Serbia

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The Football Federation of what was then known as the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia) was established in Zagreb in 1919 under the name Jugoslavenski nogometni savez (Yugoslavian Football Association). Jovan Ruzic was first Serb to be a part of the national team in their international debut which was a 7-0 defeat by Czechoslovakia in The 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp, Belgium.

In 1921, the Belgrade Football Subassociation organised a friendly match between the France national team and the Belgrade XI, dubbed the "Serbian representatives". The team included players of SK Jugoslavija and BSK, the two most powerful Serbian clubs of the postwar period. The French team was on a tour of four games through Yugoslavia with the final exhibition game taking place at Belgrade's SK Jugoslavija Stadium on July 3. Prince Regent Aleksandar I and FIFA President Jules Rimet were in attendance during the 3-0 victory for the visitors.

In the run-up towards the 1930 FIFA World Cup a dispute concerning the relocation to the FAs headquarters from Zagreb to Belgrade, the capital city Belgrade was a raging battle that culminated in a boycott of the Zagreb Subassociation that disallowed its members from participating in the tournament that was to be held in September. The official Serbian team, coached by Bosko Simonovic, comprised predominantly of Belgrade's BSK, SK Jugoslavija and BASK and reached the semi-final and lost in a controversial manner to hosts and eventually winning Uruguay 6-1. The royal interbellum era featured noteworthy Serbian footballers such as Blagoje Marjanovic, Aleksandar Tirnanic, Milorad Arsenijevic, Dorde Vujadinovic, Branislav Sekulic and Milutin Ivkovic. In the aftermath of the split of Yugoslavia during World War II the football association and national team stopped operations but was revived following the conclusion of the war.

In 1945, Svetislav Glisovic commanded the first national team that was not officially recognized that represented in the Federal State of Serbia in the tournament that marked the conclusion of World War II. The Serbian team that included the newly-established Red Star squad won its first game , beating FS Montenegro 2-1, FS Croatia 3-1 in the semi-finals, before winning the championship against Serbia's Yugoslav People's Army team 1-0 in Belgrade.

The newly formed Yugoslavia had its greatest performance, in at the UEFA European Championship finals in 1960 and 1968, as well as being fourth in 1962's FIFA World Cup. Through its existence Serbian footballers played an important part within the Yugoslav national team during the period of socialist rule, including players like Rajko Mitic Branko Stankovic Vladimir Beara, Vujadin Boskov, Todor Veselinovic, Milos Milutinovic, Borivoje Kostic, Milan Galic, Vladimir Durkovic, Velibor Vasovic, Dragan Dzajic, Jovan Acimovic, Dusan Bajevic, Vladimir Petrovic and many others, until the state broke up in the mid 1990s. National team SFR Yugoslavia played its last game on the 25th of March in 1992, when they lost 2-0 against the Netherlands.

While there was a Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, comprised of Serbia and Montenegro was created on the 27th of April, 1992. the teams were barred from sports events at international level, including the national football team , as in the wake of U.N. sanctions stemming from the war in Yugoslavia. The national team was not able to play their first game in the new nation until the 23rd of December, 1994. This was which was a friendly match that took place at Porto Alegre and in which Brazil beat Brazil by 2-0. This was the first team made up made up of Serbian as well as Montenegrin players, and Slobodan Santrac, who was a ex- Yugoslavia international player was appointed the team's first ever manager. The second game took place the next day, but this one at Buenos Aires, resulting in an 1-0 loss to Argentina.

In light of sanctions from the international community the team was not able to take part in 1995 World Cup qualifying nor the Euro 1996 qualifying process.

When FR Yugoslavia joined FIFA and UEFA in the latter half of 1994 the team was ready to take part in the 1998 World Cup qualifiers. Slobodan Santrac was selected as the team's coach. In the qualifying matches, Yugoslavia was drawn in Group 6 along with Euro 1996 runners-up Czech Republic, Slovakia, Spain, Faroe Islands and Malta. Seven wins (of which two of them are in Malta, the Czech Republic, Faroe Islands and Malta and one game against Slovakia) and two draw matches (against Spain and Slovakia) and one game that was lost with Spain, Yugoslavia ended up in second position, 23 points, which was 23 points less than Spain. Yugoslavia was able to play in the play-off, in which they were selected to play Hungary. With an overall score of 12-1 in the match over Hungary, Yugoslavia qualified for the World Cup.

It was 1998. World Cup seeding had Yugoslavia placed 21st in the teams from around the world however, Yugoslavia was widely regarded to be among pre-eminent contenders to win the World Cup. The New York Times suggested that Yugoslavia could very well be a semi-finalist at the 1998 World Cup. The draw put the nation in Group F along with Germany and in the United States, and Iran. Yugoslavia was victorious in its first match by 1-0 against Iran due to the goal scored by the defender Sinisa Mihajlovic. The following game ended in an even draw for Yugoslavia after they had led Germany at 2-0 the free kick of Michael Tarnat deflected off Mihajlovic and into the goal, and Oliver Bierhoff equalised it at an 80th minute score. Yugoslavia came back in the next match in the match against United States and won 1-0 because of a goal scored in the fourth minute scored by Slobodan Komljenovic. Yugoslavia was third in their group, and Germany took the title with a higher goal-to-goal ratio.

Due to their second place, Yugoslavia saw itself face the Netherlands in the Round of 16. Yugoslavia was in the game as a single attacker but its defensive strategy failed when Dennis Bergkamp put the Netherlands ahead at the end of 38 minutes. After the start of the second half Yugoslavia was able to pressure the Dutch who gave up a goal from Komljenovic. But the pivotal moment of the game was a penalty given to Yugoslavia following a foul on Vladimir Jugovic was fouled. Predrag Mijatovic was not able to score, and the score remained unchanged at 1-1. The incident was demoralizing for the Yugoslavs while the Dutch were the first to take charge. In the final minutes of the match Edgar Davids' shot towards the Yugoslav net from 20 meters and smashed goalkeeper Ivica Kralj. It was the final game of Yugoslavia's participation at this year's World Cup.

Draws for Euro 2000 qualifiers saw first-seeded Yugoslavia drawn as a team with Croatia and Croatia, which was the first time that games were played for the teams following the dissolution of Yugoslavia. The other teams in the group included Macedonia, the Republic of Ireland, Macedonia as well as Malta. At the time of the qualifying Coach Milan Zivadinovic was in charge however, in July 1999, he was dismissed and substituted with Vujadin Boskov.

The team began with a 1-0 victory over Ireland in Belgrade and then beat Malta by 3-0 in Ta'Qali. The home match against the Maltese came next, but it was relocated in Thessaloniki, Greece due to the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. The team still beat the team 4-1. The first game against Croatia was played in Belgrade just after the bombing had ended but was delayed because of a power failure at the start of the second quarter which was restored after 43 minutes before ended at 0-0. The defeat of 2-1 to Ireland at Dublin then followed wins at home as well as away from Macedonia (3-1 or 4-2, respectively) which meant that Yugoslavia had to win its final qualifying match in Zagreb against Croatia in Zagreb or draw against Ireland not beating Macedonia in Skopje to be automatically qualified to play in Euro 2000. In the end, Ireland conceded an injury-time equaliser, which meant that Yugoslavia's draw of 2-2 with the Croatians was enough to qualify for Euro 2000.

Draws for the semi-finals has placed Yugoslavia in the group C alongside Spain, Norway and another former Yugoslav republic, Slovenia. Slovenia was in Group C. Slovenians had a 3-0 advantage in the opening game on the Stade du Pays de Charleroi However, three goals within the second half allowed Yugoslavia to draw an 2-2 draw. The team later defeated Norway by 1-0 in Liege due to an opening Savo Milosevic backheel goal. The final game of the group in Bruges, which was in Bruges, against Spain in Bruges which saw the Yugoslavs gain the lead three times until Gaizka Mendieta penalty and an Alfonso strike in injury time brought about a dramatic 4-3 victory for Spain and the first place within the Group. Yugoslavia nevertheless was second in the group, a little behind in points with Norway but was ahead due to their win in Liege. In all three matches, the team had one player exiled (Sinisa Mihajlovic Mateja Kezman, as well as Slavisa Jokanovic as well as Mateja Kezman and Slavisa Jokanovic, respectively).

In the quarter-finals of the tournament, Yugoslavia was again paired against the Netherlands. In contrast to the previous time they won the match 6-1 at Rotterdam in which Patrick Kluivert scoring a hat-trick. In spite of Yugoslavia's exit, Savo Milosevic was crowned the joint top scorer in the tournament with Patrick Kluivert. Each player scored 5 goals however, Milosevic was in the game less.

Ilija Petkovic took over from Boskov to become the head coach in July 2000. In 2002, for World Cup qualifiers, Yugoslavia was grouped in Group 1 alongside Russia, Slovenia, Switzerland as well as The Faroe Islands and Luxembourg. Shortly after the victory in the match against Luxembourg, Petkovic was sacked and replaced by a three-piece team that included Boskov, Dejan Savicevic and Ivan Curkovic. Although they were among the most popular teams in the group, and having won each game in the games against Luxembourg as well as Faroe Islands as well and away games with Switzerland, Yugoslavia managed to be beaten at home, and an draw away against Russia and a draw at home against Switzerland and drawn games with Slovenia. Yugoslavia finished the qualifying season with a third-place finish in the group, one point further than the second placed Slovenia.

Savicevic was appointed coach in July 2002. In his role in the Euro 2004 qualifiers Yugoslavia was placed in Group 9 alongside Italy, Wales, Finland and Azerbaijan. In the course of qualifying the country was subject to political change. the new name Serbia and Montenegro played at first in a match in a match against Azerbaijan during February of 2003. In June, following losing 2-1 in the game against Azerbaijan, Savicevic resigned and was replaced by Ilija Petkovic. Even though they both lost to favorites in the group and eventually winners Italy and also winning both games with the runners up Wales, Serbia and Montenegro were not able to qualify, mainly because of a 2-2 home draw, a loss of 2-1 to Azerbaijan as well as the 3-0 loss away to Finland.

Petkovic continued to head coach of the squad in spite of the fact that the team did not get into Euro 2004. However, qualifying for the 2006 World Cup was different. With six draws and four wins, Serbia and Montenegro ended as the first team in their group with an unbeaten record in their qualifying group, ahead of favorite Spain. They also had the best defense in qualifying. Serbia as well as Montenegro team allowed just one goal over the 10 games, which was the top defensive record among the 51 teams in the qualification.

The 2006 qualifiers were played in Serbia as well as Montenegro was placed in a group alongside Spain, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lithuania and San Marino. Again, led by Ilija Petkovic as manager, Serbia as well as Montenegro were backed by The "Famous Four" defence, comprised of Nemanja Vidic Mladen Krstajic Goran Gavrancic and Ivica Dragutinovic along with Dragoslav Jevric as goalkeeper, only conceded one goal over the course of ten games. The team finished the tournament with 64-0, which was over Spain.

The 3rd of June, 2006, after an election, Montenegro declared its independence from Serbia. In the midst of when the World Cup was about to begin it was decided that it was the Serbia as well as the Montenegro team that been invited to the tournament could participate in the tournament, but it was decided to split them into two teams representing the newly formed countries that were Montenegro in addition to Serbia to occur after the team had ceased to participate participating in the tournament.

The group phase ended in a dreadful way. Serbia as well as Montenegro lost their opening match to favorite of the group The Netherlands. It was decided 1-0, after Arjen Robben scored the sole goal of the match. The team also lost their second game against Argentina with a score of 6-0. Serbia and Montenegro's most disappointing score in international competition. Due to two losses, and the Netherlands as well as Argentina winning both of their matches, Serbia and Montenegro could not qualify for knockout tournament and were only playing for pride in their final group match in the group game against Ivory Coast. Although they were leading 2-0 throughout the opening half however, the Elephants came back and beat the Ivory Coast 3-2, which left Serbia and Montenegro without a point.

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Javier Clemente, Serbia's first-ever foreign coach, was chosen to be the team's coach in 2008's Euro campaign. Following the declaration of independence, Montenegro was declared independent, Serbia marked their split from Montenegro with a 3-1 victory against Montenegro in the Czech Republic. In those participating in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, Serbia was a part of Group A alongside Poland, Portugal, Belgium, Finland, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Azerbaijan. The qualifying process started promising but ended with frustration for Serbia. An impressive start to qualification was eclipsed by the last stage of games, where inconsistent play began to take over, the team losing points to the likes from Finland, Belgium, Armenia and Kazakhstan. They ended up finishing third, three points ahead of the runners-up Portugal and Poland. A champions Poland. Clemente was dismissed following the team's inability to get into the tournament.

Serbia was replaced by Clemente with Miroslav dukic who was then sacked on August 19 of the next year, without playing any official match due to a variety of disagreements between Serbia's Football Association of Serbia.

After Dukic's quick resignation, Radomir Antic was appointed coach and success ensued. The Serbian World Cup qualification campaign began in the year 2008. The group that qualified included the 1998 World Cup winners and 2006 World Cup runners-up France, Romania as well as Austria, Lithuania and the Faroe Islands. Serbia was consistent throughout the qualifying matches, which led to their team automatically being selected to play in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. They were confirmed as qualified by winning 5-0 in their home stadium against Romania.

As in 2006. Serbia entered the World Cup as the dark horses in the tournament. Some of the key points that justify their surprise status were an elite defence made up of Nemanja Vidic Neven Subotic Aleksandar Kolarov and Branislav Ivanovic. The Serbian captain for the 2009 World Cup campaign was Dejan Stankovic, who was sole player in history to be a part of in the World Cup having played under three different nationalities (although Stankovic never changed his nationality as a result of geopolitical issues that affected the nation's identity Yugoslavia). When they played their first World Cup as a sovereign nation they would be playing Ghana, Germany and Australia.

The first game of the group was played against Ghana and there were chances for both sides , however the red card given to Aleksandar Lukovic and a handball by substitute Zdravko Kuzmanovic during the second period gave Ghana an opportunity to win 3 points in final whistle. Asamoah Gyan scored eight minutes before the end of the game and Serbia lost 1-0.

In Serbia's second match of the group they beat Germany with the score of 1-0, thanks to the goal scored by Milan Jovanovic late in the first second half. Official FIFA YouTube channel called the victory "the most well-known day in Serbia's history of football".

Serbia just needed one point to advance to the knockout stage, but they were defeated by Australia with a score of 2-1. Australia had two strikes in the final period by Tim Cahill and Brett Holman. A last-minute Marko Pantelic goal served only as an excuse. They were second in their league.

Radomir Antic was dismissed after two games of his time in the Euro 2012 qualification process, the draw at home to Slovenia ending his two-year tenure. The dismissal led to the in Vladimir Petrovic to the job.

In for the Euro 2012 qualifying, Serbia was placed in Group C which included Italy, Slovenia, Estonia, Northern Ireland and the Faroe Islands. The qualifying phase started in the presence of Radomir Antic as coach , and concluded in the presence of Vladimir Petrovic. Serbia and Antic have started their first two games with the team winning 3-0 against Faroe Islands and a 1-1 draw at home against Slovenia however this result marked the end of the reign of Antic as Serbia's coach. The new coach Petrovic was hit immediately , with a 3-1 defeat at home against Estonia and a game that was abandoned that resulted in a 3-0 loss to Italy because of the troublesome crowd caused by the Serbian supporters who were away in Genoa.

Serbia was back to their best with an 2-1 victory at home against Northern Ireland but could only draw 1-1 against Estonia. Then, Serbia won back to back games, with a 1-0 victory against Northern Ireland and a crucial 3-1 victory at home in the match against Faroe Islands. This puts Serbia in the best in the race to secure that they are in the play-offs ahead of Italy.

Serbia required a victory in their home game against Italy to secure the spot in the play-offs, however their efforts ended in a draw of 1-1. However, the team still had a chance to secure their play-off spot as they played Slovenia at home. The game was crucial to win even although Serbia was able to score a higher goal differential over Estonia but drawing was not enough to ensure advancement. Both teams played better during the first period, however, a long-range shot made Slovenia in front 1-0 by the half-time mark. The Serbians have improved their game in the second period however they failed to capitalize on opportunities, most notably Nemanja Vovic's penalty goal in the middle of the second period. Serbia was left with nothing after a loss of 1-0 and was eliminated from the tournament for the third time in succession in groups stages of qualifying, falling the cut by just one point. Estonia. Serbia did not manage to make it to this year's European Championships. Vladimir Petrovic was sacked after Serbia's failure to be able to qualify.

In the lead-up to the qualifying campaign to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Dejan Stankovic and Nemanja Vidic announced they were stepping down in international soccer. This signified that Serbia was losing two key players, and the new era was beginning. Branislav Ivanovic was named Captain of the team. Sinisa Mihajlovic was a former player of Serbia's national squad was appointed coach manager on April 24, 2012. Serbia was a part of Group A to qualify for the 2015 FIFA World Cup, together with Croatia, Belgium, Scotland, Macedonia, and Wales. The Serbian team started their qualifying campaign with a goalless draw against Scotland as well as a 6-1 victory against Wales. In the following two matches, Serbia suffered two defeats in the form of Macedonia in addition to Belgium.

On March 22, 2013 Serbia took on Zagreb in Zagreb against Croatia. The match was highly anticipated by both countries due to their rivalry in and off the field. Croatia defeated Croatia the game 2-0. Serbia later defeated Scotland with a 2-0 win on home turf in an important qualifier however the team's World Cup hopes were taken off after a 2-1 loss to Belgium. Serbia was able to draw with Croatia with a score of 1-1, in their same fixture at home. the 18-year-old Aleksandar Mitrovic scored an equalizer in the second half following Mario Mandzukic opened the scoring. Serbia defeated Wales 3-3 in Cardiff. Dejan Stankovic's last game concluded in a friendly game against Japan in which Serbia defeated with a score of 2-0. Stankovic's career ended with an impressive 103 appearances in Serbia's national team, breaking the record previously set by Savo Milosevic, who had more than 102 games. Serbia completed their qualifying campaign by winning 5-1 at home against Macedonia which placed them in third place in the group, just three points away from a playoff position, three points behind Croatia and the group champions Belgium.

After not being able to qualify at this year's World Cup, Dick Advocaat was appointed head coach for 2014. Serbia was included in the group I to qualify in preparation for UEFA Euro 2016, together with Portugal, Denmark, Albania and Armenia. Advocaat began the tournament with an unfavorable draw in a friendly game that ended 1-1 against France. The team started qualification by drawing 1-1 against Armenia. The next game was a game abandoned with Albania at Belgrade. The game had to be cancelled due to tensions among the crowd due to a drone that carried an Albanian flag as well as an image showing Greater Albania was flown over the field. Serbia was initially awarded an 3-0 win by UEFA and then removed three points. However, on July 10, 2015 the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) changed the earlier ruling and awarded Albania the win of 3-0. On November 14, 2014 Serbia faced Denmark on the field in Belgrade and lost 3-3. Following this match, Advocaat left, whereupon Radovan Curcic was named the new coach on the 25th of November.

As of 2015, the initial match was a qualifier in Lisbon against Portugal in Lisbon in which Serbia was defeated 2-1, which cut their chances of qualifying to Euro 2016. The 13th of June in 2015. Serbia participated in an international qualifying game in a qualifying match against Denmark in Copenhagen and lost 2 -0. Following the ruling of 10 July by the CAS regarding the game that was abandoned with Albania, Serbia would become exiled mathematically of Euro 2016 qualification. On September 4, 2015. Serbia won their very first victory, winning 2-0 against Armenia. On the 8th of October, the same year, Serbia won 2-0 against Albania with goals from Aleksandar Kolarov, and Adem Ljajic. In the Group I table, Serbia finished second to last with four points in a five-team group.

After not being able to qualify in time for Euro 2016, Slavoljub Muslin was named coach. Serbia was a part of the group D of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup with Euro 2016 semi-finalists Wales, Austria, Ireland, Georgia and Moldova. The team began their journey with a draw with Ireland in the Red Star Stadium and continued their winning streak with victories against Austria, Georgia and Moldova.

Serbia defeated Moldova to win the match in Belgrade with goals scored by Aleksandar Kolarov, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Mijat Gacinovic. The win secured their position ahead of their top-of-the-group game against Ireland. They prevailed in this game thanks to the 55th minute goal of Kolarov. Serbia completed their qualifying tournament with a 1-0 win at home against Georgia which placed them in the top spot of Group D. They thus were a participant in this year's tournament, which is its first major tournament following the absence of eight years. Although Serbia qualified, Muslin was sacked by the Football Association of Serbia as the result of disagreements over the team's selection. Muslin was accused of refusing to invite Sergej Milinkovic-Savic in the tournament which led to debate in Serbia. Mladen Krstajic was appointed as the interim coach following Muslin's resignation and led the team to the World Cup.

The World Cup, Serbia opened their game in the first game against Costa Rica. Kolarov's free kick in the second quarter-finals meant Serbia had its very first World Cup game after eight years. Serbia were beaten in their subsequent matches and lost 2-1 to Switzerland in 90 minutes with a strike by the Xherdan Sharqiri as well as 0-2 against Brazil which meant they were removed from their group.

Because of the poor performance of Serbia in the past Serbia was forced to in the middle during the period of 2017-19 UEFA Nations League C, in which they were dragged into Group 4 alongside Montenegro, Lithuania and Romania. With wins over Lithuania and Montenegro as well as both draws with Romania, Serbia finished on top of the group, and secured an Euro 2020 play-off spot and getting promoted to League B for 2020-21 season. Six goals were scored, Aleksandar Mitrovic finished the tournament with the most goals scored.

In December of 2017, Mladen Krstajic became a permanent coach for Serbia. [79The coach of Serbia began the campaign of 2019-19 UEFA Nations League, which played as part of UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying campaign.

To participate in the Euro 2020 qualifiers, Serbia was dragged into Group B alongside Euro 2016 champions Portugal, Ukraine, Lithuania and Luxembourg. Serbia began the qualifying with a 1-1 draw against Portugal. However, in the following away match in the group against Ukraine, Serbia lost the game by a score of 0-5. The game also caused some controversy because of the style of coaching Krstajic. After the home win of 4-1 in the game against Lithuania, Krstajic was sacked in large part due to the defeat against Ukraine and was replaced by Ljubisa Tumbakovic. Tumbakovic began with a 2-4 loss at home against Portugal. The following two games were away victories over Luxembourg and Lithuania after which the team beat Luxembourg on home turf to help keep its possibility of survival. But, Serbia did not manage to take the first two positions as the team played to draw 2-2 with Ukraine on home turf.

Following that the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying play-offs were restarted, Serbia placed itself against Norway in Oslo. The game was challenging for the Serbs however 2 goals, including one of which came in the extra period and one scored by Sergej Milinkovic-Savic eventually helped Serbia to beat Norway with a score of 2-1 and progress to the final playoff match in the final playoff game against Scotland on home turf. The match took place against Scotland in the penalty shootout (5-4) after the match was tied at 1-1 after the full-time period. Serbia has failed yet again to be able to participate in the Euros it was the nation 20 years since it had last participated in the competition. Tumbakovic was fired following the team's inability to qualify for the tournament.

The 3rd March of 2020 was the day that Serbia was drawn in the 2020-21 UEFA Nations League B Group 3 along with Russia, Turkey and Hungary. Serbia faced a tough start with their first two matches. In their first game in the first game against Russia in a friendly match away from home Serbia lost 1-3 according to the expectations. In the second match, Serbia however only gained the draw without scoring to Turkey although it was interesting to note that Serbia was playing with just 10 players in the second period. In the following four matches, Serbia played another draw game against Turkey but also had a draw, as well as a loss against Hungary and, in the final game, Serbia surprised everyone by winning against Russia with a score of 5-0. Serbia concluded the tournament in third in group 3 and secured the position of League B for the 2022-23 season.

Serbia was selected in Group A for qualification in 2022's FIFA World Cup with Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Luxembourg and Azerbaijan.

After a penalty shootout defeat to Scotland during the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying play offs, Ljubisa Tumbakovic was sacked and replaced by the the national team's hero Dragan Stojkovic.

Serbia started its qualifying journey by securing a 3-2 victory against Ireland in the Republic of Ireland in Belgrade in March 2021. Then, it was followed by a draw of 2-2 against Portugal. In the game, Serbia was losing 2-0 at half-time however, they managed to get back in the game thanks to goals scored by Filip Kostic as well as Aleksandar Mitrovic. The game ended in the draw after Cristiano Ronaldo's strike was disallowed on a controversial basis. Following this match, Serbia won against Azerbaijan in Baku 1-1. It was followed by winning 4-1 against Luxembourg at Belgrade and a draw of 1-1 in Serbia's Republic of Ireland in Dublin in which Serbia was in the lead until the 87th minute , when Milenkovic struck an own goal. The other matches included a 1-0 victory against Luxembourg as well as a 3-1 win against Azerbaijan. After these games it was evident that Serbia required a win over Portugal to be able to exit directly from the group. On the 14th of November, 2021 Serbia played Portugal in the Estadio da Luz, and had a 1-0 lead thanks to Renato Sanches. But an equaliser scored by Dusan Tadic, who was then rewarded by an emotional goal by Aleksandar Mitrovic during the closing minutes of the second half . It was the 2-1 victory for the Serbs and thus earned Serbia the right to play in Qatar.

Serbia against. Croatia: This rivalry is among the most fierce football matches in Europe. The rivalry is rooted in the political sphere, and has been named among the top ten most famous international rivalries by Goal.com. It is also ranked as the most controversial football rivalry according to the Bleacher Report. The two sides began their rivalry during the 1990s time when both were part of Yugoslavia that disintegrated after several wars. The two sides had played 4 times which resulted in Croatia winning one match and losing the other three matches.

The emblem of Serbia's Football Association of Serbia is inspired by the Serbian cross that is featured within the Serbian coat of arms. It is an altered variant of the firesteels as well as a cross, which is adorned with the addition of an football. The team is referred to as "the Eagles" (Serbian Cyrillic: Orlovi) in reference to the white eagle's double-headed head which is a symbol of national pride in Serbia.

After the dissolution from SFR Yugoslavia the Serbian team was plagued by identity issues and, despite the name, was viewed as the official representative of Serbia. From 1994 to 2006 , the outdated and dismal Communist nation's anthem from the communist era "Hej, Sloveni" was often booed, mocked and whistled by fans at home when players refused to sing the lyrics. In this time, the team continued to wear the nickname "Plavi" (the Blues) badge, badges and kits that were reminiscent from the Yugoslav tricolour.

After the split from Montenegro in 2006, the national team donned red uniforms blue shorts, white socks to commemorate Serbia's tricolour. Serbian tricolour. From 2010 to 2016, a cross-shaped design that was inspired by the nation's armorial emblem was included into the jersey. In recent times, Serbia has been using all-red uniforms in order to comply with FIFA's strict rules on kit clashes. For away kits, they are usually white and are paired with white or blue shorts.

Serbia has no official stadium, however the Serbian team plays on different venues across the country. There is a stadium called Rajko Mitic Stadium has been the most well-known stadium, followed By Partizan Stadium, both ground are situated in the capital city of Belgrade

The partnership was announced in July 2014. collaboration has been announced by the Football Association of Serbia and English manufacturer Umbro which is Serbia's official supply before Puma began to take over their kits for away and home which were launched on September 7, 2014 in a friendly game against France. On the 7th of September, 2014 Serbia released their upgraded kits , which were also used during their UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers campaign.

2021

1 September 2021International friendly

Qatar

0–4

Serbia

Debrecen, Hungary

4 September 20212022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Serbia

4–1

Luxembourg

Belgrade, Serbia

7 September 20212022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Republic of Ireland

1–1

Serbia

Dublin, Ireland

9 October 20212022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Luxembourg

0–1

Serbia

Luxembourg City, Luxembourg

12 October 20212022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Serbia

3–1

Azerbaijan

Belgrade, Serbia

11 November 2021International friendly

Serbia

4–0

Qatar

Belgrade, Serbia

14 November 20212022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Portugal

1–2

Serbia

Lisbon, Portugal

2022

As of 3 March 2021

The following players were called up for the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League matches against Norway, Slovenia and Sweden in June 2022.

Caps and goals as of 12 June 2022, after the match against Slovenia.

The following players have been called up for the team in the last 12 months.

Notes:

• PRE Preliminary squad
• SUS Player suspended
• INJ Player withdrew from the roster due to an injury
• COV Player withdrew from the roster due to COVID-19
• RET Retired from the national team
• WD Player withdrew from the roster for non-injury related reasons

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Coach: Mladen Krstajić

Serbia's 27-man preliminary squad was announced on 24 May 2018. The final squad was announced on 1 June.

Coach: Radomir Antić

Head coach: Ilija Petković

Head coach: Slobodan Santrač

Head coach: Ivica Osim

Head coach: Miljan Miljanić

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Manager: Vujadin Boškov

Manager: Todor Veselinović

Manager: Ante Mladinić

Manager: Rajko Mitić

Managers: Ljubomir Lovrić, Dragomir Nikolić, & Aleksandar Tirnanić

As of 12 June 2022

Players in bold are still active with Serbia.

Goalkeepers

Ivica Kralj played for the team from 1996 to 2001

Vladimir Stojković is the most capped goalkeeper in the team's history with 84 caps

 

Defenders

Miroslav Đukić played for the team from 1991 to 2001 

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

Zoran Mirković played for the team from 1995 to 2003

Mladen Krstajić played 59 matches for the team from 1999 to 2008 and managed team at the 2018 World Cup

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

Branislav Ivanović is the most capped player in the team's history with 105 caps

Aleksandar Kolarov played 94 matches and captained the team at the 2018 World Cup

Midfielders

Dragan Stojković played from 1983 to 2001 for the team, and is the current head coach

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

Slaviša Jokanović played for the team from 1991 to 2002

Vladimir Jugović played for the team from 1991 to 2002

Dejan Stanković is the Serbian player who won the most trophies; he played in three World Cups and one European Championship

Miloš Krasić played for the team from 2006 to 2011

Milan Jovanović played for the team from 2007 to 2012

Nemanja Matić played for the team from 2008 to 2019

Dušan Tadić is the current captain of the team

Forwards

Predrag Mijatović was a top goalscorer in 1998 World Cup qualifiers with 14 goals

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

Darko Kovačević played 59 matches and scored 10 goals between 1994 and 2004

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

Nikola Žigić played 57 matches and scored 20 goals between 2004 and 2011

Aleksandar Mitrović is top goal scorer in the history of national team, and was 2018–19 UEFA Nations League top goal scorer

It is believed that the Football Association of Serbia is considered to be the direct successor of the two SFR Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro by FIFA as the rightful owner of all records of the former nations.

As of 12 June 2022

Opponent	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Competitive matches
Albania	2	1	0	1[b]	2	3	–1	2016 EQ
Algeria	1	1	0	0	3	0	3
Armenia	5	3	2	0	8	1	7	2008 EQ 2016 EQ
Australia	2	0	1	1	1	2	–1	2010 W
Austria	4	3	0	1	9	6	3	2010 WQ 2018 WQ
Azerbaijan	5	5	0	0	16	4	12	2008 EQ 2022 WQ
Belgium	4	1	0	3	4	8	–4	2008 EQ 2014 WQ
Bolivia	1	1	0	0	5	1	4
Brazil	2	0	0	2	0	3	–3	2018 W 2022 W
Bulgaria	2	2	0	0	7	1	6
Cameroon	1	1	0	0	4	3	1	2022 W
Chile	2	1	0	1	3	2	1
China	1	1	0	0	2	0	2
Colombia	1	0	0	1	0	1	–1
Costa Rica	1	1	0	0	1	0	1	2018 W
Croatia	2	0	1	1	1	3	–2	2014 WQ
Cyprus	4	3	1	0	7	2	5
Czech Republic	2	1	0	1	4	5	–1
Denmark	3	0	0	3	1	8	–7	2016 EQ
Dominican Republic	1	0	1	0	0	0	0
Estonia	3	1	1	1	3	4	–1	2012 EQ
Faroe Islands	4	4	0	0	10	1	9	2010 WQ 2012 EQ
Finland	2	1	1	0	2	0	2	2008 EQ
France	5	0	2	3	4	8	–4	2010 WQ
Georgia	2	2	0	0	4	1	3	2018 WQ
Germany	3	1	1	1	3	3	0	2010 W
Ghana	1	0	0	1	0	1	–1	2010 W
Greece	2	1	0	1	2	1	1
Honduras	1	0	0	1	0	2	–2
Hungary	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	2020–21 NQ
Israel	2	2	0	0	5	1	4
Italy	2	0	1	1[c]	1	4	–3	2012 EQ
Jamaica	2	1	1	0	3	2	1
Japan	3	2	0	1	5	1	4
Kazakhstan	2	1	0	1	2	2	0	2008 EQ
Lithuania	6	5	0	1	15	5	10	2010 WQ 2018–19 NQ 2020 EQ
Luxembourg	4	4	0	0	11	4	7	2020 EQ 2022 WQ
Morocco	1	0	0	1	1	2	–1
Moldova	2	2	0	0	6	0	6	2018 WQ
Mexico	1	0	0	1	0	2	–2
Montenegro	2	2	0	0	4	1	3	2018–19 NQ
Nigeria	1	1	0	0	2	0	2
North Macedonia	3	1	1	1	6	3	3	2014 WQ
Northern Ireland	3	3	0	0	4	1	3	2012 EQ
Norway	3	1	1	1	3	3	0	2020 EQ 2022–23 NQ
New Zealand	1	0	0	1	0	1	–1
Panama	2	0	2	0	1	1	0
Paraguay	1	1	0	0	1	0	1
Poland	5	0	3	2	3	5	–2	2008 EQ
Portugal	8	1	4	3	11	14	–3	2008 EQ 2016 EQ 2020 EQ 2022 WQ
Qatar	3	2	0	1	8	3	5
Republic of Ireland	7	3	4	0	10	7	3	2018 WQ 2022 WQ
Romania	4	2	2	0	10	4	6	2010 WQ 2018–19 NQ
Russia	6	1	2	3	9	8	1	2020–21 NQ
Scotland	3	1	2	0	3	1	2	2014 WQ 2020 EQ
Slovenia	4	1	2	1	7	5	2	2012 EQ 2022–23 NQ
South Africa	1	1	0	0	3	1	2
South Korea	3	1	1	1	3	3	0
Spain	1	0	0	1	0	2	–2
Sweden	3	2	0	1	4	2	2	2022–23 NQ
Switzerland	1	0	0	1	1	2	–1	2018 W 2022 W
Turkey	2	0	2	0	2	2	0	2020–21 NQ
Ukraine	5	0	1	4	2	12	–10	2020 EQ
United States	1	0	1	0	0	0	0
Wales	4	2	2	0	11	3	8	2014 WQ 2018 WQ

• FIFA World Cup
  • Fourth place: 1930, 1962
• UEFA European Championship
  • Runners-up: 1960, 1968
  • Fourth place: 1976
• Summer Olympics
  • Gold Medal: 1960
  • Silver Medal: 1948, 1952, 1956
  • Bronze Medal: 1984
• Mediterranean Games
  • Winners: 1971, 1979
• Balkan Cup
  • Winners: 1934–35, 1935
  • Runners-up: 1929–31, 1932, 1933, 1946, 1947, 1977–80
• 1945 Yugoslav Football Tournament
  • Winners: 1945