Serbia and Montenegro national football team

The Serbia and Montenegro national football team (Serbo-Croatian: Фудбалска репрезентација Србије и Црне Горе, Fudbalska reprezentacija Srbije i Crne Gore) was a national football team that represented the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. It was controlled by the Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro. For 11 years, it was known as the FR Yugoslavia national football team (Serbo-Croatian: Фудбалска репрезентација СР Југославије, Fudbalska reprezentacija SR Jugoslavije) when the state was called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, until February 2003, when the name of the country was changed to Serbia and Montenegro.

In 2006, Montenegro declared its separation from Serbia, and the country's football team was renamed as the Serbia national football team on 28 June 2006, with the Montenegro national football team created to represent the renewed state of Montenegro.

Although politically it was not seen as a direct successor to the former Yugoslavia, both FIFA and UEFA recognized Serbia and Montenegro as the sole successor in football. This meant they could claim and use the history and records of the Yugoslav national teams.

History

Prior to 1991

Main article: Yugoslavia national football team

Post-1991

Slobodan Santrač era (1994–1998)

See also: 1998 FIFA World Cup Group F and 1998 FIFA World Cup knockout stage

The team known as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia started in 1992 but could not play until 1994 because of bans from FIFA due to wars. Their first match was a friendly against Brazil in December 1994, ending in a 2–0 loss. Managed by Slobodan Santrač, a former player, the team then beat Uruguay 1–0 in March 1995, their first official win and home match in Belgrade.

They could not join the 1994 World Cup or Euro 1996 because of United Nations sanctions. In 1997, they finished second in their World Cup qualifying group and beat Hungary twice to reach the 1998 World Cup. There, they drew with Germany and beat the United States before losing to the Netherlands in the round of 16.

Euro 2000

See also: UEFA Euro 2000 Group C and UEFA Euro 2000 knockout stage

Yugoslavia qualified for Euro 2000 by drawing 2–2 with Croatia in their final qualifier. In the tournament, they drew 3–3 with Slovenia, beat Norway 1–0, and lost 4–3 to Spain in their group matches. They were defeated 6–1 by the Netherlands in the quarter-finals.

Failure to qualify for 2002 World Cup

The team failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup, finishing third in their group. Problems included political issues and coaching changes.

Ilija Petković era (2003–2006)

See also: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group C

After becoming Serbia and Montenegro in 2003, the team struggled in Euro 2004 qualifying but qualified for the 2006 World Cup by finishing first in their group. In the tournament, they lost all three matches: 1–0 to the Netherlands, 6–0 to Argentina, and 3–2 to the Ivory Coast.

After dissolution

Main articles: Serbia national football team and Montenegro national football team

After Montenegro declared independence in June 2006, Serbia and Montenegro’s final match was against the Ivory Coast. The Football Association of Montenegro joined UEFA separately, while the Football Association of Serbia took over Serbia and Montenegro’s place. Serbia played its first match in August 2006, and Montenegro played its first match in March 2007.

Kit history

Kit supplier

FR Yugoslavia

Serbia and Montenegro

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

The table below shows how the team from Yugoslavia performed in the FIFA World Cups. Their best results were in the first tournament in 1930 and in 1962.

UEFA European Championship

Here are the results of the team from Yugoslavia in the UEFA European Championship. They could not play in some tournaments because of international rules during the Yugoslav Wars.

UEFA European Championship record

Major competitions squads

World Cup

• 1998 World Cup squad
• 2006 World Cup squad

European Championship

• UEFA Euro 2000 squad

Coaches

The Serbia and Montenegro national football team had several coaches over the years.

These coaches led the team during different periods:

• Slobodan Santrač (1994 – July 1998)
• Milan Živadinović (August 1998 – 1999)
• Vujadin Boškov (1999 – July 2000)
• Ilija Petković (August 2000 – January 2001)
• Milovan Đorić (February 2001 – 6 May 2001)
• 3-man commission: Dejan Savićević, Vujadin Boškov and Ivan Ćurković (6 May 2001 – December 2001)
• Dejan Savićević (December 2001 – June 2003)
• Ilija Petković (July 2003 – June 2006)

Head to head records (1994–2006)

This section shows how the Serbia and Montenegro national football team performed against other teams from 1994 to 2006. The records include the number of matches played, wins, draws, and losses in competitions and friendly games.

Honours

The Serbia and Montenegro national football team won several friendly tournaments. They were champions of the Lunar New Year Cup in 1995 and the Millennium Super Cup in 2001. They were runners-up in the Korea Cup in 1997 and the Kirin Cup in 2004.

They also received an award from FIFA in 1997 for being the best mover of the year FIFA Best Mover of the Year.