Finland

Nickname(s)	Helmarit (the Boreal Owls)[1]
Association	Football Association of Finland (Suomen Palloliitto)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Marko Saloranta
Captain	Tinja-Riikka Korpela
Most caps	Anna Westerlund (145)
Top scorer	Linda Sällström (59)
FIFA code	FIN
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	27 1 (15 December 2023)[2]
Highest	14 (September 2005)
Lowest	32 (March 2019)
First international
Finland 0–0 Sweden  (Mariehamn, Finland; 25 August 1973)
Biggest win
Bulgaria 0–8 Finland  (Lovech, Bulgaria; 21 August 2014)  Finland 8–0 Hungary  (Larnaca, Cyprus; 19 February 2023)
Biggest defeat
Denmark 9–0 Finland  (Vejen, Denmark; 26 July 1975)
European Championship
Appearances	4 (first in 2005)
Best result	Semi-finals (2005)

The Finland women's national football team, also known as nickname The Boreal Owls (Finnish: Helmarit),^[1] represents Finland in international women's football. The team, controlled by the Football Association of Finland (SPL/FBF), reached the semi-finals of the 2005 European Championship, surprising the female football world having drawn with Sweden and beaten Denmark. Finland hosted the 2009 EC finals.^[3]

The Finnish team has had a few players that are considered to be among the best in women's football, such as Laura Österberg Kalmari, Sanna Valkonen and Anne Mäkinen.

As of December 2023, the team is ranked 27th in the FIFA world ranking.^[4]

History

Team image

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

Croatia  v  Finland

16 February 2023 Cyprus Women's Cup	Croatia	1–4	Finland	Larnaca, Cyprus
	Nevrkla 8'	Marta Huerta de Aza (Spain)	Summanen 3' Sällström 15' Ahtinen 62' Rantala 69'	Stadium: GSZ Stadium

Finland  v  Hungary

19 February 2023 Cyprus Women's Cup	Finland	8–0	Hungary	Larnaca, Cyprus
	Collin 21' Koivisto 35' Danielsson 43', 88' Sällström 67', 77', 79' Summanen 84'			Stadium: AEK Arena

Finland  v  Romania

22 February 2023 Cyprus Women's Cup	Finland	4–0	Romania	Larnaca, Cyprus
				Stadium: AEK Arena

Slovakia  v  Finland

7 April Friendly

Slovakia

0–1

Finland

Slovakia  v  Finland

10 April Friendly

Slovakia

0–2

Finland

Iceland  v  Finland

14 July Friendly

Iceland

1–2

Finland

Finland  v  Scotland

18 July Friendly

Finland

1–2

Scotland

Finland  v  Slovakia

23 September 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Finland	4–0	Slovakia	Turku
17:30 (18:30 EEST)	Sällström 5' Rantala 23' Kosola 45', 75'	Report		Stadium: Veritas Stadion Attendance: 5,062 Referee: Michèle Schmölzer (Switzerland)

Romania  v  Finland

26 September 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Romania	0–1	Finland	Bucharest
18:00		Report		Stadium: Stadionul Arcul de Triumf Referee: Angelika Soeder (Germany)

Finland  v  Croatia

27 October 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Finland	3–0	Croatia	Helsinki
17:45	Sällström 6' Kunštek 65' (o.g.) Franssi 90+3'	Report		Stadium: Bolt Arena Referee: Désirée Grundbacher (Switzerland)

Croatia  v  Finland

31 October 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Croatia	0–2	Finland	Šibenik
18:00		Report	Summanen 5', 12'	Stadium: Stadion Šubićevac Referee: Teresa Oliveira (Portugal)

Finland  v  Romania

30 November 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Finland	6–0	Romania	Turku
17:45		Report		Stadium: Veritas Stadion

Slovakia  v  Finland

5 December 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Slovakia	2–2	Finland	Trnava
		Report		Stadium: Anton Malatinský Stadium

Coaching staff

Manager history

As of 3 January 2024

Tenure	Coach	Record
G	W	D	L	Win %
1973–77	Juhani Nirkkonen	12	1	1	10	008.33
1978	Simo Syrjävaara	3	1	1	1	033.33
1979–89	Kaj Österberg	44	13	12	19	029.55
1989–92	Jyrki Nieminen	24	3	4	17	012.50
1993–96	Nils Suomalainen	24	4	5	15	016.67
1996–00	Reima Kokko	46	11	3	32	023.91
2001–09	Michael Käld	107	35	22	50	032.71
2010–16	Andrée Jeglertz	76	27	13	36	035.53
2017	Marko Saloranta	6	2	0	4	033.33
2017–2022	Anna Signeul	47	19	11	17	040.43
2022–	Marko Saloranta	16	11	2	3	068.75

Players

Current squad

• The squad for UEFA Nations League matches against Romania and Slovakia on 1 and 5 December 2023, respectively^[5]

Stats after match with Scotland on 18 July 2023.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
12	1GK	Anna Tamminen	(1994-10-30) 30 October 1994	6	0	Hammarby
23	1GK	Tinja-Riikka Korpela (captain)	(1986-05-05) 5 May 1986	115	0	AS Roma
	1GK	Anna Koivunen	(1999-11-28) 28 November 1999		0	IF Brommapojkarna
2	2DF	Elli Pikkujämsä	(1999-10-24) 24 October 1999	23	1	Racing Louisville
5	2DF	Emma Koivisto	(1994-09-25) 25 September 1994	78	3	Liverpool
15	2DF	Natalia Kuikka	(1995-12-01) 1 December 1995	71	3	Portland Thorns
3	2DF	Eva Nyström	(1999-11-29) 29 November 1999	8	0	Hammarby
11	2DF	Nora Heroum	(1994-07-20) 20 July 1994	84	1	Parma
	2DF	Tuuli Viinikka	(2000-11-28) 28 November 2000		0
4	3MF	Ria Öling	(1994-09-15) 15 September 1994	62	9	Rosengård
	3MF	Katariina Kosola	(2001-02-24) 24 February 2001	8	1	Häcken
	3MF	Oona Siren	(2001-02-23) 23 February 2001	3	0	Lillestrøm
	3MF	Emma Peuhkurinen	(1999-11-30) 30 November 1999	5	0	Lillestrøm
	3MF	Emmi Siren	(2001-02-23) 23 February 2001	3	0	KuPS
	3MF	Anni Hartikainen	(2003-08-19) 19 August 2003	0	0	Rosengård
10	3MF	Emmi Alanen	(1991-04-30) 30 April 1991	101	21	Kristianstads DFF
	3MF	Vilma Koivisto			0
	3MF	Aada Nurmi	(2000-11-28) 28 November 2000		0
18	4FW	Linda Sällström	(1988-07-13) 13 July 1988	120	51	Vittsjö GIK
22	4FW	Jutta Rantala	(1999-11-11) 11 November 1999	17	5	Leicester City
17	4FW	Sanni Franssi	(1995-03-19) 19 March 1995	60	4	Real Sociedad
	4FW	Lotta Lindström	(2003-11-28) 28 November 2003
	4FW	Oona Sevenius	(2004-04-28) 28 April 2004	2	0	Como

Recent call ups

The following players have been called up to the squad in the past 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Milla-Maj Majasaari	(1999-10-15) 15 October 1999	1	0	Anderlecht	v.  Croatia, 31 October 2023
DF	Nea Lehtola	(1998-10-24) 24 October 1998	2	0	Brøndby IF	v.  Romania, 26 September 2023
DF	Tiia Peltonen	(1995-06-08) 8 June 1995	7	0	Fortuna Hjørring	v.  Croatia, 31 October 2023
DF	Joanna Tynnilä	(2001-09-01) 1 September 2001	3	0	Brann	v.  Croatia, 31 October 2023
MF	Eveliina Summanen	(1998-05-29) 29 May 1998	53	11	Tottenham Hotspur	v.  Croatia, 31 October 2023
MF	Olga Ahtinen	(1997-08-15) 15 August 1997	55	3	Tottenham Hotspur	v.  Croatia, 31 October 2023
FW	Heidi Kollanen	(1997-06-06) 6 June 1997	19	2	Vittsjö GIK	v.  Croatia, 31 October 2023

Records

*Active players in bold, statistics correct as of 9 July 2022

Most capped players Anna Westerlund currently holds the record for the most appearances for the Finland women's national football team. Rank Player Caps Goals Years 1 Anna Westerlund 145 4 2008– 2 Linda Sällström 132 57 2007– 3 Laura Österberg Kalmari 130 41 1996–2011 4 Tuija Hyyrynen 121 3 2007– 5 Sanna Valkonen 120 7 1995–2009 6 Anne Mäkinen 118 16 1991–2009 Jessica Julin 4 1997–2009 8 Tinja-Riikka Korpela (GK) 109 0 2007– 9 Anna-Kaisa Rantanen 105 8 1996–2011 10 Sanna Talonen 103 36 2004–2014 11 Katri Mattsson 100 2 1999–2015 Source:[6] Top goalscorers Linda Sällström currently holds the record for the most goals for the Finland women's national football team. Rank Player Goals Caps Years Avg 1 Linda Sällström 57 132 2007– 0,425 2 Laura Österberg Kalmari 41 130 1996–2011 0,315 3 Sanna Talonen 36 103 2004–2014 0,35 4 Emmi Alanen 21 97 2010– 0,216 5 Annica Sjölund 17 69 2006–2014 0,246 6 Anne Mäkinen 16 118 1991–2009 0,136 7 Heidi Kackur 12 48 1999–2005 0,25 Adelina Engman 12 85 2012– 0,141 9 Maija Saari 11 94 2007–2016 0,117 10 Ria Öling 9 62 2015– 0,145 11 Anu Toikka 8 29 1979–1992 0,276 Susanna Heikari 8 44 1994–2002 0,182 Anna-Kaisa Rantanen 8 105 1996–2011 0,076 Source:[6] Competitive record FIFA Women's World Cup FIFA Women's World Cup record Qualification record Year Result GP W D* L GF GA GD GP W D* L GF GA GD 1991 Did not qualify UEFA Euro 1991 1995 UEFA Euro 1995 1999 8 3 1 4 8 9 −1 2003 6 1 0 5 4 24 −20 2007 8 5 1 2 16 5 +11 2011 8 6 1 1 25 6 +19 2015 10 7 0 3 27 9 +18 2019 8 3 1 4 9 13 −4 2023 8 3 1 4 14 12 −10 2027 To be determined To be determined Total - - - - - - - - 56 28 5 23 103 78 +13 *Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks. Olympic Games Summer Olympics record Year Result GP W D L GF GA 1996 Did not qualify 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Unable to qualify 2028 To be determined 2032 Total - - - - - - - UEFA Women's Championship UEFA Women's Championship record Qualifying record Year Result GP W D* L GF GA GD GP W D* L GF GA GD 1984 Did not qualify 6 2 0 4 5 17 −12 1987 6 1 2 3 2 6 −4 1989 6 1 2 3 9 11 −2 1991 6 1 2 3 3 6 −3 1993 4 0 2 2 3 12 −9 1995 6 2 3 1 8 7 +1 1997 8 1 1 6 2 24 −22 2001 8 2 0 6 8 21 −13 2005 Semi-finals 4 1 1 2 5 8 −3 10 4 4 2 16 7 +9 2009 Quarter-finals 4 2 0 2 5 5 0 Qualified as host 2013 Group stage 3 0 2 1 1 6 −5 8 6 1 1 22 4 +18 2017 Did not qualify 8 4 1 3 17 12 +5 2022 Group stage 3 0 0 3 1 8 −7 8 7 1 0 24 2 +22 2025 Total 4/13 14 3 3 8 12 27 −15 84 31 19 34 119 129 −10 *Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks. UEFA Women's Nations League UEFA Women's Nations League record Season Division Group Pos Pld W D L GF GA P/R RK 2023–24 B 2 1st 6 5 1 0 18 2 18th 2025–26 A To be determined Total 18th Cyprus Women's Cup Cyprus Women's Cup record Year Result GP W D L GF GA GD 2012 7th place 4 1 1 2 6 7 −1 2013 7th place 4 1 1 2 5 6 −1 2014 12th place 4 0 1 3 1 8 −7 2015 9th place 4 1 1 2 3 7 −4 2016 8th place 4 0 1 3 3 8 −5 2018 11th place 4 1 1 2 4 7 −3 2019 9th place 4 1 1 2 3 6 −3 2020 Runners-up 3 1 1 1 7 6 +1 2023 Champions 3 3 0 0 16 1 +15 Total 34 9 8 17 48 56 −8 Algarve Cup Algarve Cup record Year Result GP W D L GF GA GD 1994 6th place 3 0 0 3 0 9 −9 1995 6th place 4 1 0 3 3 6 −3 1996 8th place 4 0 0 4 1 15 −14 1997 6th place 4 1 0 3 3 8 −5 1998 8th place 4 0 0 4 2 6 −4 1999 8th place 4 0 1 3 1 7 −6 2000 7th place 4 1 0 3 5 8 −3 2001 7th place 4 1 0 3 4 15 −11 2002 7th place 4 1 0 3 4 8 −5 2003 6th place 4 0 2 2 0 6 −6 2004 9th place 4 1 0 3 6 10 −4 2005 10th place 4 0 0 4 3 10 −7 2006 7th place 4 1 1 2 5 12 −7 2007 6th place 4 1 0 3 2 6 −4 2008 8th place 4 0 0 4 1 10 −9 2009 7th place 4 1 0 3 1 5 −4 2010 8th place 4 0 1 3 2 11 −9 2011 10th place 4 0 0 4 2 13 −11 Total Nordic Football Championship Women's Nordic Football Championship record Year Result GP W D L GF GA GD 1974 Third place 2 0 0 2 0 6 −6 1975 Third place 2 0 0 2 0 13 −13 1976 Third place 2 0 0 2 1 5 −4 1977 Third place 2 0 0 2 0 5 −5 1978 Third place 3 1 1 1 1 4 −3 1979 Third place 3 1 1 1 2 5 −3 1980 Fourth place 3 0 2 1 1 8 −7 1981 Runners-up 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 1982 Fourth place 3 0 1 2 1 6 −5 Total 9/9 23 3 6 14 9 56 −47 See also Sports in Finland Football in Finland Football Association of Finland (SPL) Finland women's national under-20 football team Finland women's national under-17 football team Finland national football team References 1 2 3 "Helmarit nimetty MM-karsinta-avaukseen Serbiaa vastaan" (in Finnish). Football Association of Finland. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018. ↑ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023. ↑ "Women's Euro 2009 in Finland". Embassy of Finland. 2009. Archived from the original on 29 December 2016. Retrieved 28 December 2016. ↑ "Finland". FIFA. Archived from the original on 19 February 2015. Retrieved 28 December 2016. ↑ "UEFA Nations League -Match rapport". globalsportsarchive. 1 December 2023. 1 2 "Finland – Women International Player Records". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF).Published 8 October 2019, retrieved and Updated data 15 June 2021. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023. External links Official website FIFA profile