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Bulgaria

Nickname(s)	Лъвовете / Lavovete (The Lions) Трикольорите / Trikolyorite (The Tricolours)
Association	Bulgarian Football Union (BFU)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Mladen Krstajić
Captain	Kiril Despodov
Most caps	Stiliyan Petrov (105)
Top scorer	Dimitar Berbatov Hristo Bonev (48)
Home stadium	Vasil Levski National Stadium
FIFA code	BUL
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	72 2 (6 October 2022)[1]
Highest	8 (June 1995)
Lowest	96 (May 2012)
First international
Austria 6–0 Bulgaria  (Vienna, Austria; 21 May 1924)
Biggest win
Bulgaria 10–0 Ghana  (León, Mexico; 2 October 1968)
Biggest defeat
Spain 13–0 Bulgaria  (Madrid, Spain; 21 May 1933)
World Cup
Appearances	7 (first in 1962)
Best result	Semifinal (1994)
European Championship
Appearances	2 (first in 1996)
Best result	Group stage (1996, 2004)
Medal record Olympic Games 1968 Mexico City Team 1956 Melbourne Team Balkan Cup 1931 Bulgaria Team 1932 Yugoslavia Team 1973–76 Europe Team 1935 Bulgaria Team 1936 Romania Team 1933 Romania Team

The Bulgaria national football team (Bulgarian: Български национален отбор по футбол, romanized: Bǎlgarski natsionalen otbor po futbol) represents Bulgaria in men's international football and is administered by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home venue is the Vasil Levski Stadium in Sofia.

Bulgaria's best achievements are reaching the final at the 1968 Summer Olympics and the FIFA World Cup semi-finals in 1994. They have also competed at the Balkan Cup, winning three titles. However, Bulgaria has failed to qualify for any major tournament since UEFA Euro 2004.

History

Early history

The Bulgarian national football team was formed in 1922. In 1923, the Bulgarian Football Union was formed and the team's first match was held in Vienna on 21 May 1924, which resulted in a 6–0 defeat against Austria.[2] Bulgaria also participated in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris a few days later.

Years of international wilderness

After being unable to compete in the 1930 World Cup, the Bulgarian side did not qualify for any major tournament for nearly 30 years, narrowly falling short of qualification on numerous occasions. The national team had gone on a streak of finishing 2nd or 3rd in their qualifying groups along with proceeding to the play-offs, but in the end, failing to qualify. Despite their qualifying problems, the national team did manage to defeat many elite teams during memorable international friendlies during those years. It also seemed as if the only tournaments they managed to qualify for were smaller tournaments, such as the Balkan Cup, which they won three times (1931, 1932 and 1973–76), thus being the competition's second most successful team only behind Romania with four titles.

1960s and 1970s

Bulgaria qualified for the World Cup for the first time in its history in 1962 and followed that up with consecutive appearances in 1966, 1970 and 1974. The team, however, did not have much success and finished in third place in their group two out of the four times.

Bulgaria took part in qualifiers for the European Championship in 1968 and went on to win their group with impressive wins over Norway, Sweden, and Portugal. Although they would go on to lose to the eventual champions and hosts Italy in a two-legged qualifying play-off.

At the 1968 Summer Olympics, the team won the silver medal. They finished first in Group D by defeating Thailand 7–0, Guatemala 2–1, and drawing 2–2 against Czechoslovakia. They advanced to the quarter-finals by defeating Israel and then the semi-finals by defeating favored hosts Mexico. In the Olympic Final, the team was defeated by Hungary, in what many would say was a hard-fought match for both sides.

Despite winning the Balkan Cup twice in 1931 and 1932, the Bulgaria national team added two more trophies to their case as they went on to win the tournament in 1973 and 1976. In both 1973 and 1976, Bulgaria had used their previous World Cup experience to create a very tactical team. This paid off quite well, as they had many decisive victories over Hungary, Greece, Turkey, Yugoslavia, Poland, Albania and Romania. In fact, the team won the 1976 Balkan Cup by beating Romania in the two-legged final 1–0 and 3–2.

1962 World Cup

Bulgaria finally qualified for their second world cup. Bulgaria was drawn in a tough group with elite opponents in England, powerhouse Argentina and Hungary. Bulgaria opened up their campaign with a narrow 0–1 loss to Argentina. Later on, Bulgaria would lose their second group match by a 6–1 score to Hungary. Bulgaria's hopes of qualifying were over, but the national team impressively drew with future 1966 World Cup champions England 0-0 and finished fourth in the group with only one point.

1966 World Cup

Bulgaria qualified for their second straight World Cup, drawn into an even tougher group compared to the previous World Cup. They were placed in the group of death with superpowers Hungary, Portugal and Brazil, with Pelé at the helm. Bulgaria opened their campaign match with a 0–2 loss to Brazil thanks to two free kick goals by Pelé and Garrincha. In their second match Bulgaria loss 0–3 to Eusebio's Portugal. Finally, Bulgaria with no chance of advancing to the next round, finished their last match with a 1–3 loss to Hungary. Bulgaria once again finished fourth with zero points in the group.

Euro 1968 qualification

After their poor World Cup performance, Bulgaria was determined to redeem themselves. Bulgaria was drawn in a very tough group for qualifying, with Norway and Sweden, along with Eusebio's Portugal. Bulgaria started off with a 4–2 win over Norway. They would add to their winning streak with a 2–0 victory against Sweden. In their next two matches Bulgaria would draw 0–0 against Norway, and dominate Sweden 3–0. In their final two group fixtures Bulgaria played Portugal to a 1–0 victory at home and an 0–0 draw on the road, but it was enough to advance to the two-legged qualifying play-off. There Bulgaria were drawn against eventual Euro 1968 host Italy. Italy were defeated in the first leg 3–2, but won the second by a 0–2 score to advance 4–3 on aggregate. Italy would win the playoff and go on to win the tournament, while Bulgaria was eliminated from reaching the finals.

1968 Summer Olympics

A month and a half after the European Championship qualifying came the Olympics, which Bulgaria had qualified for the fifth time in their history. They were drawn in a simple group with Thailand, Guatemala and Czechoslovakia. Bulgaria started off with a 7–0 thrashing of Thailand. They later went on and drew with Czechoslovakia 2–2 to increase their point standards. Their final match once again determined if they would carry on to the quarter-finals. Needing a decisive win, Bulgaria went on to defeat Guatemala 2–1 and win their Olympic group. They qualified directly to the quarter-finals facing underdogs, Israel. The game remained 1–1 for most of the match until a drawing of lots determined who would go on to the semi-finals of the tournament. Winning the draw Bulgaria advanced to the semi-finals against Mexico. After a very hard-fought match, Bulgaria proved stronger as they came out on top with a 3–2 victory. Bulgaria advanced to the finals for the first time in their Olympic history. They were determined to win the gold medal, but fell short with a 1–4 loss to Hungary. Although battling hard, Bulgaria came out with the silver medal.

1970 World Cup

Bulgaria qualified for their third straight World Cup, held in Mexico, just like the 1968 Olympics. They were drawn in a very tricky group with Germany, Peru and Morocco. Bulgaria played their first match against Peru, losing 3–2. Germany won Bulgaria's second match, 5–2. The last group stage match ended 1–1; Bulgaria ended up in 3rd place.

1974 World Cup

The 1974 World Cup was held in West Germany. They were drawn in a decently tough group, with the Netherlands, Sweden and Uruguay. Bulgaria started off with a goalless draw with Sweden. They drew again, this time 1–1 with Uruguay. As the final match came, Bulgaria fell by a 4–1 score. Bulgaria remained in third place in the group stages.

1986 World Cup

Bulgaria qualified for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico by finishing second in Group Four, behind France with 11 points, but ahead of powerful rivals Yugoslavia and East Germany. This was their fifth World Cup appearance. They were drawn in Group A with Italy, Argentina, and South Korea. In the opening match of the World Cup, the Bulgarians held the defending champions Italy to an impressive 1–1 draw. Alessandro Altobelli gave the Italians the lead, but an 85th-minute equalizer by Nasko Sirakov gave the Bulgarians the point they needed. The next match was another 1–1 draw against South Korea with the goal for Bulgaria coming from Plamen Getov in the 11th minute. They lost the final match of the group 2–0 against Argentina, who eventually won the tournament. Despite not recording a win, the Bulgarians advanced to the knockout stage by being the third-best third-placed team. By doing so, Bulgaria along with Uruguay became the first nations to qualify for the knockout stage without winning a game in the first round. In the Round of 16, they faced World Cup hosts Mexico, who were looking for revenge due to their previous home Olympic semi-final loss to Bulgaria in Mexico City in 1968. The match was hard-fought from both sides of the scale but ultimately, Mexico came away with the 2–0 win.

1994 World Cup

Certainly one of the most important dates in Bulgarian football history is 17 November 1993, a date on which Emil Kostadinov scored a deciding goal in the 90th minute to beat France in Paris, allowing Bulgaria to qualify for the World Cup in the United States in 1994. Under the management of Dimitar Penev, the Bulgarians, led by players such as Hristo Stoichkov, Yordan Lechkov, and Krasimir Balakov, along with a multitude of other talented players remembered in Bulgaria as the "Golden Generation", made a strong impression by surprisingly reaching the semi-finals. They entered a very tough Group D with 1990 World Cup runners-up Argentina with Diego Maradona at the helm, African Nations Cup champions Nigeria, and Balkan rivals Greece. The first match ended with a 3–0 defeat to Nigeria. Despite the bad start, the team made quite a huge statement by winning 4–0 against their Greece and increasing their goal difference. Their third and final match came against Argentina. The powerful Bulgarian side came away with a shocking 2–0 victory. Going into injury-time, Argentina was leading the group. A 91st-minute strike from Nasko Sirakov, however, meant that they'd drop two places and finish third.

Bulgaria continued to the round of 16, where they faced Mexico. Stoichkov opened the scoring in the sixth minute with an incredible strike off a break away from outside the box, tallying his fourth goal. The match ended 1–1 and after no goals were scored in extra time, penalties decided which team would go through. Team captain Borislav Mihaylov saved the first three penalty kicks in a row, breaking the World Cup record. Bulgaria won 3–1 on penalties. In the quarter-finals, Bulgaria faced the defending world champions Germany. At the start of the match held in Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the Bulgarians dominated impressively, hitting the post twice in the process, but eventually found themselves behind after Lothar Matthäus scored the opening goal for the Germans. The Bulgarians, however, managed to turn the game over with a swerving free kick by Hristo Stoichkov and a flying header by Yordan Lechkov, giving them a 2–1 win. In the semi-finals, they controversially lost 2–1 to Italy. Stoichkov scored Bulgaria's only goal in the first half to tally his seventh goal, which led the tournament. In the second half, Bulgaria were waved off on a non-penalty call in which an Italian defender had clearly committed a handball in the box, off a Kostadinov cross. Instead of playing in the final, it became a third place play-off. Bulgaria lost against Sweden 4–0, but the fourth-place finish was Bulgaria's best performance in history to that point.

Hristo Stoichkov was awarded the Golden Boot shared with Oleg Salenko as the top scorer in the tournament with his six goals. Krasimir Balakov was named in the 1994 World Cup Dream Team along with Stoichkov. Later on in December, Stoichkov was awarded the FIFA Ballon D'Or trophy for his great skill and leadership, becoming the first Bulgarian and third Barcelona player to win it in history.^{[citation needed]}

Euro 1996

In 1996, the team qualified for the European Football Championship for the first time. They were drawn in Group B with France, Spain, and Romania. Bulgaria started with a 1–1 draw against the Spain. Stoichkov scored his second goal with a wonderful volley, ruled offside. Bulgaria defeated Romania 1–0 in the next group stage match. Stoichkov scored in the third minute. In the final group match, the Bulgarian side lost 3–1 against France; Stoichkov scored a free kick to give Bulgaria their only goal of the game, along with their only loss. At the same time, Spain defeated Romania 2–1, and Bulgaria were eliminated.

1998 World Cup

Bulgaria qualified for the 1998 World Cup in France by finishing first in Group 5, with decisive wins over Russia. They entered the competition with new manager Hristo Bonev. Bulgaria drew Spain, Nigeria, and Paraguay in Group D. The first match ended decently, in a goalless draw against eventual group runners up Paraguay. In the second match, the Bulgarians lost 1–0 for a second-straight World Cup to Nigeria. The final match ended with a 6–1 defeat to Spain. Following the bad results, Bulgaria finished fourth in the group, with only one point. This was the last World Cup appearance for Bulgaria.

Euro 2000 qualification

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

2002 World Cup qualification

Bulgaria was once again drawn into a tough group with Denmark and Czech Republic. The group was also the debut of Bulgaria's top scoring legend Dimitar Berbatov. Bulgaria won the matches against the weaker teams, but lost once and drew once with both Denmark and the Czech Republic. Bulgaria finished third with 17 points, three points behind second-placed Czech Republic, thus failing to make the World Cup in South Korea and Japan.

Euro 2004

Bulgaria managed to qualify for the Euro 2004 in Portugal by finishing first with wins over Croatia and Belgium. They drew Sweden, Italy, and Denmark in Group C. All three group stage matches ended up in losses for Bulgaria, with Martin Petrov being the team's lone scorer in the country's 1–2 loss to Italy.

2006 World Cup qualification

Bulgaria failed to qualify for the World Cup in Germany after a run of poor results. They tied with Sweden and Croatia the first run but lost the other meetings to the two sides. Although Berbatov scored many goals in the qualifiers including a last-minute equalizer against Croatia, Bulgaria still finished third in qualifying with 15 points.

2006 Kirin Cup

Bulgaria found themselves in a minor tournament in Japan known as the Kirin Cup. They started off well with a 2–1 victory over the hosts Japan. However, Bulgaria lost 5–1 to Scotland, the eventual cup champions. Bulgaria finished as the runners-up and received the silver medal.

Euro 2008 qualification

Group G of Euro 2008 qualification had Netherlands, Romania, and Bulgaria attempting to qualify for Euro 2008, hosted by Switzerland and Austria. Bulgaria performed well after a run of good results against Romania which gave them the first place. Bulgaria finished third in the group falling short on one point behind the Netherlands.

2010 World Cup qualification

Bulgaria were drawn against Italy and Ireland in qualifying in Group 8. Bulgaria started the campaign with a series of draws. Manager Plamen Markov was replaced by Stanimir Stoilov in January 2009. The Bulgarians then recorded their first wins of the group over Cyprus, Montenegro and Georgia. They finished in third place with 14 points, therefore failing to qualify to a play-off spot.

Euro 2012 qualification

Bulgaria were drawn in Group G along with England, Switzerland, Wales, and Montenegro. Bulgaria finished in last place in the group.

2014 World Cup qualification

In the qualification phase for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, Bulgaria were placed in Group B together with the teams of Italy, Denmark, Czech Republic, Armenia and Malta. Under the guidance of former player Lyuboslav Penev as head coach, Bulgaria enjoyed a revival and some noteworthy performances in friendly matches before the start of the qualifying, including a 2–1 victory over 2010 World Cup runners-up Netherlands in Amsterdam. The qualifying began with a 2–2 draw against Euro 2012 runners-up Italy. Bulgaria then edged a tight match against Armenia, which ended 1–0. Next, Bulgaria drew 1–1 against Denmark. Four days later, Bulgaria earning a hard-fought 0–0 draw away to the Czech Republic. As a result, the team climbed from 96th in the FIFA World Rankings, their lowest position in history, to 40th in November 2012.

Penev's players hosted and defeated Malta 6–0 under heavy snowfall. Four days later, Bulgaria drew Denmark 1–1 in Copenhagen. This result left Bulgaria second in the group with 10 points, still undefeated. Bulgaria traveled to Italy, losing 1–0. After a series of poor results, Bulgaria ended up failing to qualify for Brazil 2014.

Euro 2016 qualification

Bulgaria were placed in a group with Italy, Croatia, Norway, Azerbaijan, and Malta. Bulgaria opened up their first match with a 2–1 victory over Azerbaijan. They were defeated 1–0 by Croatia, following another 2–1 defeat to Norway. To make it worse, Bulgaria drew with Malta 1–1 at home, which would cost manager Lyuboslav Penev his position. He was replaced by Ludogorets Razgrad manager Ivaylo Petev.

On his debut match, Petev's squad drew Romania 0-0; this later led to a 2–2 draw with Italy, which Bulgaria led until a last-minute Italian equalizer. Bulgaria defeated Malta 1–0 to edge two points ever closer to the third place playoff position. After a series of losses, Bulgaria failed to qualify for Euro 2016 in France despite a 2–0 defeat of Azerbaijan.

2018 World Cup qualification

Bulgaria were drawn in a strong World Cup qualification group with the Netherlands, France, Sweden, Belarus and Luxembourg. They began with a 4–3 win against Luxembourg at home.[3] This was followed by heavy losses to France (4–1) and Sweden (3–0).[4][5] In November 2016, the Lions beat Belarus in Sofia 1–0,[6] and then put up one of their best performances in recent years, beating the Netherlands 2–0 to move into third place in the group.[7] Bulgaria then beat the group leaders Sweden 3–2 in Sofia to move one point behind their opponents in the table.[8] However, they lost the match against the Netherlands at the Amsterdam Arena 3–1. A 1–0 defeat at home to France and a 1–1 draw in Luxembourg ended their chances of qualifying.[9]

Euro 2020 qualification and Nations League

Bulgaria were drawn in UEFA Nations League C with Norway, Slovenia and Cyprus. Bulgaria opened up the campaign with a 2–1 win over Slovenia and a clean sheet against Norway. The Norwegians eventually avenged their loss to Bulgaria, resulting in a tie for first place. Bulgaria eventually closed out the second round of games with two 1–1 draws against Slovenia and Cyprus, resulting in a second-place finish.

Bulgaria was drawn in Group A with England, Czech Republic, Montenegro and Kosovo. The team began the qualifying campaign with a 1–1 home draw against Montenegro and a 1–1 away draw to Kosovo while losing three major players due to injuries.[10] They later carried on with two more losses which sparked the end of their group campaign. Despite finishing in fourth place, the national side had one more opportunity to qualify for the Euros thanks to the good performance in the Nations League. It sent Bulgaria to the Path A qualifying play-offs, which also included Hungary, Iceland and Romania.

The draw put Bulgaria against Hungary in their first play-off match on their quest to qualify for a major competition since 2004. However, in front of limited number of home fans, Bulgaria fell 1–3 to Hungary, and was eliminated from the tournament.[11][12]

2020−21 Nations League

After appointing Georgi Dermendzhiev as their new head coach, Bulgaria began their brief promotion in League B. Being drawn into Group 4 with Wales, Finland and Republic of Ireland, Bulgaria played its first match against Ireland. A near victory for the Bulgarians until a 90th minute injury time equalizer sealed the draw for the Irish.[13] Bulgaria would then play away to Wales, where they held the hosts leveled 0-0 until another 90th minute injury time goal that resulted in 0–1 loss. The problems would continue with another set of narrow losses to Finland and Wales, forcing Bulgaria to miss out on promotion to League A. With two more matches left, Bulgaria finished winless against Finland and Ireland, relegating the Lions to League C.

2022 World Cup qualification

Yasen Petrov was hired as the coach prior to the qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup. Bulgaria began the campaign horribly, losing at home 1-3 to Switzerland and 0-2 to Italy. The team somewhat improved in the next two games, drawing away at Northern Ireland and Italy, the reigning European champions. Bulgaria then beat Lithuania 1-0 a home, but lost 1-3 away against the same team. This basically ended hope for qualification. A 2-1 home win against Northern Ireland was only a brief moment of rejoice before a heavy 0-4 defeat to Switzerland ended a largely miserable attempt for qualifying.

2022–23 UEFA Nations League

Bulgaria was allocated to League C for the League of Nations season, after relegation from the previous edition. Bulgaria’s opponents were drawn to be North Macedonia, Georgia, and Gibraltar. The campaign began with a 1-1 draw against North Macedonia at home, followed by a heavy 2-5 loss against Georgia at home. Yasen Petrov handed his resignation following the game. Georgi Ivanov was appointed temporary manager for the next two games against Gibraltar and Georgia. Another shameful performance followed, when the Lions drew 1-1 in Gibraltar, which was one of only few times that the Gibraltar national team hadn’t lost a competitive game in its history. In Georgia, Bulgaria drew 0-0, extending the winless streak to four games. During the one month pause of the tournament, Serbian coach Mladen Krstajić was appointed manager. Under Krstajić, Bulgaria recorded two wins, against Gibraltar at home and against North Macedonia away, eventually finishing second in the group. The game against North Macedonia was particularly intense, due to rising political tensions between the two countries at that time. The Bulgarian national anthem was heavily booed, followed by multiple provocations from both Macedonian fans and players aimed at Bulgarian players.

Team image

Bulgaria's traditional colours are white, green and red, taken from the colours of the country's flag. This tricolour is reflected through the use of white shirts, green shorts, and red socks. The team's away kits have usually been red.

Their nickname is The Lions, in tribute of the lions represented in the coat of arms of Bulgaria.

Ultras and controversy

In recent years, ultras of the Bulgarian team have developed a reputation for racism. After racist chanting and monkey noises directed at Ashley Young, Ashley Cole and Theo Walcott during a qualifier for Euro 2012, the Bulgarian Football Union was fined €40,000 by UEFA.[14] The BFU denied that racism would be an issue during Euro 2020 qualifiers, claiming that the issue was worse in England.[15] Nevertheless, Bulgarian ultras were accused of racist chants during their matches against Czech Republic, Kosovo and England. As a result, part of the Bulgarian stadium was closed off for the match against England (October 2019), and officials twice halted the game under the UEFA anti-racism protocol.[16] In the following days since the match took place, Bulgarian police identified 15 fans they suspected were responsible for subjecting black English players including Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford and Tyrone Mings to racist abuse, arresting six of them.[17]

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin condemned the alleged abuse calling on the "football family and governments" to "wage war on the racists".[18] Disciplinary proceedings have been launched against both Bulgaria and England.[19]

Home stadium

Normally, the Bulgarian national football team's home stadium is the Vasil Levski National Stadium with a capacity of 44,000. Vasil Levski was officially opened in 1953 and reconstructed in 1966 and 2002. It is the second largest stadium in Bulgaria, behind the Plovdiv Stadium with a capacity of 55,000. During the 2006–07 UEFA Champions League, the stadium was used for Levski Sofia matches with Barcelona, Chelsea, and Werder Bremen. Similarly, Ludogorets Razgrad used it as their main home venue for their European matches until the 2017–18 season. The Bulgarian national team's home matches and the Bulgarian Cup finals are held at the venue, as well as athletics competitions.

Results and fixtures

  Win   Draw   Loss

2021

2022

2023

Coaching staff

Role	Name
Head Coach	Mladen Krstajić
Assistant Coach	Stefan Janković
Assistant Coach	Nemanja Milinčić
Assistant Coach	Ivan Ivanov
Goalkeeping Coach	Darko Božović
Coach Analyst	Krsto Jokić
Fitness Coach	Svetlin Spasov

Coaching history

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the friendly games against Cyprus and Luxembourg on 16 and 20 November 2022.[20]

Caps and goals as of 16 November 2022, after the match against Cyprus.[21][22]

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Daniel Naumov	(1998-03-29) 29 March 1998 (age 24)	6	0	CSKA 1948
21	1GK	Svetoslav Vutsov	(2002-07-09) 9 July 2002 (age 20)	3	0	Slavia Sofia
12	1GK	Ivan Dyulgerov	(1999-07-15) 15 July 1999 (age 23)	0	0	Cherno More
14	2DF	Anton Nedyalkov	(1993-04-30) 30 April 1993 (age 29)	27	0	Ludogorets Razgrad
15	2DF	Petko Hristov	(1999-03-01) 1 March 1999 (age 23)	16	0	Spezia
2	2DF	Ivan Turitsov	(1999-07-18) 18 July 1999 (age 23)	15	0	CSKA Sofia
23	2DF	Valentin Antov	(2000-11-09) 9 November 2000 (age 22)	14	1	Monza
19	2DF	Dimitar Velkovski	(1995-01-22) 22 January 1995 (age 27)	8	0	Cercle Brugge
5	2DF	Plamen Galabov	(1995-11-02) 2 November 1995 (age 27)	3	0	Maccabi Netanya
22	2DF	Aleks Petkov	(1999-07-25) 25 July 1999 (age 23)	2	0	Arda
3	2DF	Dimo Krastev	(2003-02-10) 10 February 2003 (age 19)	1	0	Fiorentina
24	2DF	Hristiyan Petrov	(2002-06-24) 24 June 2002 (age 20)	0	0	CSKA Sofia
26	2DF	Mateo Stamatov	(1999-03-22) 22 March 1999 (age 23)	0	0	Orenburg
8	3MF	Yanis Karabelyov	(1996-01-23) 23 January 1996 (age 26)	9	0	Kisvárda
16	3MF	Ilian Iliev Jr.	(1999-08-20) 20 August 1999 (age 23)	8	0	Apollon Limassol
20	3MF	Filip Krastev	(2001-10-15) 15 October 2001 (age 21)	7	0	Levski Sofia
4	3MF	Ilia Gruev	(2000-05-06) 6 May 2000 (age 22)	3	0	Werder Bremen
13	3MF	Yoni Stoyanov	(2001-05-22) 22 May 2001 (age 21)	3	0	Sektzia Ness Ziona
18	3MF	Nikola Iliev	(2004-06-06) 6 June 2004 (age 18)	3	0	Inter Milan
17	3MF	Stanislav Shopov	(2002-02-23) 23 February 2002 (age 20)	0	0	CSKA Sofia
7	4FW	Spas Delev	(1989-09-22) 22 September 1989 (age 33)	37	4	Ludogorets Razgrad
11	4FW	Kiril Despodov (captain)	(1996-11-11) 11 November 1996 (age 26)	34	9	Ludogorets Razgrad
10	4FW	Radoslav Kirilov	(1992-06-29) 29 June 1992 (age 30)	9	2	CSKA 1948
22	4FW	Marin Petkov	(2003-10-02) 2 October 2003 (age 19)	3	1	Levski Sofia
9	4FW	Georgi Rusev	(1998-07-02) 2 July 1998 (age 24)	3	0	CSKA 1948

Recent call-ups

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

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Nikolay Mihaylov	(1988-06-28) 28 June 1988 (age 34)	46	0	Levski Sofia	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
DF	Viktor Popov	(2000-03-05) 5 March 2000 (age 22)	6	0	Cherno More	v.  Cyprus, 16 November 2022INJ
DF	Andrea Hristov	(1999-03-01) 1 March 1999 (age 23)	14	1	Reggiana	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
DF	Bozhidar Chorbadzhiyski	(1995-08-08) 8 August 1995 (age 27)	11	0	Widzew Łódź	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
DF	Edisson Jordanov	(1993-06-08) 8 June 1993 (age 29)	5	0	Westerlo	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
DF	Vasil Bozhikov (3rd captain)	(1988-06-02) 2 June 1988 (age 34)	38	2	Unattached	v.  Croatia, 29 March 2022
DF	Kristian Dimitrov	(1997-02-27) 27 February 1997 (age 25)	14	1	Hajduk Split	v.  Croatia, 29 March 2022
DF	Miki Orachev	(1996-03-19) 19 March 1996 (age 26)	1	0	Lokomotiv Sofia	v.  Croatia, 29 March 2022
MF	Ivan Yordanov	(2000-11-07) 7 November 2000 (age 22)	1	0	Ludogorets Razgrad	v.  Cyprus, 16 November 2022INJ
MF	Dominik Yankov	(2000-07-28) 28 July 2000 (age 22)	15	0	Ludogorets Razgrad	v.  Cyprus, 16 November 2022INJ
MF	Iliyan Stefanov	(1998-09-20) 20 September 1998 (age 24)	6	2	Levski Sofia	v.  Cyprus, 16 November 2022INJ
MF	Georgi Milanov	(1992-02-19) 19 February 1992 (age 30)	47	2	Levski Sofia	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
MF	Todor Nedelev	(1993-02-07) 7 February 1993 (age 29)	44	5	Botev Plovdiv	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
MF	Georgi Kostadinov	(1990-09-07) 7 September 1990 (age 32)	37	3	APOEL	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
MF	Ivaylo Chochev	(1993-02-18) 18 February 1993 (age 29)	35	4	CSKA 1948	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
MF	Kristiyan Malinov	(1994-03-30) 30 March 1994 (age 28)	29	0	OH Leuven	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
MF	Andrian Kraev	(1999-02-14) 14 February 1999 (age 23)	2	0	Levski Sofia	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
MF	Borislav Tsonev	(1995-04-29) 29 April 1995 (age 27)	5	0	Dalian Professional	v.  Croatia, 29 March 2022
FW	Martin Minchev	(2001-04-22) 22 April 2001 (age 21)	11	0	Sparta Prague	v.  Cyprus, 16 November 2022PRI
FW	Atanas Iliev	(1994-10-09) 9 October 1994 (age 28)	16	3	Ascoli	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
FW	Georgi Yomov	(1997-07-06) 6 July 1997 (age 25)	10	2	CSKA Sofia	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
FW	Georgi Minchev	(1995-04-20) 20 April 1995 (age 27)	9	1	Auda	v.  Georgia, 12 June 2022
INJ Player withdrew from the current squad due to injury. COVID Player withdrew from the current squad due to testing positively for COVID-19 or having to self-isolate because of it. U21 Not part of the squad due to U-21 call up. PRE Preliminary squad. RET Player had announced retirement from international football. SUS Player is serving a suspension. PRI Player absent due to private circumstances. WD Withdrawn.

Player records

As of 28 March 2021[23]

Players in bold text are still active with Bulgaria.

Most appearances

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Stiliyan Petrov	105	8	1998–2013
2	Borislav Mihaylov	102	0	1983–1998
3	Hristo Bonev	96	48	1967–1979
4	Krasimir Balakov	92	16	1988–2003
5	Dimitar Penev	90	2	1965–1974
	Ivelin Popov	90	18	2007–2019
7	Martin Petrov	89	19	1999–2013
8	Radostin Kishishev	88	1	1996–2009
9	Hristo Stoichkov	83	37	1986–1999
10	Ayan Sadakov	80	9	1981–1991
	Zlatko Yankov	80	4	1989–1999

Top goalscorers

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Average	Career
1	Dimitar Berbatov	48	78	0.62	1999–2010
	Hristo Bonev	48	96	0.5	1967–1979
3	Hristo Stoichkov	37	83	0.46	1987–1999
4	Emil Kostadinov	27	70	0.39	1988–1998
5	Ljubomir Angelov	26	44	0.59	1931–1940
6	Petar Zhekov	25	44	0.57	1963–1972
	Ivan Kolev	25	75	0.33	1950–1963
8	Nasko Sirakov	24	78	0.31	1983–1996
9	Atanas Mihaylov	23	45	0.51	1970–1981
10	Dimitar Milanov	20	39	0.51	1948–1959

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place  

FIFA World Cup record											Qualification record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930	Did not enter										Declined invitation
1934	Did not qualify										3	0	0	3	3	14
1938											2	0	1	1	1	7
1950	Did not enter										Declined participation
1954	Did not qualify										4	0	1	3	3	7
1958											4	2	0	2	11	7
1962	Group stage	15th	3	0	1	2	1	7	Squad		5	4	0	1	7	4
1966	Group stage	15th	3	0	0	3	1	8	Squad		5	4	0	1	11	7
1970	Group stage	13th	3	0	1	2	5	9	Squad		6	4	1	1	12	7
1974	Group stage	12th	3	0	2	1	2	5	Squad		6	4	2	0	13	3
1978	Did not qualify										4	1	2	1	5	6
1982											8	4	1	3	11	10
1986	Round of 16	15th	4	0	2	2	2	6	Squad		8	5	1	2	13	5
1990	Did not qualify										6	1	1	4	6	8
1994	Fourth place	4th	7	3	1	3	10	11	Squad		10	6	2	2	19	10
1998	Group stage	29th	3	0	1	2	1	7	Squad		8	6	0	2	18	9
2002	Did not qualify										10	5	2	3	14	15
2006											10	4	3	3	17	17
2010											10	3	5	2	17	13
2014											10	3	4	3	14	9
2018											10	4	1	5	14	19
2022											8	2	2	4	6	14
2026	To be determined										To be determined
Total	Fourth place	7/22	26	3	8	15	22	53	—		137	62	29	46	215	191

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

UEFA European Championship

UEFA European Championship record											Qualifying record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1960	Did not qualify										2	0	1	1	1	3
1964											5	3	0	2	7	7
1968											8	5	2	1	13	4
1972											6	3	1	2	11	7
1976											6	2	2	2	12	7
1980											8	2	1	5	6	14
1984											6	2	1	3	7	8
1988											8	4	2	2	12	6
1992											8	3	3	2	15	8
1996	Group stage	11th	3	1	1	1	3	4	Squad		10	7	1	2	24	10
2000	Did not qualify										8	2	2	4	6	8
2004	Group stage	16th	3	0	0	3	1	9	Squad		8	5	2	1	13	4
2008	Did not qualify										12	7	4	1	18	7
2012											8	1	2	5	3	13
2016											10	3	2	5	9	12
2020											9	1	3	5	7	20
2024	To be determined										To be determined
Total	Group stage	2/16	6	1	1	4	4	13	—		122	50	29	43	164	140

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

UEFA Nations League

UEFA Nations League record
Season**	Division	Group	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	P/R	RK
2018–19	C	3	6	3	2	1	7	5		29th
2020–21	B	4	6	0	2	4	2	7		31st
2022–23	C	4	6	2	3	1	10	8		40th
2024–25	C	Future event
Total			18	5	7	6	19	20	29th

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

Olympic Games

Olympic Games record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
1908	Did not enter
1912
1920
1924	Round of 16	12th	1	0	0	1	0	1	Squad
1928	Did not enter
1936
1948
1952	Round of 16	13th	1	0	0	1	1	2	Squad
1956	Bronze medal	3rd	3	2	0	1	10	3	Squad
1960	Group stage	5th	3	2	1	0	8	3	Squad
1964	Did not qualify
1968	Silver medal	2nd	6	3	2	1	16	10	Squad
1972	Did not qualify
1976
1980
1984
1988
Since 1992	Olympic football has been an under-23 tournament
Total	1 Silver medal	5/17	14	7	3	4	35	19	—

Balkan Cup

Balkan Cup record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1929–31	Fourth place	4th	6	2	0	4	10	19
1931	Champions	1st	2	2	0	0	8	3
1932	Champions	1st	3	3	0	0	7	2
1933	Third place	3rd	3	1	0	2	2	11
1934–35	Fourth place	4th	3	1	0	2	7	8
1935	Runners-up	2nd	3	2	1	0	12	5
1936	Runners-up	2nd	2	1	0	1	6	8
1946	Fourth place	4th	3	0	1	2	4	7
1947	Fourth place	4th	4	1	0	3	5	14
1948*	Group stage	3rd	5	2	1	2	6	7
1973–76	Champions	1st	4	2	0	2	10	9
1977–80	Group stage	3rd	4	1	1	2	4	6
Total	3 Titles	12/12	42	18	4	20	81	99

*Competition abandoned with Bulgaria in third place.

Head-to-head record

As of 26 September 2022 after the match against  North Macedonia.[24]

  Positive Record   Neutral Record   Negative Record

Opponents	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Albania	14	7	4	3	17	10	+7
Algeria	6	3	2	1	9	6	+3
Andorra	2	2	0	0	5	1	+4
Argentina	9	1	0	8	6	18	−12
Armenia	2	1	0	1	2	2	0
Australia	4	2	2	0	8	4	+4
Austria	8	1	2	5	7	21	−14
Azerbaijan	4	3	1	0	6	2	+4
Belarus	8	5	0	3	12	7	+5
Belgium	14	6	2	6	20	23	−3
Bolivia	1	1	0	0	3	1	+2
Bosnia and Herzegovina	2	1	0	1	2	2	0
Brazil	9	0	1	8	2	19	−17
Cameroon	1	1	0	0	3	0	+3
Canada	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Chile	1	0	0	1	2	3	−1
Croatia	9	1	2	6	6	18	−12
Cuba	1	1	0	0	5	2	+3
Cyprus	15	13	1	1	34	10	+24
Czech Republic[lower-alpha 1]	25	10	5	10	24	34	−10
Denmark	16	4	8	4	20	21	−1
East Germany	23	8	8	7	31	30	+1
Ecuador	2	1	0	1	3	4	−1
Egypt	7	2	2	3	8	9	−1
England	12	0	4	8	2	26	−24
Estonia	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2
Finland	10	7	1	2	20	7	+13
France	23	8	4	11	26	41	−15
Georgia	8	4	2	2	21	12	+9
Germany[lower-alpha 2]	24	4	2	18	28	62	−34
Ghana	1	1	0	0	10	0	+10
Gibraltar	3	2	1	0	9	2	+7
Greece	26	13	7	6	48	35	+13
Guatemala	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1
Hungary	33	6	10	17	38	74	−36
Iceland	5	4	1	0	12	7	+5
India	1	1	0	0	3	0	+3
Indonesia	1	1	0	0	4	0	+4
Iran	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Israel	7	4	2	1	13	6	+7
Italy	23	2	9	12	19	42	−23
Jamaica	1	0	1	0	0	0	0
Japan	6	4	1	1	13	10	+3
Jordan	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2
Kazakhstan	2	2	0	0	4	2	+2
Kosovo	2	0	1	1	3	4	−1
Kuwait	5	2	3	0	9	6	+3
Latvia	3	3	0	0	6	0	+6
Lebanon	1	1	0	0	3	2	+1
Lithuania	3	2	0	1	5	3	+2
Luxembourg	14	13	1	0	39	9	+30
Malta	14	11	3	0	45	6	+39
Mexico	13	3	6	4	14	16	−2
Moldova	2	2	0	0	7	1	+6
Montenegro	6	1	4	1	8	6	+2
Morocco	6	1	3	2	5	10	−5
Netherlands	12	5	2	5	17	20	−3
New Caledonia	1	1	0	0	5	3	+2
Nigeria	2	0	0	2	0	4	−4
North Korea	3	3	0	0	12	1	+11
North Macedonia	9	5	2	2	9	4	+5
Northern Ireland	9	5	2	2	11	8	+3
Norway	16	7	4	5	27	16	+11
Oman	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Paraguay	2	0	1	1	0	1	−1
Peru	5	2	1	2	11	11	0
Poland	27	6	9	12	32	48	−16
Portugal	13	6	3	4	18	16	+2
Qatar	1	1	0	1	4	4	0
Republic of Ireland	13	3	6	4	10	15	−5
Romania	43	13	8	22	62	82	−20
Russia[lower-alpha 3]	28	3	11	14	23	42	−19
San Marino	2	2	0	0	7	0	+7
Saudi Arabia	3	2	0	1	3	1	+2
Scotland	6	0	3	3	4	10	−6
Serbia[lower-alpha 4]	35	9	6	20	50	71	−21
Singapore	1	1	0	0	10	2	+8
Slovakia	8	2	2	4	6	11	−5
Slovenia	4	3	1	0	8	2	+6
South Africa	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
South Korea	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1
Spain	9	1	3	5	15	31	−16
Sudan	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Sweden	16	3	2	11	11	31	−20
Switzerland	12	2	4	6	13	22	−9
Thailand	1	1	0	0	4	0	+4
Tunisia	2	0	1	1	3	6	−3
Turkey	27	14	6	7	53	36	+17
Ukraine	6	0	3	3	3	8	−5
United Arab Emirates	6	5	0	1	14	4	+10
Uruguay	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Wales	10	4	1	5	8	6	+2
Total (92)	783	289	195	299	1,116	1,160	−44

Ranking history

	Rank	Date
Best Rank	8	June 1995
Current Rank	72	October 2022
Worst Rank	96	May 2012

• FIFA-ranking yearly averages for Bulgaria (1992–2022)[25]

As of 23 June 2022

Honours

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

• FIFA World Cup:
  • Fourth place (1): 1994
• Olympic Games:
  • Runners-up (1): 1968
  • Third place (1): 1956
• Balkan Cup:
  • Champions (3): 1931, 1932, 1976
  • Runners-up (2): 1935, 1936
  • Third place (2): 1933, 1980
  • Fourth place (4): 1930, 1934, 1946, 1947

See also

• Bulgaria national under-21 football team
• Bulgaria national under-19 football team
• Bulgaria national under-18 football team
• Bulgaria national under-17 football team

Notes

References

External links

• Official website (in Bulgarian)
• Bulgaria at FIFA site
• Bulgaria at UEFA site
• Bulgarian football – history, teams, stadiums, fan clubs
• RSSSF archive of results 1924–
• RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers
• Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup
• Planet World Cup archive of squads in the World Cup
• Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup qualifiers

На других языках

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- [en] Bulgaria national football team

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[ru] Сборная Болгарии по футболу

Сборная Болгарии по футболу — национальная футбольная команда Болгарии, контролируемая Болгарским футбольным союзом. Самым успешным для болгар чемпионатом мира было соревнование 1994 года в США, когда они одолели немцев в 1/4 финала, но проиграли в полуфинале итальянцам, а затем и шведам в матче за 3-е место, заняв, таким образом, 4-е.

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