Azerbaijan national football team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Azerbaijan

Nickname(s)	Milli komanda (The National Team)
Association	Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan (AFFA)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Fernando Santos
Captain	Emin Mahmudov
Most caps	Rashad Sadygov (111)
Top scorer	Gurban Gurbanov & Emin Mahmudov (14)
Home stadium	Various
FIFA code	AZE
First colours Second colours Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current	108 1 (7 February 2019)
Highest	73 (July 2014)
Lowest	170 (June 1994)
Elo ranking
Current	105 4 (3 March 2019)
Highest	51 (28 June 1928)
Lowest	152 (2 June 2001)
First international
Unofficial Azerbaijan SSR Armenian SSR 4-0 (Tbilisi, Georgian SSR; December 1926) Official  Georgia 6–3 Azerbaijan  (Tbilisi, Georgia; 17 September 1992)
Biggest win
Azerbaijan 4–0 Liechtenstein  (Baku, Azerbaijan; 5 June 1999)  Azerbaijan 5–1 San Marino  (Baku, Azerbaijan; 4 September 2017)
Biggest defeat
France 10–0 Azerbaijan  (Auxerre, France; 6 September 1995)

The Azerbaijan national football team (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan milli futbol komandası) represents Azerbaijan in international football games. The team is managed by the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan (AFFA). Most of their home games are played at the Baku Olympic Stadium. Sometimes, friendly matches are held at other club stadiums.

Azerbaijan has tried to qualify for every major tournament since Euro 1996. However, they have never made it to the final stages of a World Cup or European Championship. Azerbaijan was the first country in the Caucasus region to host a big football tournament, which was part of UEFA Euro 2020.

History of Azerbaijani Football

Early Days (Before the 1920s)

Football became popular in Azerbaijan in the early 1900s. At that time, Azerbaijan was part of the Russian Empire. In 1912, Azerbaijani players had their first "international match." They won 4–2 against a local team in Tbilisi, Georgia. More matches between Azerbaijani and Georgian teams happened in 1912 and 1913. In 1914, the Football Union was created in Azerbaijan. This union helped organize official city championships and other football events.

Soviet Era (1920s–1991)

The first records of football teams in Soviet Azerbaijan are from 1926–1927. This was when the Trans-Caucasian Championship took place in Tbilisi. Teams from Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia played in this tournament. The Azerbaijan national team played its first friendly games against Georgia and Armenia in 1927. Azerbaijani players also played and won three matches against a team from Iran in Baku in 1926. They won again in Tehran in 1929.

The 1960s were a special time for Azerbaijani football. Great players like Anatoliy Banishevskiy and Alakbar Mammadov emerged. Also, Tofiq Bahramov, a famous football referee, came from Azerbaijan. He is well-known for helping to award a goal for England in the 1966 World Cup Final.

After Independence (1992–Present)

1990s Football Journey

After Azerbaijan became independent in 1991, the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan (AFFA) was formed. In 1992, famous Azerbaijani footballer Alekper Mamedov became the first head coach. His team won their first national team game against Georgia on May 25, 1993. In 1994, the national team joined FIFA and UEFA. Due to safety concerns, the team had to play all its home Euro 96 qualifying matches in Trabzon, Turkey.

2000s and New Coaches

Azerbaijani squad in 2008.

In the early 2000s, the Azerbaijani football federation started bringing more players into the national team. They used FIFA eligibility rules to do this. In February 2004, Carlos Alberto Torres, who captained Brazil to win the 1970 FIFA World Cup, became the national coach. After a tough start, Azerbaijan won their first ever away match, 3–2 against Kazakhstan on April 28. Torres left in June 2005 and was replaced by Vagif Sadygov. Later, Shahin Diniyev and Gjoko Hadzievski also coached the team.

In April 2008, former German player and coach Berti Vogts became the manager. Azerbaijan had a mixed qualifying campaign, finishing with 5 points. In November 2009, AFFA extended Vogts' contract. He was the first manager to lead the team through two qualification cycles.

2010s and Ranking Highs

In 2010, Azerbaijan had a surprising win over Turkey. This helped the team reach 90th place in the FIFA World Rankings. This was Azerbaijan's highest ever position at the time. After beating Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan also set new records for goals and points in a qualifying campaign.

In November 2011, Berti Vogts' contract was extended again. Despite some criticism, Azerbaijan finished fourth in their 2014 World Cup qualifying group. This was their best ever finish. In July 2014, Azerbaijan reached 73rd place in the FIFA World Rankings, breaking their previous record. Vogts resigned in October 2014 after six years as coach.

Robert Prosinečki took over as manager. He led the team to another record points total (10) in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying. However, the team still finished fifth in their group. Prosinečki left, and Nikola Jurčević became the new coach.

2020s and Recent Challenges

The UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying was difficult for Azerbaijan. The team finished last in their group, with seven losses and only one draw. The draw was surprisingly against 2018 FIFA World Cup runners-up Croatia. Nikola Jurčević left after this poor performance. Azerbaijan became the only country not to qualify for a tournament they co-hosted.

Qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup also went poorly under new coach Gianni De Biasi. Azerbaijan earned only one point in their group. The Nations League that year was more successful. Azerbaijan finished second in their group with 10 points. De Biasi was dismissed in October 2023.

In March 2024, Arif Asadov became the caretaker manager. He led the team to two wins out of four games. In June 2024, Fernando Santos, who won UEFA Euro 2016 with Portugal, was appointed as the new manager. The 2024-25 UEFA Nations League saw Azerbaijan relegated after securing only one draw.

Team Look and Feel

Team Colours

Azerbaijan national football team in October 2013.

Since the Euro 2016 qualifying, Azerbaijan's home kit has been all-red. For away games, they wear an all-blue kit. These colours have been traditional for the national team since their first game. In the early 1990s, they wore white shirts. Later, they used blue-white striped shirts. In the early 2000s, the kit changed to a white shirt with a vertical stripe in the colours of the national flag. For the Euro 2008 qualifying, they wore blue shirts, red shorts, and green socks. After that, they returned to their usual colours.

Azerbaijan's away colours used to be yellow-black striped shirts, black shorts, and yellow socks. This changed before the Euro 2004 qualifying to a completely blue kit. During the Euro 2008 qualifying games, the team used an all-red away kit.

Since 2017, Nike has supplied Azerbaijan's kits. Before that, Puma (2004-2006) and Umbro (2002-2004) were their kit suppliers.

Team Nickname

The media and fans often call Azerbaijan's team Milli. This means "The National" in Azerbaijani. It's a common nickname for all of Azerbaijan's national sports teams because they use the country's national colours.

Home Stadiums

Most of Azerbaijan's home matches are played at the Baku Olympic Stadium in Baku. This has been their main home stadium since 2015, when they moved from Tofiq Bahramov Stadium. Today, some qualifying and friendly matches are still held at the Tofiq Bahramov Stadium. Other stadiums like Lankaran City Stadium, Bakcell Arena, and Dalga Arena also host games after meeting UEFA standards.

Coaching Staff

Position	Name
Head coach	Fernando Santos
Assistant coach	Bruno Pereira Paulinho Ricardo Santos Rashad Eyyubov
Goalkeeper coach	Kamran Agayev Fernando Justino
Fitness coach	Filipe Silvério

Players

Current Squad

The following players were chosen for the friendly games against Latvia and Hungary in June 2025.

On June 2, Badavi Guseynov had to leave the squad because of an injury.

Caps (games played) and goals are correct as of June 9, 2025, after the match against Latvia.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Shakhruddin Magomedaliyev	(1994-06-12) 12 June 1994 (age 31)	30	0	Qarabağ
12	1GK	Aydın Bayramov	(1996-02-18) 18 February 1996 (age 29)	0	0	Zira
23	1GK	Rza Jafarov	(2003-07-03) 3 July 2003 (age 22)	5	0	Neftçi
2	2DF	Zamig Aliyev	(2001-05-05) 5 May 2001 (age 24)	2	0	Egnatia
3	2DF	Elvin Cafarguliyev	(2000-10-26) 26 October 2000 (age 24)	28	1	Qarabağ
4	2DF	Behlul Mustafazade	(1997-02-27) 27 February 1997 (age 28)	36	1	Qarabağ
5	2DF	Rahman Dashdamirov	(1999-10-20) 20 October 1999 (age 25)	3	0	Sabah
13	2DF	Abbas Hüseynov	(1995-06-13) 13 June 1995 (age 30)	28	0	Qarabağ
14	2DF	Elvin Badalov	(1995-06-14) 14 June 1995 (age 30)	10	0	Sumgayit
18	2DF	Cəlal Hüseynov	(2003-01-02) 2 January 2003 (age 22)	6	0	Shamakhi
21	2DF	Mert Çelik	(2000-06-10) 10 June 2000 (age 25)	1	0	Sivasspor
6	3MF	Sabuhi Abdullazade	(2001-12-18) 18 December 2001 (age 23)	3	0	Sumgayit
7	3MF	Anatoliy Nuriyev	(1996-05-20) 20 May 1996 (age 29)	14	1	Sabah
8	3MF	Emin Mahmudov	(1992-04-27) 27 April 1992 (age 33)	53	14	Neftçi
11	3MF	Khayal Aliyev	(2004-02-18) 18 February 2004 (age 21)	3	0	Sabah
15	3MF	Shahin Shahniyarov	(2005-01-01) 1 January 2005 (age 20)	1	0	Gabala
16	3MF	Jeyhun Nuriyev	(2001-12-18) 18 December 2001 (age 23)	10	0	Zira
17	3MF	Toral Bayramov	(2001-02-23) 23 February 2001 (age 24)	32	4	Qarabağ
20	3MF	Ismayil Ibrahimli	(1998-02-13) 13 February 1998 (age 27)	10	0	Zira
24	3MF	Rauf Rustamli	(1998-02-13) 13 February 1998 (age 27)	0	0	Sumgayit
9	4FW	Renat Dadashov	(1999-05-17) 17 May 1999 (age 26)	37	4	Motor Lublin
10	4FW	Mahir Emreli	(1997-07-01) 1 July 1997 (age 28)	54	6	1. FC Kaiserslautern
19	4FW	Nariman Akhundzade	(2004-04-23) 23 April 2004 (age 21)	7	0	Qarabağ
22	4FW	Musa Qurbanlı	(2002-04-13) 13 April 2002 (age 23)	17	3	Qarabağ

Recent Call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team in the last 12 months and could still be chosen.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Alirza Müshtabazada	(2001-12-05) 5 December 2001 (age 23)	0	0	Sabail	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
GK	Mekhti Dzhenetov	(1992-01-26) 26 January 1992 (age 33)	5	0	Sumgayit	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
GK	Yusif İmanov	(2002-03-27) 27 March 2002 (age 23)	1	0	Free agent	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
DF	Badavi Guseynov	(1991-07-11) 11 July 1991 (age 34)	78	1	Qarabağ	v.  Latvia, 7 June 2025 INJ
DF	Rahil Mammadov	(1995-11-24) 24 November 1995 (age 29)	23	0	Radomiak Radom	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
DF	Amin Seydiyev	(1998-11-15) 15 November 1998 (age 26)	13	0	Sabah	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
DF	Şehriyar Aliyev	(1992-12-25) 25 December 1992 (age 32)	4	0	Turan Tovuz	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
MF	Coşqun Diniyev	(1995-09-13) 13 September 1995 (age 29)	30	0	Çorumspor	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
MF	Aleksey Isayev	(1995-11-09) 9 November 1995 (age 29)	29	1	Qarabağ	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
MF	Elvin Camalov	(1995-02-04) 4 February 1995 (age 30)	21	0	Neftçi	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
MF	Ozan Kökçü	(1998-08-18) 18 August 1998 (age 26)	13	0	Volendam	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
MF	Qismət Alıyev	(1996-10-24) 24 October 1996 (age 28)	13	0	Zira	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
MF	Emil Mustafayev	(2001-09-24) 24 September 2001 (age 23)	5	0	Polissya	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
MF	Khayal Najafov	(1997-12-19) 19 December 1997 (age 27)	3	0	Turan Tovuz	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
FW	Agadadash Salyanskiy	(2004-06-19) 19 June 2004 (age 21)	0	0	Neftçi	v.  Belarus, 25 March 2025
FW	Ramil Sheydayev	(1996-03-15) 15 March 1996 (age 29)	69	10	Neftçi	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
FW	Rustam Akhmedzade	(2000-12-25) 25 December 2000 (age 24)	10	0	Free agent	v.  Sweden, 19 November 2024
INJ Withdrew due to injury

Player Statistics

Players in bold are still active with Azerbaijan.

Most Games Played

Rashad Sadygov has played the most games for Azerbaijan with 111 appearances.

Top Goal Scorers

Emin Mahmudov is one of Azerbaijan's top goal scorers with 14 goals.

Tournament Records

FIFA World Cup History

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Position
1930 to 1990	Part of  Soviet Union									Part of  Soviet Union
1994	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1998	Did not qualify									8	1	0	7	3	22	5/5
2002										10	1	2	7	4	17	6/6
2006										10	0	3	7	1	21	6/6
2010										10	1	2	7	4	14	5/6
2014										10	1	6	3	7	11	4/6
2018										10	3	1	6	10	19	5/6
2022										8	0	1	7	5	18	5/5
2026	To be determined									To be determined
2030
2034
Total		0/7								66	7	15	44	34	122	—

UEFA European Championship History

UEFA European Championship record										Qualifying record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Position
1960 to 1988	Part of  Soviet Union									Part of  Soviet Union
1992	Part of  CIS									Part of  CIS
1996	Did not qualify									10	0	1	9	2	29	6/6
2000										10	1	1	8	6	26	5/6
2004										8	1	1	6	5	20	5/5
2008										12	1	2	9	6	28	8/8
2012										10	2	1	7	10	26	5/6
2016										10	1	3	6	7	18	5/6
2020										8	0	1	7	5	18	5/5
2024										8	2	1	5	7	17	4/5
2028	To be determined									To be determined
2032
Total		0/8								76	8	11	57	48	182	—

UEFA Nations League History

UEFA Nations League record
Season	Division	Group	Round	Pos.	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	P/R	RK
2018–19	D	3	Group stage	2nd	6	2	3	1	7	6		46th
2020–21	C	1		3rd	6	1	3	2	2	4		43rd
2022–23	C	3		2nd	6	3	1	2	7	4		38th
2024–25	C	1		4th	6	0	1	5	3	17		47th
Total			Group stage (C)	4/4	24	6	8	10	19	31	38th

Honours

Friendly Tournaments

• ECO Cup
  • Third place (1): 1993
• UAE International Cup
  • Third place (1): 2009

See also

In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Azerbaiyán para niños

• Azerbaijan national under-23 football team
• Azerbaijan national under-21 football team
• Azerbaijan national under-20 football team
• Azerbaijan national under-19 football team
• Azerbaijan national under-18 football team
• Azerbaijan national under-17 football team
• Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan
• Azerbaijan Premier League