The Georgia national football team (Georgian: საქართველოს ეროვნული საფეხბურთო ნაკრები, romanized: sakartvelos erovnuli sapekhburto nak'rebi) represents Georgia in men's international football matches, and is controlled by the Georgian Football Federation. The Georgian team's first match took place in 1990, while Georgia was still part of the Soviet Union. The team have attempted to qualify for each major tournament from Euro 1996 onwards, with their first participation set to be at UEFA Euro 2024. Home games are played at the Boris Paichadze Dinamo Arena in Tbilisi.
 | ||||
| Nickname(s) | ჯვაროსნები Jvarosnebi (Crusaders) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Georgian Football Federation (GFF) საქართველოს ფეხბურთის ფედერაცია | |||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | |||
| Head coach | Willy Sagnol | |||
| Captain | Guram Kashia | |||
| Most caps | Guram Kashia (112) | |||
| Top scorer | Shota Arveladze (26) | |||
| Home stadium | Boris Paichadze Dinamo Arena (minor), Adjarabet Arena (second), Mikheil Meskhi Stadium and Ramaz Shengelia Stadium | |||
| FIFA code | GEO | |||
| ||||
| FIFA ranking | ||||
| Current | 75  2 (4 April 2024)[1] | |||
| Highest | 42 (September 1998) | |||
| Lowest | 156 (March 1994) | |||
| First international | ||||
| Unofficial Georgian SSR  2–2 Lithuania  (Tbilisi, Georgia; 27 May 1990) Official Lithuania 1–0 Georgia  (Kaunas, Lithuania; 2 September 1992) | ||||
| Biggest win | ||||
 Georgia 8–0 Thailand  (Tbilisi, Georgia; 12 October 2023) | ||||
| Biggest defeat | ||||
Georgia 1–7 Spain  (Tbilisi, Georgia; 8 September 2023) | ||||
| European Championship | ||||
| Appearances | 1 (first in 2024) | |||
| Best result | TBD (2024) | |||
History
The history of the Georgia national football team began in 1990, when the team played their first international match against Lithuania, the first country to accept an invitation. The match was held on 27 May 1990 at national stadium. Georgia were coached by Givi Nodia. The friendly match ended in a 2–2 draw. This was the only match prior to the declaration of independence on 9 April 1991. Soon afterwards the team played another friendly match against Moldova.
The Georgian Football Federation became a member of both UEFA and FIFA in 1992,[3] enabling Georgia to play competitive matches. The first of these came in September 1994, a 1–0 defeat to Moldova[4] as part of the qualifiers for Euro 1996. Georgia finished third in their group, ahead of Moldova, Wales and Albania, but seven points behind second-placed qualifier Bulgaria.
Georgia failed to qualify for 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, obtaining 10 points and finishing in fourth place, level on points with Poland. At this time Georgia reached forty-second place in the FIFA World Ranking.
During UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying the Georgia national team won one match, drew two and finished at the bottom of the group with five points. This marked the beginning of a period of decline for Georgian football.
The team finished fifth (and last) with seven points in their qualifying group for Euro 2004, although they defeated Russia with a goal scored by Malkhaz Asatiani.
In the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers Georgia beat Albania 2–0 at home and Kazakhstan away 2–1. They finished sixth (second bottom) with ten points in Group 2.
Georgia were sixth out of seven teams in the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying group with ten points. They defeated Scotland 2–0 at home and the Faroe Islands 6–0 away and 3–1 at home.
Héctor Cúper became the manager of Georgia in August 2008. During the qualification round for the 2010 FIFA World Cup Georgia failed to win any matches and finished sixth (and last) with three points.[5] Cuper didn't extend his contract, and on 6 November 2009, Temur Ketsbaia was appointed as the new manager of the Georgian national football team. Ketsbaia resigned as manager after a 4–0 defeat at home to Poland in the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers on 14 November 2014, having previously stated he would do so before the match regardless of the result.[6][7]
In June 2016, Georgia beat the two-times reigning European champions Spain 1–0 in their final pre-Euro 2016 friendly.[8]
In 2018, they were the first team to earn promotion in the new UEFA Nations League. They scored the event's first goal in a UEFA Nations League D game in Kazakhstan before beating Latvia twice and Andorra, with 2 games still to spare and earned their first-ever playoff berth.[9][10] In the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying, Georgia had a disappointing run, with their only two wins came over Gibraltar. In the Path D playoff semi-final, Georgia managed to beat Belarus 1–0 and thus the hope to qualify for UEFA Euro 2020 increased,[11] but it went in vain after the Georgians suffered a heartbreaking home defeat to North Macedonia in the decisive match and thus missed the opportunity to make a historic debut in a major competition.[12][13]
Georgia showed improvements with a strong 2–0 win over Sweden at the 2022 World Cup qualification on 11 November 2021.[14][15][16] They continued their improvement by winning the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C Group 4, getting promoted to 2022–23 UEFA Nations League B, and qualified for their second-ever play-off berth.[17][18][19] Georgia won 2–0 against Luxembourg, earning them a spot in the final of the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying play-offs.[20][21] They defeated Greece 4–2 on penalties after a 0–0 draw in the playoff final, which guaranteed Georgia's qualification for Euro 2024 and their first ever international tournament.[22][23][24][25][26][27]
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
Win Draw Loss Fixture
2023
Norway| 28 March 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Georgia | 1–1 | Norway | Batumi, Georgia |
| 18:00 |
| Report |
| Stadium: Batumi Stadium Attendance: 20,300 Referee: Andris Treimanis (Latvia) |
Georgia| 17 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Cyprus  | 1–2 | Georgia | Larnaca, Cyprus |
| 20:45 | Report |
| Stadium: AEK Arena – Georgios Karapatakis Attendance: 3,763 Referee: Fábio Veríssimo (Portugal) |
Georgia| 20 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Scotland  | 2–0 | Georgia | Glasgow, Scotland |
| 20:45 | Report | Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 50,062 Referee: István Vad (Hungary) |
Spain| 8 September 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Georgia | 1–7 | Spain | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| 18:00 |
| Report | Stadium: Boris Paichadze Dinamo Arena Attendance: 51,694 Referee: Daniel Siebert (Germany) |
Georgia| 12 September 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Norway | 2–1 | Georgia | Oslo, Norway |
| 20:45 | Report |
| Stadium: Ullevaal Stadion Attendance: 23,665 Referee: Nikola Dabanović (Montenegro) |
Thailand| 12 October 2023 Friendly | Georgia | 8–0 | Thailand | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| 20:00 |
| Report | Stadium: Mikheil Meskhi Stadium Attendance: 9,274 Referee: Rohit Saggi (Norway) |
Cyprus| 15 October 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Georgia | 4–0 | Cyprus | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| 15:00 |
| Report | Stadium: Mikheil Meskhi Stadium Attendance: 15,871 Referee: Rob Jones (England) |
Scotland| 16 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Georgia | 2–2 | Scotland | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| 18:00 |
| Report | Stadium: Boris Paichadze Dinamo Arena Attendance: 44,595 Referee: Aleksandar Stavrev (North Macedonia) |
Georgia| 19 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying | Spain | 3–1 | Georgia | Valladolid, Spain |
| 20:45 |
| Report |
| Stadium: José Zorrilla Attendance: 24,146 Referee: Ovidiu Hațegan (Romania) |
2024
Luxembourg| 21 March 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying play-offs | Georgia | 2–0 | Luxembourg | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| 21:00 |
| Report | Stadium: Boris Paichadze Dinamo Arena Attendance: 51,404 Referee: José María Sánchez Martínez (Spain) |
Greece| 26 March 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying play-offs | Georgia | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (4–2 p) | Greece | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| 21:00 | Report | Stadium: Boris Paichadze Dinamo Arena Attendance: 44,000 Referee: Szymon Marciniak (Poland) | ||
| Penalties | ||||
Georgia| 9 June 2024 Friendly | Montenegro  | v | Georgia | Podgorica, Montenegro |
| Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium |
Georgia| 18 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group F | Turkey  | v | Georgia | Dortmund, Germany |
| 18:00 | Report | Stadium: Westfalenstadion |
Czech Republic| 22 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group F | Georgia | v | Czech Republic | Hamburg, Germany |
| 15:00 | Report | Stadium: Volksparkstadion |
Portugal| 26 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group F | Georgia | v | Portugal | Gelsenkirchen, Germany |
| 21:00 | Report | Stadium: Arena AufSchalke |
Georgia| 10 September 2024 2024–25 Nations League | Albania  | v | Georgia | Tirana, Albania |
| 20:45 | Stadium: Arena Kombëtare |
Coaching staff
- As of 28 March 2024[29]
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Willy Sagnol |
| Assistant Manager |  Adel Chedli Zurab Khizanishvili |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Davit Gvaramadze |
| Analyst | Irakli Chitauri Levan Zamtaradze |
| Fitness Trainer | Fabien Bossuet |
Coaching history
As of 28 March 2024[30]
| Manager | Georgia career | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Givi Nodia | 1990 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Giga Norakidze | 1991–1992 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50.00 |
| Aleksandre Chivadze | 1993–1996 | 24 | 9 | 1 | 14 | 37.50 |
| Vladimir Gutsaev (caretaker) | 1996 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 |
| David Kipiani | 1997 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 57.14 |
| Vladimir Gutsaev | 1998 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 60.00 |
| Gigla Imnadze (caretaker) | 1998 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Vladimir Gutsaev | 1998–1999 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 25.00 |
 Johan Boskamp | 1999 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0.00 |
| David Kipiani Revaz Dzodzuashvili | 2000–2001 | 16 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 31.25 |
| Aleksandre Chivadze | 2001–2003 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36.36 |
 Ivo Šušak | 2003 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50.00 |
| Merab Jordania | 2003 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 33.33 |
| Gocha Tkebuchava (caretaker) | 2004 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.00 |
 Alain Giresse | 2004–2005 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 20.00 |
| Gaioz Darsadze (caretaker) | 2005 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 28.57 |
 Klaus Toppmöller | 2006–2008 | 24 | 7 | 4 | 13 | 29.17 |
| Petar Šegrt (caretaker) | 2008 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 |
 Héctor Cúper | 2008–2009 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 6.25 |
| Temur Ketsbaia | 2010–2014 | 40 | 13 | 9 | 18 | 32.50 |
| Kakhaber Tskhadadze | 2014–2016 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 30.00 |
 Vladimír Weiss | 2016–2020 | 47 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 34.04 |
| Ramaz Svanadze (caretaker) | 2020 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Willy Sagnol | 2021– | 33 | 15 | 6 | 12 | 45.45 |
Players
Current squad
The following players were called for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying play-offs. [31]
Caps and goals correct as of 27 March 2024, after the match against Greece.
Recent call-ups
The following players have not been called up for the upcoming matches but have been called up for the team in the last 12 months.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DF | Irakli Azarovi | 21 February 2002 | 18 | 0 |  Shakhtar Donetsk | v. Spain, 19 November 2023 |
| DF | Aleksandre Kalandadze | 9 May 2001 | 2 | 0 | Dinamo Tbilisi | v. Spain, 19 November 2023 |
| DF | Iva Gelashvili | 8 April 2001 | 1 | 0 |  Spezia | v. Spain, 19 November 2023 |
| DF | Jemal Tabidze | 18 March 1996 | 15 | 1 | Panetolikos | v. Scotland, 20 June 2023 |
| MF | Giorgi Aburjania | 2 January 1995 | 39 | 1 | Hatayspor | v. Spain, 19 November 2023 |
| MF | Gabriel Sigua | 30 June 2005 | 2 | 0 |  Basel | v. Scotland, 16 November 2023 INJ |
| MF | Saba Lobzhanidze | 18 December 1994 | 36 | 3 |  Atlanta United | v. Cyprus, 15 October 2023 |
| MF | Luka Gagnidze | 28 February 2003 | 5 | 0 |  Dynamo Moscow | v. Norway, 12 September 2023 |
| FW | Davit Volkovi | 3 June 1995 | 5 | 2 |  Sabah | v. Spain, 19 November 2023 |
Records
- As of 19 November 2023[32]
- Players in bold are still active with Georgia.
Most appearances
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| Rank | Player | Caps | Goals | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guram Kashia | 112 | 3 | 2009–present |
| 2 | Jaba Kankava | 101 | 10 | 2004–present |
| 3 | Levan Kobiashvili | 100 | 12 | 1996–2011 |
| 4 | Zurab Khizanishvili | 92 | 1 | 1999–2015 |
| 5 | Kakha Kaladze | 83 | 1 | 1996–2011 |
| 6 | Giorgi Loria | 78 | 0 | 2008–present |
| 7 | Giorgi Nemsadze | 69 | 0 | 1992–2004 |
| 8 | Aleksandre Iashvili | 67 | 15 | 1996–2011 |
| 9 | Gocha Jamarauli | 62 | 6 | 1994–2004 |
| Valeri Qazaishvili | 62 | 13 | 2014–2022 |
Top goalscorers
| Rank | Player | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shota Arveladze | 26 | 61 | 0.43 | 1992–2007 |
| 2 | Temur Ketsbaia | 17 | 52 | 0.33 | 1990–2003 |
| 3 | Khvicha Kvaratskhelia | 15 | 29 | 0.52 | 2019–present |
| Aleksandre Iashvili | 15 | 67 | 0.22 | 1996–2011 | |
| 5 | Tornike Okriashvili | 13 | 49 | 0.27 | 2010–2021 |
| Valeri Qazaishvili | 13 | 62 | 0.21 | 2014–2022 | |
| 7 | Giorgi Demetradze | 12 | 56 | 0.21 | 1996–2007 |
| Levan Kobiashvili | 12 | 100 | 0.12 | 1996–2011 | |
| 9 | Jaba Kankava | 10 | 101 | 0.1 | 2004–present |
| 10 | Georges Mikautadze | 9 | 24 | 0.38 | 2021–present |
| Mikheil Kavelashvili | 9 | 46 | 0.2 | 1991–2002 |
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup
| FIFA World Cup record | FIFA World Cup qualification record | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Position | |
 1930 to 1990 | Part of the  Soviet Union | Part of the Soviet Union | ||||||||||||||
| 1994 | FIFA member from 1992. Not admitted to the tournament.[b] | Not admitted to the tournament | ||||||||||||||
| 1998 | Did not qualify | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 4/5 | ||||||||
  2002 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 12 | 3/5 | |||||||||
| 2006 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 14 | 25 | 6/7 | |||||||||
 2010 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 19 | 6/6 | |||||||||
 2014 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 4/5 | |||||||||
| 2018 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 14 | 5/6 | |||||||||
 2022 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 4/5 | |||||||||
  2026 | To be determined | To be determined | ||||||||||||||
 2030 | ||||||||||||||||
 2034 | ||||||||||||||||
| Total | 0/7 | 64 | 11 | 17 | 36 | 57 | 101 | — | ||||||||
UEFA European Championship
| UEFA European Championship record | UEFA European Championship qualifying record | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Position | ||
 1960 to  1992 | Part of the Soviet Union | Part of the Soviet Union | |||||||||||||||
 1996 | Did not qualify | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 14 | 13 | 3/6 | |||||||||
 2000 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 18 | 6/6 | ||||||||||
| 2004 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 14 | 5/5 | ||||||||||
 2008 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 16 | 19 | 6/7 | ||||||||||
 2012 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 5/6 | ||||||||||
| 2016 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 16 | 5/6 | ||||||||||
 2020 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 12 | 4/5 (PO runners-up) | ||||||||||
| 2024 | Qualified | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 4/5 (PO winners) | |||||||||
  2028 | To be determined | ||||||||||||||||
| 2032 | |||||||||||||||||
| Total | 1/8 | 80 | 22 | 13 | 45 | 85 | 119 | — | |||||||||
UEFA Nations League
| UEFA Nations League record | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | League | Group | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | P/R | RK |
| 2018–19 | D | 1 | 1st | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 2 |  | 40th |
| 2020–21 | C | 2 | 3rd | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 6 |  | 42nd |
| 2022–23 | C | 4 | 1st | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 3 | | 33rd |
| 2024–25 | B | 1 | To be determined | ||||||||
| Total | 18 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 34 | 11 | 33rd | ||||
Statistics
The following table shows Georgia‘a all-time international record, correct as of 26 March 2024.
See also
- Football in Georgia
- List of Georgia international footballers
- Georgia national football team results
- List of Georgian national football team captains
- Georgia national under-21 football team
- Georgia national under-19 football team
- Georgia national under-17 football team
- Georgia national futsal team
- Georgia national beach soccer team
- Georgia National Football Team results
Notes
References
External links
