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[[File:Spain and Portugal match at the FIFA World Cup 2010-06-29 5.jpg|thumb|right|Spain take a corner against [[Portugal national football team|Portugal]] in a [[2010 FIFA World Cup knockout stage#Spain vs Portugal|Round of 16 match in the 2010 FIFA World Cup]].]]
[[File:Spain and Portugal match at the FIFA World Cup 2010-06-29 5.jpg|thumb|right|Spain take a corner against [[Portugal national football team|Portugal]] in a [[2010 FIFA World Cup knockout stage#Spain vs Portugal|Round of 16 match in the 2010 FIFA World Cup]].]]
In the final four minutes of extra time during the World Cup final against the [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]], [[Andrés Iniesta]] scored a single goal from a pass given by [[Cesc Fàbregas]], winning the World Cup for Spain for the first time in their history. In this physical match, Spain received 5 yellow cards, while "Oranje" received 9, as well as 1 red card, the highest total of cards for a World Cup final in history. Spain won the World Cup by only scoring 8 goals and conceding 2, which is the lowest by any World Cup winner in both cases. Also, they are the only team not to have conceded a goal in the last four games of the tournament. Spain are the only team that has won the World Cup title after losing its opening game. Spain are only the second team to win a World Cup outside their own continent, following [[Brazil national football team|Brazil's]] wins in [[1958 FIFA World Cup|Sweden]] and [[2002 FIFA World Cup|Korea-Japan]], which also makes Spain the only European team to win the World Cup outside of Europe.
In the final four minutes of extra time during the World Cup final against the [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]], [[Andrés Iniesta]] scored a single goal from a pass given by [[Cesc Fàbregas]], winning the World Cup for Spain for the first time in their history. In this physical match, Spain received 5 yellow cards, while Holland received 9, as well as 1 red card, the highest total of cards for a World Cup final in history. Spain won the World Cup by only scoring 8 goals and conceding 2, which is the lowest by any World Cup winner in both cases. Also, they are the only team not to have conceded a goal in the last four games of the tournament. Spain are the only team that has won the World Cup title after losing its opening game. Spain are only the second team to win a World Cup outside their own continent, following [[Brazil national football team|Brazil's]] wins in [[1958 FIFA World Cup|Sweden]] and [[2002 FIFA World Cup|Korea-Japan]], which also makes Spain the only European team to win the World Cup outside of Europe.


The 2010 FIFA World Cup squad won the FIFA fair play award while some of its players also won awards.<ref name="2010fairplay">{{cite web|title=Forlan and Muller strike gold |url=http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/southafrica2010/news/newsid=1272888/index.html |publisher=FIFA |date=11 July 2010 |accessdate=14 July 2010}}</ref> Goalkeeper Iker Casillas won the [[Yashin Award|golden glove]] for only conceding two goals during the tournament. David Villa won the [[Golden Ball (FIFA)|bronze ball]] and [[World Cup Golden Boot|silver boot]], tied for top scorer of the tournament with a total of 5 goals and 1 assist.
The 2010 FIFA World Cup squad won the FIFA fair play award while some of its players also won awards.<ref name="2010fairplay">{{cite web|title=Forlan and Muller strike gold |url=http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/southafrica2010/news/newsid=1272888/index.html |publisher=FIFA |date=11 July 2010 |accessdate=14 July 2010}}</ref> Goalkeeper Iker Casillas won the [[Yashin Award|golden glove]] for only conceding two goals during the tournament. David Villa won the [[Golden Ball (FIFA)|bronze ball]] and [[World Cup Golden Boot|silver boot]], tied for top scorer of the tournament with a total of 5 goals and 1 assist.

Revision as of 12:39, 2 July 2012

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Spain women's national football team.

Spain
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)La Roja (The Red [One])
La Furia Roja (The Red Fury)[1][2]
AssociationRoyal Spanish Football Federation
(Real Federación Española de Fútbol – RFEF)
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachVicente del Bosque
CaptainIker Casillas
Most capsIker Casillas (137)
Top scorerDavid Villa (51)
FIFA codeESP
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current1 Steady
Highest1 (July 2008– June 2009, October 2009 – March 2010, July 2010 - July 2011, October 2011 - present)
Lowest25 (March 1998)
First international
 Spain 1–0 Denmark 
(Brussels, Belgium; 28 August 1920)
Biggest win
 Spain 13–0 Bulgaria 
(Madrid, Spain; 21 May 1933)
Biggest defeat
 Italy 7–1 Spain 
(Amsterdam, Netherlands; 4 June 1928)
 England 7–1 Spain 
(London, England; 9 December 1931)
World Cup
Appearances13 (first in 1934)
Best resultWinners, 2010
European Championship
Appearances8 (first in 1964)
Best resultWinners, 1964, 2008, 2012
Summer Olympics
Appearances10 (first in 1920)
Best resultWinners, 1992
Confederations Cup
Appearances1 (first in 2009)
Best resultThird place, 2009
Medal record
Olympic medal record
Men's Football
Silver medal – second place 1920 Antwerp Team
Gold medal – first place 1992 Barcelona Team[3]
Silver medal – second place 2000 Sydney Team[3]

The Spain national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de España) represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque. The Spanish side is commonly referred to as La Roja (The Red) or La Furia Roja (The Red Fury).[4][5]

Spain are the current reigning World and European champions, having won the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, also the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, thus being the first and only team in history to have won three successive major international tournaments in a row. In July 2008 Spain rose to the top of the FIFA World Rankings for the first time in the team's history, becoming the sixth nation to top this ranking, and the first nation to top the ranking without previously having won the FIFA World Cup. Between November 2006 and June 2009 Spain went undefeated for a record-tying 35 consecutive matches before their loss to the United States, a record shared with Brazil, including a record 15-game winning streak and thus earning third place in the FIFA Confederations Cup.

Recently, the team has become known for using a style of play which involves roaming movement and positional interchange amongst midfielders, moving the ball in intricate patterns, and sharp, one- or two-touch passing, dubbed tiki-taka (or tiqui-taca). This style of football is known to be mesmerizing to the opposition, for they have to constantly run around the field to defend, whilst always unlikely to be capable to even intercept a pass. The success of Spain in recent times and their style of play, has helped the Spanish team become a dominant force in world football.

On July 1, 2012 the Spanish national team made football history when they beat Italy 4-0 at the Euro 2012 final with goals from Fernando Torres, Juan Mata, Jordi Alba and David Silva at Kiev's Olimpiyskiy Stadium. Spain became the first team to win two consecutive European Championships, and the first international football team to win three consecutive major tournaments (Euro 2008, 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012). With this achievement, many football analysts, players, and fans alike have considered this incarnation to be the greatest international team ever.

History

Early years and the effect of war

Spain Side from 1920

The Real Federación Española de Fútbol (Template:Lang-en) was founded in 1909 and became affiliated with FIFA in 1913. However, the national team did not play a full international match until 1920 when they beat Denmark 1–0 in the Olympic Games. Their first appearance at a major finals was the 1934 World Cup, for which they qualified after 9–0 and 2–1 wins over Portugal. They beat Brazil 3–1 in the first round, before losing 1–0 in a replay to hosts, and eventual champions Italy in Florence. On 3 May 1936 Spain beat Switzerland 2–0 in Bern, in what would prove to be their last game until after the Spanish Civil War in 1941. They would then play only against similarly politically-aligned countries, or Switzerland, Republic of Ireland and Portugal, neutral during World War II until 1949 when they drew 1–1 with Belgium and re-entered FIFA competition.

1950s

The Spanish Civil War and World War II prevented Spain from playing any competitive matches between the 1934 World Cup and the 1950 World Cup qualifiers, where they overcame Iberian rivals Portugal, who later declined an invitation to take part, with a 5–1 win and 2–2 draw. At the finals in Brazil, they topped their group against England, Chile and the United States to progress to the final round. For the first, and so far only time in the history of the FIFA World Cup, the winner was decided, not by a single championship match, but via a group format involving the four teams who had won their respective groups in the previous stage. The four teams in the final group were Uruguay, Brazil, Sweden and Spain. Spain failed to record a win (W0 D1 L2) and finished in fourth place. Until 2010, this had been Spain's highest finish in a FIFA World Cup finals, which had given them the name of the "underachievers." Spain's leading scorer during the 1950 World Cup was striker Estanislao Basora, who ended the tournament with five goals.

Under French-Argentine coach Helenio Herrera and Italian assistant coach Daniel Newlan, Spain came out of dormancy to qualify for the first European Championship in 1960. Spain beat Poland 7–2 on aggregate to progress to the quarterfinals. However, Spain forfeited its quarterfinal tie with the Soviet Union because of political disagreements between Spain's dictator Franco and the Soviets.

The Spaniards, led by Alfredo Di Stéfano, qualified for the 1962 World Cup, beating Wales 3–2 over two legs to advance to the UEFA/CAF play-off where they would beat Morocco 4–2 over two legs to advance to the final.

1982 World Cup in Spain

In 1976, Spain was selected as host of the 1982 FIFA World Cup. This edition of the World Cup featured 24 teams for the first time. Expectations were high for Spain as the host nation under coach José Santamaría. In the group stages, Spain was drawn into Group 5, in which they could only manage a 1–1 draw with Honduras in the finals' opening match, after which they had a 2–1 victory over Yugoslavia, but were defeated 1–0 by Northern Ireland. These results were enough to secure progress to the second round where they were drawn into Group B, but defeat to West Germany and a goalless draw with England meant that Spain were knocked out, and Santamaría was sacked.

1984 to 1988

Former Real Madrid coach Miguel Muñoz, who had temporarily coached Spain in 1969, returned to coach the national team. Spain was in Euro 84 qualifying Group 7, against The Netherlands, Republic of Ireland, Iceland, and Malta. Entering the last match, Spain needed to defeat Malta by at least 11 goals to surpass the Netherlands for the top spot in the group, and after leading 3–1 at half time, Spain scored nine goals in the second half to win by 12–1 and win the group. In the final tournament, Spain was drawn into group B with Romania, Portugal, and West Germany. After 1–1 draws against their first two opponents, Spain topped the group by virtue of a 1–0 victory against West Germany. The semifinals saw Spain and Denmark drawn at 1–1 after extra time, before Spain proceeded by virtue of winning the penalty shootout 5–4 on penalties. Hosts and tournament favourites France defeated Spain 2–0 in the final after a goalless first half.

Spain qualified for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico having topped Group 7 with Scotland, Wales, and Iceland. Spain began the group stage by losing to Brazil 1–0, but progressed after beating Northern Ireland by 2–1 and Algeria by 3–0. Round 2 paired Spain with Denmark, who they overcame 5–1 with Emilio Butragueño scoring four goals, but in the quarterfinals a 1–1 draw with Belgium ended with Belgium winning 5–4 on penalties.

Muñoz was retained as coach for Euro 88. As in the several previous tournaments Spain qualified impressively in a group with Austria, Romania, and Albania. Spain were drawn into group A and began their tournament with a 3–2 victory over Denmark, but were nevertheless knocked out in the group stage after losing 1–0 and 2–0 to Italy and West Germany respectively.

1990 to 1992

For the 1990 World Cup in Italy, Spain had a new coach, Luis Suárez Miramontes. Having qualified from a group consisting of Republic of Ireland, Hungary, Northern Ireland, and Malta, Spain entered the competition on a good run of form, and after reaching the knock out stages through a 0–0 draw with Uruguay and wins over South Korea (3–1) and Belgium (2–1), fell to a 2–1 defeat to Yugoslavia in the second round.

Newly appointed coach Vicente Miera failed to gain qualification for Spain for Euro 92, after finishing third in a group behind France and Czechoslovakia. Vicente Miera did however lead Spain to the gold medal at the 1992 Olympics[3] in Barcelona.

Clemente's reign from 1992 to 1998

Javier Clemente and the Spain team in a training session.

Javier Clemente was appointed as Spain's coach in 1992, and the qualification for the 1994 World Cup was achieved with eight wins and one loss in twelve matches. In the final tournament Spain were in Group C in which they drew with Korea Republic 2–2 and 1–1 with Germany, before qualifying for the second round with a 3–1 victory over Bolivia. Spain continued through the second round with a 3–0 victory over Switzerland, but their tournament ended with a controversial 2–1 defeat to Italy in the quarter-finals.

Spain qualified for Euro 96 from a group consisting of Denmark, Belgium, Cyprus, Republic of Macedonia, and Armenia. In the final tournament Spain faced group matches against Bulgaria, France and Romania. With 1–1 draws against the first two opponents, and a 2–1 win over Romania, Spain confirmed their place in the quarter-finals, with a match with hosts England, which finished goalless and Spain eventually fell 4–2 in the shootout.

In his second World Cup as Spain's coach, Clemente led his team undefeated through their qualifying group in which Yugoslavia and Czech Republic were the other contenders. Spain qualified with fourteen other European sides in the first ever thirty-two team World Cup, but were eliminated in the first round with four points after losing to Nigeria, drawing with Paraguay, and winning just one game, against Bulgaria.

Euro 2000 and World Cup 2002

After a 3–2 opening defeat to Cyprus in Euro 2000 qualifying, Clemente was fired and José Antonio Camacho was appointed as coach. Spain won the rest of their games to qualify for the final tournament, where they were drawn into Group C. A 1–0 defeat to Norway was followed by victories over Slovenia (2–1) and Yugoslavia (4–3), with Spain thus setting up a quarterfinal against 1998 World Cup champions, France, which was won 2–1 by France.

The qualifying tournament for the 2002 World Cup went as expected for Spain as Spain topped a group consisting of Austria, Israel, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Liechtenstein. In the final tournament Spain won its three matches in group B, against Slovenia, Paraguay (both by 3–1), and South Africa (3–2). Spain beat Republic of Ireland on penalties in the second round, and faced co-hosts Korea Republic in the quarterfinals. In what is widely considered a highly controversial match with many questionable refereeing decisions against them, Spain eventually lost in a penalty shootout after having two goals called back for alleged infractions during regular and extra time.[6]

Euro 2004

At Euro 2004 in Portugal, Spain was drawn into group A with hosts Portugal, Russia and Greece, behind whom they had finished second in qualifying. Spain defeated Russia 1–0 and drew 1–1 with Greece, but failed to get the draw they needed against Portugal to proceed to the knock out stages. Iñaki Sáez was sacked weeks later and replaced by Luis Aragonés.

UEFA Euro 2008 pre-match ceremonies involving Sweden and Spain.

The start of a golden era, 2006 World Cup, Euro 2008 and Euro 2012

Spain qualified for the 2006 World Cup only after a play-off against Slovakia, as they had finished behind Serbia and Montenegro in Group 7, which also included Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium, Lithuania, and San Marino. In Group H of the German hosted finals, Spain won all their matches, and beat Ukraine 4–0, Tunisia 3–1 and Saudi Arabia 1–0. However Spain fell 3–1 in the second round to France, with only the consolation of a share, with Brazil, of the 2006 FIFA Fair Play Award.

Spanish players celebrating their Euro 08 victory in Madrid.

After being eliminated from the competition, Luis Aragonés came to the decision that the team was not physical or tough enough to be able to out-muscle opponents, they therefore opted to start concentrating on monopolising the ball and thus started to employ the tiki-taka – a style characterised by short passing and movement, working the ball through various channels, and maintaining possession. Raphael Honigstein describes it as "a significant upgrade of the Dutch "total football", a system that relied on players changing positions." The tiki-taka style of play originates with Johan Cruyff's tenure as manager of Barcelona from 1988 to 1996.[7]

Spain qualified for Euro 2008 at the top of Qualifying Group F with 28 points out of a possible 36, and were seeded 12th for the finals. They won all their games in Group D: 4–1 against Russia, and 2–1 against both Sweden and defending champions Greece.

Reigning World Cup holders Italy were the opponents in the quarter final match, and held Spain to a finished 0–0 draw resulting in a penalty shoot-out which Spain won 4–2. Spain met Russia again in the semi-final, again beating them, this time by 3-0.[8]

UEFA Euro 2008 Final starting lineup on June 29, 2008, in Vienna (Ernst Happel Stadion).

In the final, played in Vienna's Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Spain defeated Germany 1–0, with a goal scored by Fernando Torres in the 33rd minute.[9] This was Spain's first major title since the 1964 European Championship. Spain were the top scoring team, with 12 goals, and David Villa finished as the top scorer with four goals; Xavi was awarded the player of the tournament, and nine Spanish players were picked for the UEFA Euro 2008 Team of the Tournament.[10]

Confederations Cup debut and 2010 World Cup qualification

Austria lost to Spain by a score of 5–1 in November 2009 in Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna

Luis Aragonés left the manager's role after the Euro 2008 success, and was replaced by Vicente del Bosque.[11]

2008 saw David Villa score 16 goals in 15 games, breaking the Spanish record of 10 goals in one year held by Raúl since 1999.[12] On 11 February 2009, David Villa broke another Spanish record as his 36th-minute goal against England saw him become the first Spanish player to score in six consecutive games.[13] By the start of the tournament, Del Bosque's had ten consecutive wins, making him the first international manager to do so from his debut, breaking Joao Saldanha's record, held since 1969, of nine consecutive wins with Brazil.

Spain won all three of its matches at the group stage, the 5–0 win over New Zealand including a Fernando Torres hat-trick that is the earliest and fastest hat-trick in the tournament's history. With further wins over Iraq (1–0) and South Africa (2–0) they earned not only qualification for the semifinals, but also obtained the world record for 15 consecutive wins and tied the record of 35 consecutive unbeaten games (with Brazil).

On 24 June 2009, Spain's undefeated record ended when the United States beat Spain 2–0 in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup semi-finals which sent Spain to the third place match. This was Spain's first defeat since 2006. Spain defeated hosts South Africa 3–2 after extra time in the 3rd-place playoff.[14]

On 9 September 2009, Spain secured its place at the 2010 World Cup finals after beating Estonia 3–0 in Mérida.[15] Spain went on to record a perfect World Cup qualifying record with 10 wins out of 10 in Group 5, finishing with a 5–2 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on 14 October 2009.[16] The Spanish team entered the 2010 World Cup ranked number 2 on the FIFA rankings and as clear favorites to win the tournament.

2010 FIFA World Cup winners

2010 FIFA World Cup Final starting lineup on July 11, 2010, in Johannesburg (Soccer City).
World Cup champions parade, celebrate as they pass in front of the Air Force Headquarters in Madrid.

See Also: 2010 FIFA World Cup, 2010 FIFA World Cup Group H and 2010 FIFA World Cup Final

The 2010 World Cup draw, which took place on 4 December 2009, placed Spain in Group H, alongside Switzerland, Honduras, and Chile. Spain lost its first group stage match against Switzerland, 0–1. In their second match they defeated Honduras by 2 goals from David Villa. Their next match against Chile on 25 June was won 2–1. They advanced to the knock-out stage to defeat Portugal 1–0, reaching the quarter-finals, in which they defeated Paraguay 1-0, scoring off of a goal by David Villa who put the ball in the back of the net after struck the ball off the post, reaching the last four for the first time since 1950. They then advanced to the final for the first time ever by defeating Germany 1-0 via a headed goal from Carles Puyol.

Spain take a corner against Portugal in a Round of 16 match in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

In the final four minutes of extra time during the World Cup final against the Netherlands, Andrés Iniesta scored a single goal from a pass given by Cesc Fàbregas, winning the World Cup for Spain for the first time in their history. In this physical match, Spain received 5 yellow cards, while Holland received 9, as well as 1 red card, the highest total of cards for a World Cup final in history. Spain won the World Cup by only scoring 8 goals and conceding 2, which is the lowest by any World Cup winner in both cases. Also, they are the only team not to have conceded a goal in the last four games of the tournament. Spain are the only team that has won the World Cup title after losing its opening game. Spain are only the second team to win a World Cup outside their own continent, following Brazil's wins in Sweden and Korea-Japan, which also makes Spain the only European team to win the World Cup outside of Europe.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup squad won the FIFA fair play award while some of its players also won awards.[17] Goalkeeper Iker Casillas won the golden glove for only conceding two goals during the tournament. David Villa won the bronze ball and silver boot, tied for top scorer of the tournament with a total of 5 goals and 1 assist.

Road to Euro 2012 glory: Champions of Europe again

Main article: UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying

Like the previous qualification tournament, Spain qualified top of Group I in qualification for UEFA Euro 2012 with a perfect 100% record. Spain defeated Czech Republic, Scotland, Lithuania, and Liechtenstein to advance to the main tournament, where they became the first team to retain the European championship. Spain were drawn in Group C in the group stage, alongside Italy, Croatia, and Republic of Ireland. Spain opened their group stage match against Italy on 10 June 2012. Italy took the lead in the second half of the match, through substitute and Italian striker Antonio Di Natale in the 61st minute, who had come on to replace another striker, Mario Balotelli.[18] Three minutes later, Spain found a equalizer, in which midfielder David Silva assisted another midfielder, Cesc Fábregas, who in turn slotted the ball past goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon.[18] Spain's next match was on 14 June, against Republic of Ireland. Spain striker Fernando Torres opened the goalscoring, early in the fourth minute, retaining the ball, after Republic of Ireland defender Richard Dunne's unsuccessful tackle, before scoring the goal from 10 yards, past chanceless goalkeeper Shay Given.[19] It did not take until the second half, in the 49th minute, where David Silva extended the lead for Spain, nutmegging three defenders in the process, Stephen Ward, Sean St Ledger, and Dunne, after Given blocked Iniesta's shot.[19] With 20 minutes of the match remaining, Torres scored his second goal, after a successful assist from Silva, as he chipped the ball past Given.[19] The final goal was scored by Fábregas, in which he received the ball after a Silva corner, and scored from a difficult angle.[19] Their third and final group stage match against Croatia on 18 June, proved to be more difficult than expected, as Croatia had several goalscoring chances, notably from Croatian players Ivan Strinić and Ivan Perišić, which Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas had no problems dealing with.[20] The match looked like it was heading for a draw, until the 88th minute, in which substitute Jesús Navas struck the winning goal, from an Iniesta assist.[20]

In the quarter-finals, on 23 June 2012, Spain took on France. Spain opened the goalscoring, after defender Jordi Alba's assist, which midfielder Xabi Alonso scored with a header past France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.[21] Spain completed their win, late in the second half, with Alonso stepping up to score the penalty kick, after France defender Anthony Réveillère brought down Spain striker Pedro inside the penalty area.[21] Spain faced Portugal on 27 June in the semi-finals, who had previously beaten Czech Republic in the quarter-finals, courtesy of an late Cristiano Ronaldo goal.[22] The decisive match proved to be more difficult than expected, with Portugal having numerous goalscoring chances.[23] However, Spain managed to hold on, which required the match to go into extra time.[23] Spain showed signs of improvement, but nevertheless, failed to score over both halves.[23] A penalty shoot-out was then ensued.[23] Alonso, who had previously taken an penalty kick against France, had his spot kick saved by Portugal goalkeeper Rui Patrício.[23] Portugal looked to take the advantage, with midfielder João Moutinho as the next penalty taker, however, Casillas produced a tremendous diving save to prevent Portugal from taking the lead.[23] Iniesta stepped up to take the second penalty, which was successfully taken.[23] Defender Pepe's effort proved to be successful as well, as he struck the ball just past Casillas.[23] Defender Gerard Piqué showed no sign of nervousity, as he struck the ball past Rui Patrício, identically to Pepe's spot kick.[23] Defender Bruno Alves stepped up to take the third penalty for Portugal, however, midfielder Nani encouraged Alves to let him take the penalty, which Nani struck high in the left corner of the goal and sending Casillas to the wrong side of the goal.[23] The fourth penalty was taken by defender Sergio Ramos, who produced a Panenka-like penalty, chipping the ball past Rui Patrício.[23] The turn finally arrived to Alves, who missed the spot kick and hit the right post.[23] Fábregas scored Spain's fifth goal, as the ball went in via the left post.[23] Spain emerged victorious, and were in a UEFA European Football Championship final for the fourth time, since 1960, 1984 and 2008.[23] In the final match at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev, Ukraine. Spain won the tournament by a score of 4–0 over Italy.[24] Spain quickly took control in the first half, with goals in the 14th minute from a header by David Silva, and in the 41st minute from Jordi Alba.[24] In the second half, Italy used the last of their three substitutions, putting Antonio Di Natale and Thiago Motta into the game. Thiago Motta injured his hamstring shortly after entering the match, and had to leave the pitch, forcing Italy to play with ten men for the remainder of the match.[24] Spain were able to increase their lead to 4–0 in the second half, with goals from Fernando Torres in the 84th minute, and from Juan Mata in the 88th minute, helping them to win their second straight European Championship, and their third straight major tournament title (Euro 2008 and 2010 World Cup).[24] Gerard Piqué for Spain and Andrea Barzagli for Italy both received yellow cards in the match.[24]


UEFA Euro 2012 starting lineup on July 1, 2012, in Kiev (Olympic Stadium).

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Spain 3 2 1 0 6 1 +5 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Italy 3 1 2 0 4 2 +2 5
3  Croatia 3 1 1 1 4 3 +1 4
4  Republic of Ireland 3 0 0 3 1 9 −8 0
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
Spain 1–1 Italy
  • Fàbregas 64'
 Report
Attendance: 38,869[25]
Republic of Ireland 1–3 Croatia
 Report
Attendance: 39,550[26]
Italy 1–1 Croatia
 Report
Attendance: 37,096[27]
Referee: Howard Webb (England)
Spain 4–0 Republic of Ireland
 Report
Attendance: 39,150[28]
Croatia 0–1 Spain
Report
Attendance: 39,076[29]
Italy 2–0 Republic of Ireland
 Report
Attendance: 38,794[30]
Spain vs Italy
Spain 1 – 1 Italy
Fàbregas 64' Report Di Natale 61'
Attendance: 38,869
Spain vs Republic of Ireland
Spain 4 – 0 Republic of Ireland
Torres 4', 70'
Silva 49'
Fàbregas 83'		 Report
Attendance: 39,150
Croatia vs Spain
Croatia 0 – 1 Spain
Report Navas 88'
Attendance: 39,076

Quarter-finals

France vs Spain
Spain 2 – 0 France
Alonso 19', 90+1' (pen.) Report
Attendance: 46,145

Semi-finals

Portugal vs Spain
Portugal 0 – 0 (a.e.t.) Spain
Report
Penalties
Moutinho soccer ball with red X
Pepe soccer ball with check mark
Nani soccer ball with check mark
Alves soccer ball with red X		 2–4 soccer ball with red X Alonso
soccer ball with check mark Iniesta
soccer ball with check mark Piqué
soccer ball with check mark Ramos
soccer ball with check mark Fàbregas
Attendance: 48,000[31]

Final

Spain vs Italy
Spain 4 – 0 Italy
Silva 14'
Alba 41'
Torres 84'
Juan Mata 87'

Colours

Spain's traditional kit is a red jersey with yellow trim, accompanied by dark blue shorts and socks while their current away kit is a sky blue shirt with a stripe in the chest area and navy trim accompanied by white shorts with navy trim. The color of the socks altered throughout the 1990s from black to the same colour as the blue shorts. Spain's kits have been produced by manufacturers including Adidas (from 1982 until 1984), Le Coq Sportif (from 1984 until 1992) and Adidas once again (since 1992).

Their current home kit designed by a team led by Daniel Newlan at Adidas, is a lighter red than usual along with light blue shorts and red socks, similar to the older 2006 kit.[32] A third kit is sometimes used and is usually blue with red and yellow trim. Rather than displaying the logo of the Spanish football federation, Spain's jersey traditionally features the coat of arms of Spain over the left breast. After winning the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the World Cup winners badge was added to the right breast of the jersey and a golden star at the top of the Spanish coat of arms.

Players

Current squad

Vicente del Bosque named the final 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2012 on 27 May 2012.

Caps and goals are correct as of July 1, 2012.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Iker Casillas (captain) (1981-05-20) 20 May 1981 (age 43) 137 0 Spain Real Madrid
12 1GK Víctor Valdés (1982-01-14) 14 January 1982 (age 42) 8 0 Spain Barcelona
23 1GK Pepe Reina (1982-08-31) 31 August 1982 (age 42) 25 0 England Liverpool
2 2DF Raúl Albiol (1985-09-04) 4 September 1985 (age 39) 34 0 Spain Real Madrid
3 2DF Gerard Piqué (1987-02-02) 2 February 1987 (age 37) 45 4 Spain Barcelona
4 2DF Javi Martínez (1988-09-02) 2 September 1988 (age 36) 8 0 Spain Athletic Club
5 2DF Juanfran (1985-01-09) 9 January 1985 (age 39) 1 0 Spain Atlético Madrid
15 2DF Sergio Ramos (1986-03-30) 30 March 1986 (age 38) 92 6 Spain Real Madrid
17 2DF Álvaro Arbeloa (1983-01-17) 17 January 1983 (age 41) 41 0 Spain Real Madrid
18 2DF Jordi Alba (1989-03-21) 21 March 1989 (age 35) 11 1 Spain Barcelona
6 3MF Andrés Iniesta (1984-05-11) 11 May 1984 (age 40) 71 10 Spain Barcelona
8 3MF Xavi Hernández (1980-01-25) 25 January 1980 (age 44) 115 11 Spain Barcelona
10 3MF Cesc Fàbregas (1987-05-04) 4 May 1987 (age 37) 69 10 Spain Barcelona
13 3MF Juan Mata (1988-04-28) 28 April 1988 (age 36) 19 6 England Chelsea
14 3MF Xabi Alonso (1981-11-25) 25 November 1981 (age 43) 102 15 Spain Real Madrid
16 3MF Sergio Busquets (1988-07-16) 16 July 1988 (age 36) 45 0 Spain Barcelona
20 3MF Santi Cazorla (1984-12-13) 13 December 1984 (age 40) 45 6 Spain Málaga
21 3MF David Silva (1986-01-08) 8 January 1986 (age 38) 64 18 England Manchester City
22 3MF Jesús Navas (1985-11-21) 21 November 1985 (age 39) 20 2 Spain Sevilla
7 4FW Pedro Rodríguez (1987-07-28) 28 July 1987 (age 37) 18 2 Spain Barcelona
9 4FW Fernando Torres (1984-03-20) 20 March 1984 (age 40) 98 31 England Chelsea
11 4FW Álvaro Negredo (1985-08-20) 20 August 1985 (age 39) 12 6 Spain Sevilla
19 4FW Fernando Llorente (1985-02-26) 26 February 1985 (age 39) 20 7 Spain Athletic Club

Recent callups

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

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK David de Gea (1990-11-07) 7 November 1990 (age 34) 0 0 England Manchester United v.  Serbia, May 26, 2012
DF Nacho Monreal (1986-02-26) 26 February 1986 (age 38) 7 0 Spain Málaga v.  South Korea, May 30, 2012
DF Álvaro Domínguez (1989-05-15) 15 May 1989 (age 35) 2 0 Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach v.  South Korea, May 30, 2012
DF Carles Puyol (1978-04-13) 13 April 1978 (age 46) 99 3 Spain Barcelona v.  Venezuela, February 29, 2012
DF Andoni Iraola (1982-06-22) 22 June 1982 (age 42) 7 0 Spain Athletic Club v.  Venezuela, February 29, 2012
DF Martín Montoya (1991-04-14) 14 April 1991 (age 33) 0 0 Spain Barcelona B v.  Liechtenstein, September 6, 2011
DF Alberto Botía (1989-01-27) 27 January 1989 (age 35) 0 0 Spain Sporting Gijón v.  Liechtenstein, September 6, 2011
MF Bruno Soriano (1984-06-12) 12 June 1984 (age 40) 4 0 Spain Villarreal v.  South Korea, May 30, 2012
MF Beñat (1987-02-19) 19 February 1987 (age 37) 2 0 Spain Betis v.  South Korea, May 30, 2012
MF Javi García (1987-02-08) 8 February 1987 (age 37) 1 0 Portugal Benfica v.  South Korea, May 30, 2012
MF Isco (1992-04-21) 21 April 1992 (age 32) 0 0 Spain Málaga v.  Serbia, May 26, 2012
MF Thiago Alcântara (1991-04-11) 11 April 1991 (age 33) 3 0 Spain Barcelona v.  Venezuela, February 29, 2012
MF Iker Muniain (1992-12-19) 19 December 1992 (age 32) 1 0 Spain Athletic Club v.  Venezuela, February 29, 2012
FW Roberto Soldado (1985-05-27) 27 May 1985 (age 39) 5 3 Spain Valencia v.  South Korea, May 30, 2012
FW Adrián (1988-01-08) 8 January 1988 (age 36) 2 1 Spain Atlético Madrid v.  South Korea, May 30, 2012
FW David Villa (1981-12-03) 3 December 1981 (age 43) 82 51 Spain Barcelona v.  Costa Rica, November 15, 2011

Previous squads

Competitive record

Head to head

Main article: Spain national football team head to head

All time results

Main article: Spain national football team results

Schedule

Spain 2012 Record

Wins Losses Draws GF GA
8 0 2 24 2
Date Competition Venue Home Team Result Away Team Scorers
Results
29 February 2012
International Friendly
Málaga, Spain
 Spain
5 – 0
 Venezuela
Iniesta 37', Silva 42', Soldado 50', 52', 83'
26 May 2012
International Friendly
St.Gallen, Switzerland
 Serbia
0 – 2
 Spain
Adrián 64', Cazorla 75'
30 May 2012
International Friendly
Bern, Switzerland
 South Korea
1 – 4
 Spain
Torres 12', Alonso 52', Cazorla 56', Negredo 80'
3 June 2012
International Friendly
Sevilla, Spain
 Spain
1 – 0
 China
Silva 84'
10 June 2012
PolandUkraine UEFA Euro 2012 GS
Gdańsk, Poland
 Spain
1 – 1
 Italy
Fàbregas 64'
14 June 2012
PolandUkraine UEFA Euro 2012 GS
Gdańsk, Poland
 Spain
4 – 0
 Republic of Ireland
Torres 4', 70'
Silva 49'
Fàbregas 83'
18 June 2012
PolandUkraine UEFA Euro 2012 GS
Gdańsk, Poland
 Croatia
0 – 1
 Spain
Navas 88'
23 June 2012
PolandUkraine UEFA Euro 2012 QF
Donetsk, Ukraine
 Spain
2 – 0
 France
Alonso 19', 90+1' (pen.)
27 June 2012
PolandUkraine UEFA Euro 2012 SF
Donetsk, Ukraine
 Portugal
0 – 0
 Spain 2
Alonso soccer ball with red X, Iniesta soccer ball with check mark, Piqué soccer ball with check mark, Ramos soccer ball with check mark, Fàbregas soccer ball with check mark
1 July 2012
PolandUkraine UEFA Euro 2012 Final
Kiev, Ukraine
 Spain
4 – 0
 Italy
Silva 14', Alba 41', Torres 84', Mata 88'
Forthcoming Fixtures
15 August 2012
International Friendly
Bayamón, Puerto Rico
 Puerto Rico
–
 Spain
7 September 2012
International Friendly
Pontevedra, Spain
 Spain
–
 Saudi Arabia
11 September 2012
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
Tbilisi, Georgia
 Georgia
–
 Spain
12 October 2012
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
Minsk, Belarus
 Belarus
–
 Spain
16 October 2012
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
Madrid, Spain
 Spain
–
 France
14 November 2012
International Friendly
Beijing, China
 China
–
 Spain
22 March 2013
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
?, Spain
 Spain
–
 Finland
26 March 2013
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
Paris, France
 France
–
 Spain
June 2013
2013 FIFA Confederations Cup
TBD, Brazil
 Spain
–
TBD1
June 2013
2013 FIFA Confederations Cup
TBD, Brazil
TBD1
–
 Spain
June 2013
2013 FIFA Confederations Cup
TBD, Brazil
 Spain
–
TBD1
6 September 2013
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
Helsinki, Finland
 Finland
–
 Spain
11 October 2013
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
?, Spain
 Spain
–
 Belarus
15 October 2013
Brazil 2014 W.C.Q
?, Spain
 Spain
–
 Georgia
Dates To Be Announced
TBD 2012/2013
International Friendly
Madrid, Spain
 Spain
–
 Netherlands
TBD 2013
International Friendly
?, Spain
 Spain
–
 Ukraine
TBD 2013
International Friendly
?, Bolivia
 Bolivia
–
 Spain
TBD 2013
International Friendly
Sydney, Australia
 Australia
–
 Spain
  • 1.^ The draw for the competition will be held in São Paulo, Brazil on 24 November 2012.[33]
  • 2.^ Spain advance to the finals after beating Portugal on penalties 4 - 2

Honours

This is a list of honours for the senior Spanish national team

FIFA World Cup

  • Winners (1): 2010
  • Fourth place (1): 1950

UEFA European Championship

FIFA Confederations Cup

  • Third place (1): 2009

Olympic football tournament

Other Awards

  • Winners (1): 2010
  • Winners (1): 2011
  • Holders (5): 11 June 1961 – 31 May 1962, 12 January 1972 – 2 May 1973, 18 June 1986 - 22 June 1986, 28 March 2001 - 27 March 2002, 11 July 2010 - 7 September 2010

Records

Worldwide

Most consecutive wins
15 (2008–2009)
Most consecutive games undefeated
35 (2007–2009) (shared with  Brazil between 1993–1996)
Most consecutive wins achieved by an international coach from debut
13 – Vicente del Bosque
Most shootouts in one World Cup by one team
2 at the 2002 FIFA World Cup (shared with  Argentina at the 1990 FIFA World Cup)
World record amount of points in World Cup qualification
30 out of 30 points (2008–2009)

Nationwide

Most international caps
136 – Iker Casillas
Most international goals
51 - David Villa
Most goals scored in one season
13 – David Villa (2008–2009)
Most consecutive games ended with at least one goal
6 – David Villa
Top scorer in World Cup finals
8 – David Villa
Most goals scored in one World Cup
5 – Emilio Butragueño (1986) & David Villa (2010)
Most goals scored in consecutive matches at World Cup
4 – David Villa (2010)

35-match undefeated streak (2007–2009)

Date Opponent Result Venue Type
2007
7 February  England 1–0 Old Trafford, Manchester International Match
24 March  Denmark 2–1 Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
28 March  Iceland 1–0 Iberostar Stadium, Palma UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
2 June  Latvia 2–0 Skonto Stadium, Riga UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
6 June  Liechtenstein 2–0 Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
22 August  Greece 3–2 Toumba Stadium, Thessaloniki International Match
8 September  Iceland 1–1 Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
12 September  Latvia 2–0 Estadio Carlos Tartiere, Oviedo UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
13 October  Denmark 3–1 Atletion, Aarhus UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
17 October  Finland 0–0 Olympic Stadium, Helsinki International Match
17 November  Sweden 3–0 Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
21 November  Northern Ireland 1–0 Estadio Gran Canaria, Las Palmas UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
2008
6 February  France 1–0 Estadio La Rosaleda, Málaga International Match
26 March  Italy 1–0 Estadio Martínez Valero, Elche International Match
31 May  Peru 2–1 Estadio Nuevo Colombino, Huelva International Match
4 June  United States 1–0 El Sardinero, Santander International Match
10 June  Russia 4–1 Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck UEFA Euro 2008
14 June  Sweden 2–1 Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck UEFA Euro 2008
18 June  Greece 2–1 Red Bull Arena, Salzburg UEFA Euro 2008
22 June  Italy 0–0 Ernst Happel Stadion, Vienna UEFA Euro 2008
26 June  Russia 3–0 Ernst Happel Stadion, Vienna UEFA Euro 2008
29 June  Germany 1–0 Ernst Happel Stadion, Vienna UEFA Euro 2008 Final
20 August  Denmark 3–0 Parken Stadium, Copenhagen International Match
6 September  Bosnia and Herzegovina 1–0 Nueva Condomina, Murcia 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
10 September  Armenia 4–0 Estadio Carlos Belmonte, Albacete 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
11 October  Estonia 3–0 A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
15 October  Belgium 2–1 King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
19 November  Chile 3–0 El Madrigal, Villarreal International Match
2009
11 February  England 2–0 Estadio Sanchez Pizjuán, Seville International Match
28 March  Turkey 1–0 Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
1 April  Turkey 2–1 Ali Sami Yen Stadium, Istanbul 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
9 June  Azerbaijan 6–0 Tofiq Bahramov Stadium, Baku International Match
14 June  New Zealand 5–0 Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
17 June  Iraq 1–0 Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
20 June  South Africa 2–0 Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
  • Spain (7 Feb 2007 - 24 Jun 2009) shares with Brazil (16 Dec 1993 - 21 Jan 1996) the unbeaten record of 35 games. Brazil's loss at the 1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup was by the under-23 (Olympic) team, but is officially counted as a loss of the national team. Otherwise the Brazil national team wouldn't lose until 30 May 1997 (2:4 vs Norway), thus extending it to 45 games.
  • Curiously both Brazil and Spain lost their undefeated streak to members of the CONCACAF region. Brazil losing it to Mexico, and Spain losing it to the United States.

Top goalscorers

As of 1 July 2012, the ten highest scorers for Spain are:

# Player Career Goals Caps Average
1 David Villa 2005– 51 0 82 0.621
2 Raúl González 1996–2006 44 0 102 0.431
3 Fernando Torres 2003– 31 0 98 0.316
4 Fernando Hierro 1989–2002 29 0 89 0.326
5 Fernando Morientes 1998–2007 27 0 47 0.574
6 Emilio Butragueño 1984–1992 26 0 69 0.377
7 Alfredo Di Stéfano 1957–1961 23 0 31 0.742
8 Julio Salinas 1986–1996 22 0 56 0.411
9 Míchel 1985–1992 21 0 66 0.318
10 Telmo Zarra 1945–1951 20 0 20 1.000
  • Bold denotes players still playing international football.

Most capped Spain players

Main article: List of Spain international footballers
Iker Casillas is the most capped player in the history of the national team, with a record of 137

As of 1 July 2012 the ten players with the most caps for Spain are:

# Name Career Caps Goals
1 Iker Casillas 2000– 137 0
2 Andoni Zubizarreta 1985–1998 126 0
3 Xavi Hernández 2000– 115 11
4 Xabi Alonso 2003– 102 15
Raúl González 1996–2006 102 44
6 Carles Puyol 2000– 99 3
7 Fernando Torres 2003– 98 31
8 Sergio Ramos 2005– 92 6
9 Fernando Hierro 1989–2002 89 29
10 David Villa 2005– 82 51
  • Bold denotes players still playing international football.

Best results

Scores from 6-0 to up

Spain best results
Date Match Round Result Difference
1 May 21, 1933  Spain –  Bulgaria Friendly 13 – 0 +13
2 December 21, 1983  Spain –  Malta France 1984 EURO qualification 12 – 1 +11
3 March 11, 1934  Spain –  Portugal Italy 1934 World Cup qualification 9 – 0 +9
December 19, 1990  Spain –  Albania Sweden 1992 EURO qualification
March 27, 1999  Spain –  Austria BelgiumNetherlands 2000 EURO qualification
June 5, 1999  Spain –  San Marino BelgiumNetherlands 2000 EURO qualification
4 September 8, 1999  Spain –  Cyprus BelgiumNetherlands 2000 EURO qualification 8 – 0 +8
5 April 14, 1929  Spain –  France Friendly 8 – 1 +7
November 24, 1971  Spain –  Cyprus Belgium 1972 EURO qualification 7 – 0
6 May 30, 1928  Spain –  Mexico Netherlands1928 S.O. 1/8 7 – 1 +6
June 1, 1952  Spain –  Republic of Ireland Friendly 6 – 0
November 1, 1952  Spain –  Romania 1964 European Nations' Cup Q 6 – 0
October 15, 1969  Spain –  Finland 1970 FIFA World Cup qualification Q 6 – 0
September 6, 1995  Spain –  Cyprus UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying Q 6 – 0
March 31, 1999  Spain –  San Marino UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying Q 6 – 0
October 12, 2005  Spain –  San Marino 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 7 Q 6 – 0
June 9, 2009  Spain –  Azerbaijan Friendly 6 – 0
June 8, 2010  Spain –  Poland Friendly 6 – 0
September 6, 2011  Spain –  Liechtenstein UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group I 6 – 0

Worst results

Scores from 5-0 and up

Spain worst results
Date Match Round Venue Result Difference
1 June 4, 1928  Spain –  Italy Netherlands 1928 S. Olympics Quarter-Final replay Netherlands  A  1 – 7 –6
December 9, 1931  Spain –  England Friendly England  A 
2 July 13, 1950  Spain –  Brazil Brazil 1950 FIFA World Cup Round 2 Brazil  A  1 – 6 −5

Historical and Memorable games

Date Home team Away team Score Venue Competition
1920-08-28  Spain  Denmark 1–0 Stade Joseph Marien 1920 S.O. R1
1921-10-09  Spain  Belgium 3–0 San Mamés Stadium Friendly
1929-05-15  Spain  England 4–3 Estadio Metropolitano Friendly
22 June 1930  Italy  Spain 2–3 Stadio Littoriale Friendly
27 May 1934  Spain  Brazil 3–1 Stadio Luigi Ferraris 1934 FIFA World Cup
12 May 1935  Germany  Spain 1–2 RheinEnergieStadion Friendly
2 July 1950  England  Spain 0–1 Estádio do Maracanã 1950 FIFA World Cup
15 May 1960  Spain  England 3–0 Santiago Bernabéu Friendly
21 June 1964  Spain  Soviet Union 2–1 Santiago Bernabéu 1964 EURO Final
25 March 1981  England  Spain 1–2 Wembley Stadium Friendly
23 June 1981  Mexico  Spain 1–3 Estadio Azteca Friendly
21 December 1983  Spain  Malta 1–12 Estadio Benito Villamarín 1984 EURO Q
12 September 1990  Spain  Brazil 3–0 El Molinón Friendly
9 July 1994  Italy  Spain 2–1 Foxboro Stadium 1994 World Cup QF
20 September 1995  Spain  Argentina 2–1 Vicente Calderón Friendly
20 September 1995  Spain  Austria 9–0 Estadio Mestalla 2000 EURO Q
2000-06-21  Spain  FR Yugoslavia 4–3 Jan Breydel Stadium UEFA Euro 2000 GS
2002-06-22  Spain  South Korea 0–0 Gwangju World Cup Stadium 2002 W.C. QF
2003-02-12  Spain  Germany 3–1 Iberostar Stadium Friendly
2004-11-17  Spain  England 1–0 Santiago Bernabéu Stadium Friendly
2006-10-11  Spain  Argentina 2–1 Estadio Nueva Condomina Friendly
2007-02-07  England  Spain 0–1 Old Trafford Friendly
2008-02-06  Spain  France 1–0 Estadio La Rosaleda Friendly
2008-03-26  Spain  Italy 1–0 Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero Friendly
2008-06-22  Spain  Italy 0–0 Ernst-Happel-Stadion UEFA Euro 2008 QF
2008-06-26  Spain  Russia 3–0 Ernst-Happel-Stadion UEFA Euro 2008 SF
2008-06-29  Germany  Spain 0–1 Ernst-Happel-Stadion UEFA Euro 2008 Final
2009-02-11  Spain  England 2–0 Estadio Ramón Sánchez Friendly
2009-11-14  Spain  Argentina 2–1 Vicente Calderón Friendly
2010-03-03  France  Spain 0–2 Stade de France Friendly
2010-06-29  Portugal  Spain 0–1 Cape Town Stadium 2010 World Cup R16
2010-07-03  Paraguay  Spain 0–1 Ellis Park Stadium 2010 World Cup QF
2010-07-07  Germany  Spain 0–1 Moses Mabhida Stadium 2010 World Cup SF
2010-07-11  Netherlands  Spain 0–1 Soccer City 2010 World Cup Final
2012-06-23  Spain  France 2–0 Donbass Arena UEFA Euro 2012 QF
2012-07-1  Spain  Italy 4–0 Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex UEFA Euro 2012 Final

FIFA World Ranking History

YR|M January February March April May June July August September October November December
1993 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 13º (50) 14º (52) 7º (55) 7º (57) 5º (57)
1994 -- 6º (56) 6º (55) 7º (55) 9º (54) 5º (55) 6º (59) -- 6º (59) 6º (59) 5º (60) 2º (61)
1995 -- 2º (61) -- 3º (61) 3º (61) 3º (60) 3º (58) 3º (58) 6º (59) 2º (60) 3º (61) 4º (59)
1996 4º (59) 4º (60) -- 6º (58) 6º (57) -- 8º (59) 7º (58) 10º (57) 10º (57) 8º (59) 8º (60)
1997 -- 7º (60) -- 4º (61) 5º (61) 3º (62) 2º (63) 2º (63) 6º (61) 2º (65) 3º (62) 11º (59)
1998 -- 23º (55) 25º (55) 9º (57) 15º (56) -- 14º (60) 14º (59) 14º (58) 16º (58) 15º (58) 15º (58)
1999 9º (703) 9º (706) 9º (704) 8º (720) 8º (724) 6º (732) 8º (714) 7º (713) 4º (757) 4º (767) 4º (758) 4º (753)
2000 4º (753) 4º (751) 4º (747) 4º (743) 4º (736) 4º (728) 4º (744) 5º (743) 5º (740) 5º (745) 6º (742) 7º (735)
2001 7º (734) 7º (732) 7º (727) 7º (725) 6º (724) 6º (733) 6º (715) 8º (716) 6º (730) 6º (730) 7º (731) 7º (730)
2002 7º (730) 7º (727) 7º (728) 8º (715) 8º (713) -- 4º (774) 3º (775) 3º (774) 3º (779) 3º (779) 3º (779)
2003 3º (780) 3º (783) 2º (780) 2º (785) 2º (784) 3º (762) 3º (755) 3º (748) 3º (767) 3º (777) 3º (785) 3º (798)
2004 3º (798) 3º (795) 3º (791) 3º (790) 3º (784) 3º (785) 3º (792) 3º (790) 3º (788) 4º (774) 4º (755) 5º (765)
2005 5º (764) 5º (764) 5º (759) 7º (755) 8º (752) 9º (747) 8º (744) 8º (739) 8º (750) 8º (764) 6º (771) 5º (768)
2006 5º (768) 6º (765) 6º (763) 5º (759) 5º (756) -- 7º (1.309) 7º (1.309) 10º (1.255) 10º (1.198) 12º (1.154) 12º (1.154)
2007 12º (1.154) 10º (1.161) 10º (1.161) 9º (1.237) 9º (1.238) 7º (1.273) 9º (1.144) 8º (1.165) 7º (1.178) 6º (1.226) 4º (1.349) 4º (1.349)
2008 4º (1.349) 4º (1.352) 4º (1.355) 4º (1.319) 4º (1.323) 4º (1.353) 1º (1.557) 1º (1.557) 1º (1.565) 1º (1.643) 1º (1.657) 1º (1.663)
2009 1º (1.663) 1º (1.693) 1º (1.666) 1º (1.729) 1º (1.729) 1º (1.761) 2º (1.590) 2º (1.590) 2º (1.588) 2º (1.629) 1º (1.622) 1º (1.627)
2010 1º (1.627) 1º (1.642) 1º (1.602) 2º (1.565) 2º (1.565) -- 1º (1.883) 1º (1.883) 1º (1.824) 1º (1.881) 1º (1.920) 1º (1.887)
2011 1º (1.887) 1º (1.887) 1º (1.880) 1º (1.857) 1º (1.857) 1º (1.871) 1º (1.855) 2º (1.563) 1º (1.605) 1º (1.624) 1º (1.564) 1º (1.564)
2012 1º (1.564) 1º (1.566) 1º (1.561) 1º (1.442) 1º (1.442) 1º (1.456) -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Home stadium

Main article: Spain national football team results § Venues in Spain

Spain does not have a national stadium as such, though major qualifying matches are usually played at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid. Other large grounds used include the Estadio Vicente Calderón, also in Madrid, and the Mestalla in Valencia. Spain are unbeaten in competitive matches played at the Calderón. Some international friendlies are played in these larger stadia, as well as the Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán in Seville.

Other friendly matches, as well as qualifying fixtures against less glamorous opponents are played in provincial stadia. Ground recently used include the Riazor in La Coruña, the Estadio Nueva Condomina in Murcia, the Estadio Carlos Belmonte in Albacete and the Estadio Romano in Mérida. Occasionally, matches are played off mainland Spain; their final UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying match against Northern Ireland was played at the Estadio Gran Canaria in Las Palmas, on the Canary Islands.

In their final Euro 2012 qualifier against Scotland, Alicante staged their first Spain International for 20 years.

Spain's historical kits

Collections of kits used by La Furia Roja

1920-21
1921-22
1922-24
1924-31
1931-36
1936-38
1938-45
1945-47
1947-59
1959-81
1981-86
2000-02
2002-04
2004-06
2006-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-Current

Managers

See also: List of Spain national football team managers

Songs for competitions

Some Spanish groups or singers have made songs to encourage the national football team for a competition, usually for World Cups:

Series Anthem / Song Performer(s) Writer(s) /
Producer(s)
1998 FIFA World Cup "Quiero Estar Contigo" Carlos Domenech & Spanish team Rosana Arbelo
UEFA Euro 2000 "Cien mil voces" Spanish team Warner Music
2002 FIFA World Cup "Vivimos La Selección" Operación Triunfo Kike Santander
UEFA Euro 2004 "Sírvame una Copita" Café Quijano Warner Music
2006 FIFA World Cup "Listos para Ganar" Indras Vale Music
UEFA Euro 2008 "Pasar de cuartos" Pignoise Warner Music
2010 FIFA World Cup "Looking For Paradise" Alejandro Sanz Alejandro Sanz ft. Alicia Keys
UEFA Euro 2012 "No hay 2 sin 3" Cali & El Dandee ft. David Bisbal Universal Music

See also

References

  1. ^ BBC (17 June 2010). ""La Roja" from Miguel, Spain". Retrieved 30 June 2010.
  2. ^ "La Roja lean to the left". FIFA. 16 June 2009. Retrieved 4 ‎January 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  3. ^ a b c Since 1992, squads for Football at the Summer Olympics have been restricted to three players over the age of 23. The achievements of such teams are not usually included in the statistics of the international team.
  4. ^ "La red social de aficionados de la Selección Española". Juegalaroja.com. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  5. ^ "Otro junio de ilusión: todos con la Roja [[:Template:Es icon]]". Notas de fútbol. 8 June 2009. Retrieved 4 ‎January 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  6. ^ Hayward, Paul (23 June 2002). "Korean miracle spoilt by refereeing farce". Telegraph. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  7. ^ "Why Spain were anything but boring". CBC.ca. 8 July 2010. Retrieved 4 ‎January 2012. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  8. ^ "Euro 2008 Final Preview: Germany vs Spain". 29 June 2008. Retrieved ‎13 ‎January ‎2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  9. ^ "Germany 0–1 Spain". BBC Sport. London. 29 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  10. ^ Spanish players named in the team of the tournament were: goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas, defenders Carles Puyol, Carlos Marchena, midfielders Xavi, Cesc Fàbregas, Andrés Iniesta, Marcos Senna and strikers David Villa and Fernando Torres.
  11. ^ "Spain appoint Del Bosque". Sky Sports. 15 July 2008. Retrieved 4 ‎January 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  12. ^ "Villa, mejor goleador de la selección en un año natural" (in Spanish). Marca.com. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  13. ^ "Spain Hotshot David Villa Delighted With Goal Against England". Goal.com. 12 February 2009. Retrieved 4 ‎January 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  14. ^ "Spain Finish Third In Confederations Cup After Thrilling Finale Against South Africa". Goal.com. 28 June 2009. Retrieved 4 ‎January 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  15. ^ "South Africa place secured". ESPN. 9 September 2009. Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  16. ^ "Perfect record intact". ESPN. 14 October 2009. Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  17. ^ "Forlan and Muller strike gold". FIFA. 11 July 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  18. ^ a b Smith, Ben (10 June 2012). "Euro 2012: Spain 1–1 Italy". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
  19. ^ a b c d Chase, Graham (14 June 2012). "Spain 4–0 Republic of Ireland". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
  20. ^ a b Smith, Ben (18 June 2012). "Croatia 0–1 Spain". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
  21. ^ a b Sanghera, Mandeep (23 June 2012). "Spain 2–0 France". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
  22. ^ Rostance, Tom (21 June 2012). "Czech Republic 1–0 Portugal". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
  23. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Smith, Ben (27 June 2012). "Portugal 0–0 Spain". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
  24. ^ a b c d e "Spain claim historic win". ESPN Soccernet. ESPN. 1 July 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2012.
  25. ^ "Full-time report Spain-Italy" (PDF). Union of European Football Associations. 10 June 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  26. ^ "Full-time report Republic of Ireland-Croatia" (PDF). Union of European Football Associations. 10 June 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  27. ^ "Full-time report Italy-Croatia" (PDF). Union of European Football Associations. 14 June 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  28. ^ "Full-time report Spain-Republic of Ireland" (PDF). Union of European Football Associations. 14 June 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  29. ^ "Full-time report Croatia-Spain" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 18 June 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  30. ^ "Full-time report Italy-Republic of Ireland" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 18 June 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  31. ^ "Full-time report Portugal-Spain" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 27 June 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
  32. ^ Royal Spanish Football Federation Home Jersey[dead link‍]
  33. ^ "Excitement awaits in 2012". FIFA.com. 1 January 2012.

Squads

Titles

Preceded by European Champions
1964 (First title) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by European Champions
2008 (Second title)
2012 (Third title) 		Incumbent
Preceded by World Champions
2010 (First title) 		Incumbent
Awards
Preceded by FIFA Team of the Year
2008–2011 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by Prince of Asturias Award for Sports
2010 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Laureus World Team of the Year
2011 		Succeeded by

Template:FIFA Worldcup Host nations

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