Latvia national football team

The Latvia national football team (Latvian: Latvijas futbola izlase) represents Latvia in men's international football and is governed by the Latvian Football Federation (LFF), the sport's official governing body in the country.

The team played its first official international match in 1922, a 1–1 draw against Estonia, and joined FIFA later that same year. In 1924, Latvia made its Olympic debut by participating in the Summer Games in Paris, and was an active participant in early international football. The team came close to qualifying for the 1938 FIFA World Cup, but political events soon altered its course.

Following the Soviet occupation and annexation of Latvia during World War II, the national team disappeared from the international stage for over 50 years. Football development in Latvia was largely constrained under the Soviet system, where local players could only compete as part of the Latvian SSR in inter-republic tournaments or under the flag of the USSR, limiting the country's independent footballing identity and progress. After regaining independence in 1991, Latvia resumed international competition and achieved its greatest success in 2004, when the team qualified for the UEFA European Championship under head coach Aleksandrs Starkovs — the nation’s only major tournament appearance to date. Latvia came close to reaching the FIFA World Cup on several occasions, most notably during the 2010 qualification campaign, when the team finished just three points behind a playoff spot. The team regularly competes in the Baltic Cup, a sub-regional tournament between Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Latvia holds the record for the most tournament victories, with 13 titles, most recently in 2018. Home matches are primarily played at Skonto Stadium in Riga, although Daugava Stadium is also used for select fixtures, particularly those requiring greater capacity.