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Ecuador national football team facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The Ecuador national football team (called La Selección de fútbol de Ecuador in Spanish), often nicknamed La Tricolor (The Tricolors), represents Ecuador in men's international football games. The team is managed by the Federación Ecuatoriana de Fútbol (Ecuadorian Football Federation). They joined FIFA in 1926 and CONMEBOL (the South American football confederation) a year later.

Quick facts for kids
Ecuador
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s) La Tri (The Tri)
La Tricolor (The Tricolors)
Association Federación Ecuatoriana de Fútbol (FEF)
Confederation CONMEBOL (South America)
Head coach Sebastián Beccacece
Captain Enner Valencia
Most caps Iván Hurtado (168)
Top scorer Enner Valencia (46)
Home stadium Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado
FIFA code ECU
First colours
Second colours
Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current 58 Decrease 1 (7 February 2019)
Highest 10 (June 2013)
Lowest 71 (November 2017)
Elo ranking
Current 24 Increase 5 (3 March 2019)
Highest 11 (27 March 2013)
Lowest 120 (December 1959)
First international
 Bolivia 1–1 Ecuador 
(Bogotá, Colombia; 8 August 1938)
Biggest win
 Ecuador 6–0 Peru 
(Quito, Ecuador; 22 June 1975)
Biggest defeat
 Argentina 12–0 Ecuador 
(Montevideo, Uruguay; 22 January 1942)
World Cup
Appearances 4 (first in 2002)
Best result Round of 16 (2006)
Copa América
Appearances 30 (first in 1939)
Best result Fourth place (1959, 1993)
CONCACAF Gold Cup
Appearances 1 (first in 2002)
Best result Group stage (2002)

Ecuador was invited to the first FIFA World Cup in Uruguay but did not go. They finally played in their first World Cup in 2002. In the qualifying games, they did very well, finishing above strong teams like Brazil and Uruguay. This success showed off talented players like Agustín Delgado and Iván Hurtado.

The team had a great run in the 2006 World Cup, reaching the Round of 16. This was their best performance ever in the tournament. However, they were eliminated early in the 2007 Copa América. Ecuador has never won the continental tournament. Their best finishes were fourth place in 1959 and 1993, both times when they hosted the event.

Ecuador usually plays its home matches at the Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa in Quito.

History of Ecuadorian Football

For a long time, Ecuador was not considered a very strong football nation in South America. But in recent years, they have become a serious competitor.

Football came to Ecuador thanks to Juan Alfredo Wright. He had studied in England and brought the sport back with him. On April 23, 1899, he and his brother Roberto started the first Ecuadorian football team, Guayaquil Sport Club. As football became more popular, more teams were formed. The national football federation was founded in 1925.

In 1938, Ecuador played its first official match at the 1938 Bolivarian Games. They tied 1–1 with Bolivia. They then beat Colombia 2–1. After some more games, Ecuador won the bronze medal in the tournament.

Ecuador v uruguay 1942
The Ecuador team that played in the 1942 South American Championship.

Ecuador first tried to qualify for the World Cup in 1962 but lost to Argentina. In the 1998 World Cup qualifiers, the format changed to a home-and-away system. This helped Ecuador a lot, as they won many important games at home. They finished 6th, just missing out on qualification.

Switzerland and Ecuador match 2014-06-15 Vanishing foam
Michael Arroyo taking a free kick against Switzerland at the 2014 World Cup.

Under coach Hernán Darío Gómez, Ecuador made history in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers. They beat Brazil 1–0 and needed just one point to qualify. They got that point with a 1–1 draw against Uruguay, earning their first trip to the World Cup.

At the 2002 World Cup, Ecuador lost their first game to Italy. Agustín Delgado scored Ecuador's first World Cup goal in a 2–1 loss to Mexico. Even though they beat Croatia, Ecuador finished fourth in their group.

After a disappointing 2004 Copa América, Luis Fernando Suárez became the coach. He led them to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. In Germany, Ecuador won against Poland and Costa Rica, making it to the knockout stages for the first time.

After a less successful 2014 FIFA World Cup and some early exits from the Copa América, Gustavo Quinteros took over as coach. He helped Ecuador reach the quarter-finals of the Copa América Centenario in 2016. However, they did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

Hernán Darío Gómez returned as coach for the 2019 Copa América, but his second time with the team was short. He was fired after the team only earned one point in the tournament.

For the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Ecuador faced a penalty. They were deducted three points and fined because a player had a passport with incorrect information in the previous World Cup qualifying games.

Home Stadium

The Ecuador national team plays its home games at the Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa in Quito. This stadium opened in 1951 and can hold 35,724 fans.

MIRANDO A QUITO DESDE LAS ALTURAS (37628605982)
An aerial view of the Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa in 2017.

The stadium has a running track, which is important for athletics events in South America. There are 15 gates around the stadium, allowing people to leave quickly in about 10 minutes. It also has a large electronic scoreboard, which is 10 meters tall and 30 meters wide.

Many important matches have been played here. Ecuador defeated Uruguay in the 1993 Copa América and Brazil in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers. On November 7, 2001, Ecuador tied with Uruguay in this stadium, which meant they qualified for their first World Cup.

The Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa was planned to be replaced by a newer stadium, but Ecuador decided not to host the Copa América in 2022. For the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Ecuador played at the Casa Blanca.

Team Uniform and Crest

ECUADOR VS ARGENTINA (37593214472)
The Ecuador team posing before a match against Argentina in October 2017.

The standard uniform for Ecuador uses the colors of the national flag: a yellow top, blue shorts, and red socks. The away uniform is usually white and blue, based on the flag of the Guayas Province.

From 1965 to 2020, the team's crest featured the Andean condor, which is Ecuador's national bird. In January 2020, the Ecuadorian Football Federation changed its logo. The new crest is a navy blue shield with the letters "FEF" designed to look like a condor.

Kit Sponsors

Kit supplier Period
West Germany Adidas 1985
Ecuador Credeport 1986–1990
Germany Puma 1991–1992
United States Reebok 1993–1994
Ecuador Marathon 1994–present

Recent Matches and Schedule

This section shows Ecuador's match results from the last year and upcoming games.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2024 Matches

6 September 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Brazil  1–0  Ecuador Curitiba, Brazil
22:00 UTC−3
Stadium: Estádio Couto Pereira
Attendance: 36,914
Referee: Facundo Tello (Argentina)
10 September 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Ecuador  1–0  Peru Quito, Ecuador
16:00 UTC−5
Stadium: Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado
Attendance: 35,000
Referee: Andrés Rojas (Colombia)
10 October 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Ecuador  0–0  Paraguay Quito, Ecuador
16:00 UTC−5 Stadium: Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado
Attendance: 31,000
Referee: Raphael Claus (Brazil)
15 October 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Uruguay  0–0  Ecuador Montevideo, Uruguay
20:30 UTC−3 Stadium: Estadio Centenario
Attendance: 27,112
Referee: Cristian Garay (Chile)
14 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Ecuador  4–0  Bolivia Guayaquil, Ecuador
19:00 UTC−5
Stadium: Estadio Monumental Isidro Romero Carbo
Attendance: 30,758
Referee: Maximiliano Ramírez (Argentina)
19 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Colombia  0–1  Ecuador Barranquilla, Colombia
18:00 UTC−5
Stadium: Estadio Metropolitano
Attendance: 37,316
Referee: Esteban Ostojich (Uruguay)

2025 Matches

21 March 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Ecuador  2–1  Venezuela Quito, Ecuador
16:00 UTC−5
  • Cádiz Goal 90+1'
Stadium: Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado
Attendance: 41,575
Referee: Ramon Abatti (Brazil)
25 March 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Chile  0–0  Ecuador Santiago, Chile
21:00 UTC−3 Stadium: Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos
Attendance: 38,996
Referee: Gustavo Tejera (Uruguay)
5 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Ecuador  0–0  Brazil Guayaquil, Ecuador
18:00 UTC−5 Stadium: Estadio Monumental Isidro Romero Carbo
Attendance: 59,283
Referee: Piero Maza (Chile)
10 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Peru  0–0  Ecuador Lima, Peru
20:30 UTC−5 Stadium: Estadio Nacional
Attendance: 33,749
Referee: Andrés Rojas (Colombia)
4 September 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Paraguay  v  Ecuador Asunción, Paraguay
20:30 UTC−3 Stadium: Estadio Defensores del Chaco
9 September 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Ecuador  v  Argentina Guayaquil, Ecuador
18:00 UTC−5 Stadium: Estadio Monumental Isidro Romero Carbo
10 October Friendly United States  v  Ecuador Austin, United States
19:30 UTC−5 Stadium: Q2 Stadium
14 October Friendly Mexico  v  Ecuador Zapopan, Mexico
Stadium: Estadio Akron

Team Coaches

The current head coach for the Ecuador national football team is Sebastián Beccacece from Argentina. He leads a team of assistant coaches, a goalkeeper coach, and a fitness coach.

Position Name
Head coach Argentina Sebastián Beccacece
Assistant coach Argentina Nicolás Chiesa
Argentina Guillermo Marino
Goalkeeper coach Argentina Gustavo Campagnuolo
Fitness coach Argentina Martín Bressan

Current Players

The following players were chosen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Brazil and Peru in June 2025.

The number of games played (Caps) and goals scored are correct as of June 10, 2025, after the match against Peru.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Hernán Galíndez (1987-03-30) 30 March 1987 (age 38) 27 0 Argentina Huracán
12 1GK Moisés Ramírez (2000-09-09) 9 September 2000 (age 24) 6 0 Ecuador Independiente del Valle
22 1GK Gonzalo Valle (1996-02-28) 28 February 1996 (age 29) 2 0 Ecuador LDU Quito
1GK David Cabezas (1995-06-12) 12 June 1995 (age 30) 0 0 Ecuador El Nacional

2 2DF Félix Torres (1997-01-11) 11 January 1997 (age 28) 45 5 Brazil Corinthians
3 2DF Piero Hincapié (2002-01-09) 9 January 2002 (age 23) 46 3 Germany Bayer Leverkusen
4 2DF Joel Ordóñez (2004-04-21) 21 April 2004 (age 21) 8 0 Belgium Club Brugge
5 2DF Cristian Ramírez (1994-08-12) 12 August 1994 (age 30) 22 1 Hungary Ferencváros
6 2DF Willian Pacho (2001-10-16) 16 October 2001 (age 23) 26 2 France Paris Saint-Germain
7 2DF Pervis Estupiñán (1998-01-21) 21 January 1998 (age 27) 48 4 England Brighton & Hove Albion
14 2DF Xavier Arreaga (1994-09-28) 28 September 1994 (age 30) 20 1 Ecuador Barcelona
17 2DF Ángelo Preciado (1998-02-18) 18 February 1998 (age 27) 48 0 Czech Republic Sparta Prague

8 3MF Yaimar Medina (2004-11-05) 5 November 2004 (age 20) 2 0 Belgium Genk
9 3MF John Yeboah (2000-06-23) 23 June 2000 (age 25) 14 2 Italy Venezia
10 3MF Kendry Páez (2007-05-04) 4 May 2007 (age 18) 18 2 England Chelsea
15 3MF Pedro Vite (2002-03-09) 9 March 2002 (age 23) 8 1 Canada Vancouver Whitecaps
16 3MF Alan Minda (2003-05-14) 14 May 2003 (age 22) 14 2 Belgium Cercle Brugge
18 3MF Denil Castillo (2004-03-24) 24 March 2004 (age 21) 1 0 Denmark Midtjylland
20 3MF Bryan Ramírez (2000-08-11) 11 August 2000 (age 24) 0 0 Ecuador LDU Quito
21 3MF Alan Franco (1998-08-21) 21 August 1998 (age 26) 50 1 Brazil Atlético Mineiro
23 3MF Moisés Caicedo (2001-11-02) 2 November 2001 (age 23) 55 3 England Chelsea
3MF Jhegson Méndez (1997-04-26) 26 April 1997 (age 28) 38 0 Ecuador Independiente del Valle

11 4FW Kevin Rodríguez (2000-03-04) 4 March 2000 (age 25) 25 2 Belgium Union Saint-Gilloise
13 4FW Enner Valencia (captain) (1989-11-04) 4 November 1989 (age 35) 98 46 Brazil Internacional
19 4FW Nilson Angulo (2003-06-19) 19 June 2003 (age 22) 6 0 Belgium Anderlecht
4FW John Mercado (2002-06-03) 3 June 2002 (age 23) 4 0 Portugal AVS

Players Called Up Recently

These players have been called up to the team in the last twelve months.


Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Gilmar Napa (2003-01-05) 5 January 2003 (age 22) 0 0 Ecuador Emelec v.  Peru, 10 September 2024

DF Carlos Gruezo (1995-04-19) 19 April 1995 (age 30) 65 1 Ecuador LDU Quito v.  Colombia, 19 November 2024
DF Jhoanner Chávez (2002-04-25) 25 April 2002 (age 23) 6 0 France Lens v.  Colombia, 19 November 2024
DF Jackson Porozo (2000-08-04) 4 August 2000 (age 25) 8 0 Mexico Tijuana v.  Peru, 10 September 2024

MF Gonzalo Plata (2000-11-01) 1 November 2000 (age 24) 43 8 Brazil Flamengo v.  Peru, 10 June 2025 INJ
MF Janner Corozo (1995-09-08) 8 September 1995 (age 29) 7 1 Ecuador Barcelona v.  Chile, 25 March 2025
MF Keny Arroyo (2006-02-14) 14 February 2006 (age 19) 2 0 Turkey Beşiktaş v.  Chile, 25 March 2025
MF Darwin Guagua (2007-11-06) 6 November 2007 (age 17) 1 0 Ecuador Independiente del Valle v.  Chile, 25 March 2025
MF Patrik Mercado (2003-07-31) 31 July 2003 (age 22) 0 0 Ecuador Independiente del Valle v.  Chile, 25 March 2025
MF Ángel Mena (1988-01-21) 21 January 1988 (age 37) 62 8 Ecuador Orense v.  Colombia, 19 November 2024RET
MF Jeremy Sarmiento (2002-06-16) 16 June 2002 (age 23) 24 2 England Brighton & Hove Albion v.  Colombia, 19 November 2024
MF Óscar Zambrano (2004-04-20) 20 April 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Ecuador LDU Quito v.  Uruguay, 15 October 2024
MF Patrickson Delgado (2003-10-17) 17 October 2003 (age 21) 0 0 United States Dallas v.  Peru, 10 September 2024

FW Leonardo Campana (2000-07-24) 24 July 2000 (age 25) 16 0 United States New England Revolution v.  Peru, 10 June 2025 INJ
FW Anthony Valencia (2003-07-21) 21 July 2003 (age 22) 0 0 Belgium Antwerp v.  Peru, 10 September 2024

INJ Withdrew from the squad due to injury.
PRE Preliminary squad / standby.
RET Retired from the national team.
SUS Withdrew from the squad due to suspension.

Retired Jersey Numbers

After the death of player Christian Benítez, the Ecuadorian Football Federation decided that his jersey number 11 would no longer be used by the national team. This was done to honor him. However, because of FIFA rules, the number had to be used again for the 2014 World Cup squad.

Player Records

Here are some records for players who have played for Ecuador. Players whose names are in bold are still playing for the national team.

Most Games Played

Iván Hurtado en 2017
Iván Hurtado has played the most games for Ecuador, with 168 appearances.
Rank Player Caps Goals Ecuador career
1 Iván Hurtado 168 4 1992–2014
2 Walter Ayoví 122 8 2001–2017
3 Édison Méndez 112 18 2000–2014
4 Álex Aguinaga 109 23 1987–2004
5 Ulises de la Cruz 101 6 1995–2010
6 Luis Capurro 100 1 1985–2003
7 Antonio Valencia 99 11 2004–2019
8 Enner Valencia 97 46 2012–present
9 Giovanny Espinoza 90 3 2000–2009
10 Segundo Castillo 88 9 2003–2016
José Francisco Cevallos 88 0 1994–2010

Top Goal Scorers

HABILIDADES Y DESTREZAS DE JÓVENES FIGURAS (19057791769)
Enner Valencia is Ecuador's top scorer with 46 goals.
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Ecuador career
1 Enner Valencia 46 97 0.47 2012–present
2 Agustín Delgado 31 71 0.44 1994–2006
3 Eduardo Hurtado 26 74 0.35 1992–2002
4 Christian Benítez 25 61 0.41 2005–2013
5 Álex Aguinaga 23 109 0.21 1987–2004
6 Felipe Caicedo 22 68 0.32 2005–2017
7 Édison Méndez 18 112 0.16 2000–2014
8 Raúl Avilés 16 55 0.29 1987–1993
Iván Kaviedes 16 57 0.28 1996–2012
10 Ariel Graziani 15 34 0.44 1997–2000

Team Achievements

Regional Competitions

  • Bolivarian Games
    • 1 Gold medal (1): 1965
    • 3 Bronze medal (1): 1938

Friendly Tournaments

  • Korea Cup (1): 1995
  • Canada Cup (1): 1999

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Ecuador para niños

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