plovdiv Stadium with a capacity 55,000. During the 2006–07 UEFA Champions League, the stadium was used for the games of Levski Sofia with Barcelona, Chelsea, and Werder Bremen. It was also given three stars for its excellence in art construction of the stadium. The Bulgarian 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.

Competition History

  Champions    Runners-Up    Semi-Finals    Other Top Results  

World Cup Record

FIFA World Cup Record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
1930-1958 Years of International Wilderness
Chile 1962 Group Stage 13th 3 0 1 2 1 7
England 1966 Group Stage 12th 3 0 0 3 1 8
Mexico 1970 Group Stage 12th 3 0 1 2 5 9
West Germany 1974 Group Stage 11th 3 0 2 1 2 5
Mexico 1986 Round of 16 10th 4 0 2 2 2 6
United States 1994 Semi-Finals 4th 7 5 0 2 12 7
France 1998 Group Stage 22nd 3 0 1 2 1 7
Russia 2018 To Be Determined
Qatar 2022 To Be Determined
Total 7/22 26 5 7 15 20 53

European Championship Record

UEFA Euro Cup Record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
England 1996 Group Stage 9th 3 1 1 1 3 4
Portugal 2004 Group Stage 14th 3 0 0 3 1 9
Europe 2020 To Be Determined
Total 3/14 10 5 1 5 16 19

Olympic Record

Olympic Record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
France 1924 Round of 16 12th 1 0 0 1 0 1
Finland 1952 Round of 16 13th 1 0 0 1 1 2
Australia 1956 Bronze Semi-Finals 3rd 3 2 0 1 10 3
Italy 1960 Group Stage 8th 3 2 1 0 8 3
Mexico 1968 Silver Runners-Up 2nd 6 3 2 1 16 10
Japan 2020 To Be Determined
Total 5/23 14 7 3 4 35 19

Balkan Cup Record

Balkan Cup Record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
Romania 1930 Group Stage 4th 6 2 0 4 10 19
Bulgaria 1931 Champions 1st 2 2 0 0 8 3
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1932 Champions 1st 3 3 0 0 7 2
Romania 1933 Semi-Finals 3rd 3 1 0 2 2 11
Greece 1934 Group Stage 4th 3 1 0 2 7 8
Bulgaria 1935 Runners-Up 2nd 3 2 1 0 12 5
Romania 1936 Runners-Up 2nd 2 1 0 2 6 8
Albania 1946 Group Stage 4th 2 0 1 2 4 7
Hungary 1947 Group Stage 4th 4 1 0 3 5 14
Bulgaria 1948 Group Stage 4th 5 2 1 2 6 7
Romania 1976 Champions 1st 4 2 0 2 9 9
Turkey 1980 Semi-Finals 3rd 4 1 1 2 4 6
Total 12/12 41 19 4 19 80 99

Honours

Competition 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Total
Olympics 0 1 1 2
Balkan Cup 3 2 2 7
Total 3 3 3 9

Recent Results

  Win   Draw   Loss

France  v  Bulgaria
7 October 2016 (2016-10-07) 2018 FIFA WCQ France  4–1  Bulgaria Saint-Denis, France
20:45
(20:45 UTC+2)
Gameiro 23', 59'
Payet 26'
Griezmann 38'
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
M. Aleksandrov 6' (pen.) Stadium: Stade de France
Attendance: 65,475
Referee: Luca Banti (Italy)
Sweden  v  Bulgaria
10 October 2016 (2016-10-10) 2018 FIFA WCQ Sweden  3–0  Bulgaria Solna, Sweden
20:45
(20:45 UTC+2)
Toivonen 39'
Hiljemark 45'
Lindelöf 58'
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Friends Arena
Attendance: 21,777
Referee: Michael Oliver (England)
Bulgaria  v  Belarus
13 November 2016 (2016-11-13) 2018 FIFA WCQ Bulgaria  1–0  Belarus Sofia, Bulgaria
18:00
(19:00 UTC+3)
I.Popov 10' Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Vasil Levski National Stadium
Attendance: 1,994
Referee: Stephan Klossner (Switzerland)
Bulgaria  v  Netherlands
25 March 2017 (2017-03-25) 2018 FIFA WCQ Bulgaria  2–0  Netherlands Sofia, Bulgaria
18:00
(19:00 UTC+3)
Delev 5', 20' Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Vasil Levski National Stadium
Attendance: 10,900
Referee: Willie Collum (Scotland)
Belarus  v  Bulgaria
9 June 2017 (2017-06-09) 2018 FIFA WCQ Belarus  2–1  Bulgaria Barysaw, Belarus
20:45
(21:45 UTC+3)
Sivakow 33' (pen.)
Savitski 80'
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Kostadinov 90+1' Stadium: Borisov Arena
Attendance: 6,150
Referee: Matej Jug (Slovenia)
Bulgaria  v  Sweden
31 August 2017 (2017-08-31) 2018 FIFA WCQ Bulgaria  3–2  Sweden Sofia, Bulgaria
20:45
(21:45 UTC+3)
Manolev 12'
Kostadinov 33'
Chochev 79'
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Lustig 29'
Berg 44'
Stadium: Vasil Levski National Stadium
Attendance: 12,121
Referee: Paolo Tagliavento (Italy)
Netherlands  v  Bulgaria
3 September 2017 (2017-09-03) 2018 FIFA WCQ Netherlands  3–1  Bulgaria Amsterdam, Netherlands
18:00
(18:00 UTC+2)
Pröpper 7', 80'
Robben 67'
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Kostadinov 69' Stadium: Amsterdam Arena
Attendance: 47,079
Referee: Anastasios Sidiropoulos (Greece)
Bulgaria  v  France
7 October 2017 (2017-10-07) 2018 FIFA WCQ Bulgaria  0-1  France Sofia, Bulgaria
20:45
(21:45 UTC+3)
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Matuidi 3' Stadium: Vasil Levski National Stadium
Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (Spain)
Luxembourg  v  Bulgaria
10 October 2017 (2017-10-10) 2018 FIFA WCQ Luxembourg  v  Bulgaria Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
20:45
(20:45 UTC+2)
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Stade Josy Barthel
Referee: István Vad (Hungary)

Ranking history

See also: FIFA World Rankings
Rank Date
Best Rank 3 June 1995
Current Rank 38 September 2017
Worst Rank 96 May 2012

Players

The following players were called up in the preliminary squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against France on 7 October 2017 and Luxembourg on 10 October 2017.
Caps and goals updated as of 3 September 2017 after the match against the Netherlands.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Bozhidar Mitrev (1987-03-31) 31 March 1987 (age 37) 9 0 Bulgaria Levski Sofia
13 1GK Plamen Iliev (1991-11-30) 30 November 1991 (age 33) 4 0 Romania Astra Giurgiu
23 1GK Blagoy Makendzhiev (1988-07-11) 11 July 1988 (age 36) 0 0 Bulgaria Pirin Blagoevgrad

2 2DF Strahil Popov (1990-08-31) 31 August 1990 (age 34) 14 0 Turkey Kasımpaşa
3 2DF Petar Zanev (1985-10-18) 18 October 1985 (age 39) 31 0 Russia Amkar Perm
4 2DF Bozhidar Chorbadzhiyski (1995-08-01) 1 August 1995 (age 29) 4 0 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia
5 2DF Nikolay Bodurov (1986-05-30) 30 May 1986 (age 38) 36 1 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia
14 2DF Anton Nedyalkov (1993-04-30) 30 April 1993 (age 31) 3 0 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia
15 2DF Vasil Bozhikov (1988-06-02) 2 June 1988 (age 36) 9 0 Slovakia Slovan Bratislava
17 2DF Tsvetomir Panov (1989-04-17) 17 April 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Bulgaria Botev Plovdiv

6 3MF Simeon Slavchev (1993-09-25) 25 September 1993 (age 31) 12 0 Poland Lechia Gdańsk
7 3MF Georgi Kostadinov (1990-09-07) 7 September 1990 (age 34) 6 3 Israel Maccabi Haifa
8 3MF Todor Nedelev (1993-02-07) 7 February 1993 (age 31) 12 0 Bulgaria Botev Plovdiv
11 3MF Stanislav Manolev (1985-12-16) 16 December 1985 (age 39) 49 5 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia
12 3MF Bozhidar Kraev (1997-06-23) 23 June 1997 (age 27) 2 0 Denmark Midtjylland
18 3MF Ivaylo Chochev (1993-02-18) 18 February 1993 (age 31) 14 2 Italy Palermo
20 3MF Martin Raynov (1992-04-25) 25 April 1992 (age 32) 1 0 Bulgaria Beroe Stara Zagora
21 3MF Kristiyan Malinov (1994-03-30) 30 March 1994 (age 30) 1 0 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia
22 3MF Aleksandar Tsvetkov (1990-08-31) 31 August 1990 (age 34) 2 0 Bulgaria Cherno More Varna

9 4FW Spas Delev (1989-09-22) 22 September 1989 (age 35) 15 2 Poland Pogoń Szczecin
10 4FW Ivelin Popov (1987-10-26) 26 October 1987 (age 37) 70 12 Russia Spartak Moscow
16 4FW Andrey Galabinov (1988-11-13) 13 November 1988 (age 36) 8 2 Italy Genoa
19 4FW Ivaylo Dimitrov (1989-03-26) 26 March 1989 (age 35) 1 0 Bulgaria Slavia Sofia

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Bulgarian squad within the last 12 months and are still available for selection.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Georgi Kitanov (1995-03-06) 6 March 1995 (age 29) 0 0 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia v.  Netherlands, 3 September 2017
GK Vladislav Stoyanov (1987-06-08) 8 June 1987 (age 37) 19 0 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad v.  Netherlands, 15 March 2017
GK Nikolay Krastev (1996-12-06) 6 December 1996 (age 28) 0 0 Bulgaria Botev Vratsa v.  Netherlands, 15 March 2017
GK Nikolay Mihaylov (1988-06-28) 28 June 1988 (age 36) 33 0 Unattached v.  Belarus, 9 June 2017

DF Georgi Terziev (1992-04-18) 18 April 1992 (age 32) 10 0 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad v.  Netherlands, 3 September 2017
DF Atanas Zehirov (1989-02-13) 13 February 1989 (age 35) 1 0 Bulgaria Cherno More Varna v.  Netherlands, 3 September 2017
DF Stefan Velkov (1996-12-12) 12 December 1996 (age 28) 0 0 Bulgaria Slavia Sofia v.  Netherlands, 15 March 2017
DF Aleksandar Aleksandrov (1986-04-13) 13 April 1986 (age 38) 15 0 Bulgaria Cherno More Varna v.  Belarus, 13 November 2016
DF Radoslav Terziev (1994-08-06) 6 August 1994 (age 30) 0 0 Bulgaria Botev Plovdiv v.  Belarus, 13 November 2016
DF Daniel Zlatkov (1989-03-06) 6 March 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Belarus Shakhtyor Soligorsk v.  Belarus, 13 November 2016

MF Aleksandar Tonev (1990-02-02) 2 February 1990 (age 34) 27 5 Italy Crotone v.  France, 7 October 2017
MF Georgi Milanov (1992-02-19) 19 February 1992 (age 32) 37 2 Russia CSKA Moscow v.  Netherlands, 3 September 2017
MF Kiril Despodov (1996-08-11) 11 August 1996 (age 28) 0 0 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia v.  Netherlands, 3 September 2017
MF Orlin Starokin (1987-01-08) 8 January 1987 (age 38) 0 0 Bulgaria Cherno More Varna v.  Netherlands, 3 September 2017
MF Svetoslav Dyakov (Captain) (1984-05-31) 31 May 1984 (age 40) 36 0 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad v.  Belarus, 9 June 2017
MF Aleksandar Bashliev (1989-11-16) 16 November 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Bulgaria Pirin Blagoevgrad v.  Belarus, 9 June 2017
MF Nikolay Dimitrov (1987-10-15) 15 October 1987 (age 37) 7 0 Russia Ural Yekaterinburg v.  Netherlands, 15 March 2017
MF Aleksandar Vasilev (1995-04-27) 27 April 1995 (age 29) 0 0 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad v.  Netherlands, 15 March 2017
MF Milen Zhelev (1993-07-17) 17 July 1993 (age 31) 0 0 Bulgaria Beroe Stara Zagora v.  Belarus, 13 November 2016

FW Dimitar Rangelov (1983-02-09) 9 February 1983 (age 41) 40 6 Turkey Ümraniyespor v.  Belarus, 13 November 2016
FW Radoslav Kirilov (1992-06-29) 29 June 1992 (age 32) 1 0 Bulgaria Pirin Blagoevgrad v.  Belarus, 13 November 2016
FW Preslav Yordanov (1989-07-21) 21 July 1989 (age 35) 1 0 Kazakhstan Ordabasy v.  Belarus, 13 November 2016

Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
Preliminary squad.
Player retired from international football.

Current technical staff

Head coach Bulgaria Petar Hubchev
Assistant coach Bulgaria Georgi Donkov
Assistant coach Bulgaria Levon Apkaryan
Goalkeepers coach Armenia Armen Ambartsumyan
BFU president Bulgaria Borislav Mikhailov
Team captain Bulgaria Svetoslav Dyakov

Previous squads

FIFA World Cup Squads
UEFA European Football Championship Squads
Summer Olympics Football Tournament Squads

Player records

Most goals

Dimitar Berbatov is Bulgaria's all-time top scorer with 48 goals.
# Player Career Goals Caps Average
1 Dimitar Berbatov 1999–2010 48 78 0.60
2 Hristo Bonev 1967–1979 48 96 0.49
3 Hristo Stoichkov 1987–1999 37 83 0.45
4 Emil Kostadinov 1988–1998 26 70 0.37
5 Petar Zhekov 1963–1972 25 44 0.57
6 Ivan Kolev 1950–1963 25 75 0.33
7 Atanas Mihaylov 1970–1981 23 45 0.51
8 Nasko Sirakov 1983–1996 23 82 0.28
9 Dimitar Milanov 1948–1959 20 39 0.51
10 Georgi Asparuhov 1962–1970 19 50 0.38
11 Dinko Dermendzhiev 1966–1977 19 58 0.33
12 Martin Petrov 1999–2013 19 89 0.21

Most appearances

Stiliyan Petrov is Bulgaria's most capped player with 105 appearances
# Player Career Caps Goals Average
1 Stiliyan Petrov 1998–2013 105 8 0.08
2 Borislav Mihaylov 1983–1998 102 0 0.00
3 Hristo Bonev 1967–1979 96 48 0.49
4 Krasimir Balakov 1988–2003 92 16 0.17
5 Dimitar Penev 1965–1974 90 2 0.02
6 Martin Petrov 1999–2013 89 19 0.21
7 Radostin Kishishev 1996–2009 88 1 0.01
8 Hristo Stoichkov 1986–1999 83 37 0.45
9 Nasko Sirakov 1983–1996 82 23 0.28
10 Zlatko Yankov 1989–1999 80 4 0.05
11 Ayan Sadakov 1981–1991 79 9 0.11
12 Dimitar Berbatov 1999–2010 78 48 0.62

International Match Records

As of 3 September 2017

  Positive Record   Neutral Record   Negative Record

Opponents Pld W D L GF GA GD
 Albania 13 7 4 2 17 8 +9
 Algeria 6 3 2 1 9 6 +3
 Andorra 2 2 0 0 5 1 +4
 Argentina 9 1 0 8 6 18 −12
 Armenia 2 1 0 1 2 2 0
 Australia 4 2 2 0 8 4 +4
 Austria 8 1 2 5 7 21 −14
 Azerbaijan 4 3 1 0 6 2 +4
 Belarus 7 5 0 2 12 6 +6
 Belgium 14 6 2 6 20 23 −3
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 1 0 0 2 1 +1
 Brazil 8 0 0 8 2 19 −17
 Bolivia 1 1 0 0 3 1 +2
 Cameroon 1 1 0 0 3 0 +3
 Chile 1 0 0 1 2 3 −1
 Croatia 8 1 2 5 5 16 −11
 Cyprus 13 12 0 1 31 8 +23
 Czech Republic 19 7 4 8 17 25 −8
 Denmark 16 4 8 4 20 21 −1
 East Germany 19 6 8 5 23 24 −1
 Ecuador 2 1 0 1 3 4 −1
 Egypt 7 2 2 3 8 9 −1
 England 10 0 4 6 2 16 −14
 Estonia 2 1 1 0 2 0 +2
 Finland 8 7 1 0 19 3 +16
 France 21 8 4 9 26 37 −11
 Georgia 5 3 1 1 15 6 +9
 Germany 21 3 2 16 24 56 −32
 Ghana 1 1 0 0 10 0 +10
 Greece 26 13 7 6 48 35 +13
 Hungary 22 5 5 12 24 52 −28
 Iceland 5 4 1 0 12 7 +5
 India 1 1 0 0 4 0 +4
 Indonesia 1 1 0 0 3 0 +3
 Iran 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Israel 6 4 1 1 12 5 +7
 Italy 19 2 7 10 16 33 −17
 Jamaica 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
 Japan 6 4 1 1 13 10 +3
 Jordan 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2
 Kazakhstan 1 1 0 0 2 1 +1
 Kuwait 5 2 3 0 9 6 +3
 Latvia 3 3 0 0 6 0 +6
 Lebanon 1 1 0 0 3 2 +1
 Luxembourg 13 13 0 0 38 8 +30
 Lithuania 1 1 0 0 3 0 +3
 North Macedonia 7 4 1 2 7 3 +4
 Malta 13 10 3 0 38 5 +33
 Mexico 12 2 6 4 11 14 −3
 Moldova 2 2 0 0 7 1 +6
 Montenegro 4 1 2 1 7 5 +2
 Morocco 6 1 3 2 5 10 −5
 Netherlands 12 5 2 5 17 20 −3
 New Caledonia 1 1 0 0 5 3 +2
 Nigeria 2 0 0 2 0 4 −4
 North Korea 3 3 0 0 12 1 +11
 Northern Ireland 7 4 1 2 9 7 +2
 Norway 14 6 4 4 26 15 +11
 Oman 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Paraguay 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
 Peru 5 2 1 2 11 11 0
 Poland 27 6 9 12 32 48 −16
 Portugal 13 6 3 4 18 16 +2
 Republic of Ireland 9 3 4 2 8 10 −2
 Romania 37 10 6 21 52 75 −23
 Russia 19 2 6 11 17 34 −17
 San Marino 2 2 0 0 7 0 +7
 Saudi Arabia 2 1 0 1 2 1 +1
 Scotland 6 0 3 3 4 10 −6
 Serbia 32 7 6 19 43 67 −24
 Singapore 1 1 0 0 10 2 +8
 Slovakia 7 2 1 4 5 10 −5
 Slovenia 2 2 0 0 5 0 +5
 South Africa 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 South Korea 2 1 1 0 2 1 +1
 Spain 5 0 1 4 2 23 −21
 Sweden 16 3 2 11 11 31 −20
  Switzerland 10 2 4 4 12 15 −3
 Sudan 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Thailand 1 1 0 0 4 0 +4
 Tunisia 2 0 1 1 3 6 −3
 Turkey 21 8 6 7 38 34 +4
 Ukraine 5 0 2 3 2 7 −5
 United Arab Emirates 6 5 0 1 14 4 +10
 Uruguay 2 1 1 0 5 2 +3
 Wales 8 4 1 3 8 4 +4
Total 673 254 161 258 967 1002 −35
  1. Includes matches against  Czechoslovakia.
  2. Includes matches against  West Germany.
  3. Includes matches against the  Soviet Union.
  4. Includes matches against  Yugoslavia and  Serbia and Montenegro.

Head coaches

See also

Sources

  1. Павлов, Стоимен (24 June 2014). "Българският футбол чества исторически годишнини на фона на нерадостна реалност". Radio Bulgaria (in Bulgarian). София: Българско национално радио. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
  2. Austria vs Bulgaria match report at EU-Football.info
  3. Банов, Георги (23 March 2014). "Българският флаг накартичка от първото световно по футбол". 24 часа (in Bulgarian). София: МГБХ. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
  4. "Classic Qualifier: Les Bleus' American nightmare". FIFA. 10 September 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  5. "Three Footballers from Bulgaria's Golden Generation to Join Stoichkov's Birthday Show". Novinite. 8 December 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  6. "1994 FIFA World Cup USA: Groups". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  7. "Group D: Nigeria vs. Bulgaria". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  8. "Group D: Bulgaria vs. Greece". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  9. "Group D: Argentina vs. Bulgaria". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  10. "Round of 16: Mexico vs. Bulgaria". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  11. "Bulgarian underdogs catch champions off guard". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  12. "Semi-finals: Bulgaria vs. Italy". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  13. "1994 FIFA World Cup USA -Teams: Sweden". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  14. "Match for third place: Sweden vs. Bulgaria". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  15. "1994 FIFA World Cup USA: Awards". FIFA. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  16. Molinaro, John F. (5 January 2011). "History of the Ballon d'Or". CBC Sports. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  17. "Euro 2016: Qualifying". Euro 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  18. "Hristov header delights Bulgaria in Azerbaijan". UEFA. 9 September 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  19. Georgiev, Stoyan (10 October 2014). "Croatia take full advantage of Bulgaria slip". UEFA. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  20. Tjærnås, Jørgen (13 October 2014). "Ødegaard breaks record as Norway beat Bulgaria". UEFA. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  21. Georgiev, Stoyan (16 November 2014). "Malta make their mark in Sofia". UEFA. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  22. "Soccer-Petev returns to Bulgaria to coach national team". Yahoo! News. Reuters. 18 December 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  23. "International Friendly: Romania vs. Bulgaria". ESPN FC. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  24. Georgiev, Stovan (28 March 2015). "Italy debutant Éder thwarts Bulgaria". UEFA. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  25. Aquilina, Domenic (12 June 2015). "Popov earns points for Bulgaria in Malta". UEFA. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  26. "Norway beat Bulgaria thanks to Forren's first". UEFA. 3 September 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  27. "De Rossi penalty edges Italy closer to finals". UEFA. 5 September 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  28. Islamović, Elvir (10 October 2015). "Croatia defeat Bulgaria in Čačić's first game". UEFA. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  29. "Bulgaria sign off with Azerbaijan success". UEFA. 13 October 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  30. "Състав на "А" националния отбор за световните квалификации с Франция и Люксембург" (in Bulgarian). Bulgarian Football Union. 26 September 2017.
  31. "World Football Elo Ratings: Bulgaria". Elo Ratings. Retrieved 24 June 2017.

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