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Finland national under-21 football team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Finland U21
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Pikkuhuuhkajat
(The Little Eagle-Owls)[1]
AssociationFootball Association of Finland
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachFinland Mika Lehkosuo
FIFA codeFIN
First colours
Second colours
First international
Finland Finland 1–3 Sweden 
(Vaasa, Finland; 11 August 1976)
Biggest win
 Finland 0–8 San Marino 
(Serravalle, San Marino, San Marino; 26 March 2026) [2]
Biggest defeat
 England 8–1 Finland 
(Hull, England; 12 October 1977)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances2 (first in 2009)
Best resultGroup stage (2009, 2025)

The Finland national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Finland.

The team qualified for the UEFA Euro U21 Championship final tournament for the first time in 2009, under head coach Markku Kanerva. 15 years later, coached by Mika Lehkosuo, they qualified for the 2025 UEFA Euro U21 Championship tournament in Slovakia, for the second time in the nation's history, after defeating Norway in the qualification play-offs.

UEFA European Championship Record

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Finland U21 team before the match against Slovenia in Pori in 2011
Finland U21 team before the match against Austria in 2015
Finland U21 team after the win against Austria in 2022
Year Round Pld W D L GF GA Squad Qualification Campaign Pld W D L GF GA
1972-1976 UEFA Under-23 European championships
1972 did not qualify 1972 4 0 1 3 4 10
1974 1974 4 1 1 2 3 8
1976 1976 4 0 0 4 2 12
Since 1978 UEFA Under-21 European championships
1978 did not qualify 1978 4 0 0 4 2 14
1980 1980 4 0 1 3 2 7
1982 1982 6 0 1 5 4 10
1984 1984 6 1 3 2 5 8
1986 1986 6 1 4 1 6 6
1988 1988 6 2 1 3 8 11
1990 1990 6 1 1 4 4 13
1992 1992 6 2 0 4 7 13
France 1994 1994 10 4 2 4 10 13
Spain 1996 1996 8 5 1 2 12 16
Romania 1998 1998 8 2 3 3 8 10
Slovakia 2000 2000 8 3 4 1 9 7
Switzerland 2002 2002 8 1 1 6 7 20
Germany 2004 2004 8 3 2 3 11 9
Portugal 2006 2006 10 2 1 7 7 16
Netherlands 2007 2007 2 0 0 2 1 10
Sweden 2009 Group stage 3 0 0 3 1 6 Squad 2009 (PO) 8 6 1 1 11 6
Denmark 2011 did not qualify 2011 8 3 1 4 11 4
Israel 2013 2013 10 3 3 4 12 14
Czech Republic 2015 2015 10 4 4 2 17 10
Poland 2017 2017 10 4 2 4 13 10
Italy 2019 2019 10 2 3 5 13 21
HungarySlovenia 2021 2021 10 4 1 5 14 15
RomaniaGeorgia (country) 2023 2023 10 6 1 3 18 13
Slovakia 2025 Group stage 3 0 2 1 4 6 Squad 2025 (PO) 12 7 2 3 27 11
AlbaniaSerbia2027 To be determined 2027 To be determined

2009 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualification

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Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Finland 8 6 1 1 11 6 +5 19
 Denmark 8 5 1 2 13 4 +9 16
 Scotland 8 5 1 2 17 6 +11 16
 Slovenia 8 1 2 5 4 13 −9 5
 Lithuania 8 0 1 7 2 18 −16 1

2023 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualification

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Norway 10 8 0 2 26 11 +15 24 Final tournament 3–2 3–1 3–1 2–1 3–0
2  Croatia 10 7 1 2 25 10 +15 22 Play-offs 3–2 2–3 0–0 2–0 2–0
3  Finland 10 6 1 3 18 13 +5 19 0–2 0–2 3–1 3–0 1–0
4  Austria 10 5 1 4 22 13 +9 16 2–1 1–3 2–3 6–0 2–0
5  Azerbaijan 10 2 1 7 12 24 −12 7 1–2 1–5 1–1 0–3 3–0
6  Estonia 10 0 0 10 0 32 −32 0 0–5 0–4 0–3 0–4 0–5
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualification

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Romania 10 7 1 2 23 10 +13 22 Final tournament 1–0 3–1 5–0 1–0 2–0
2  Finland 10 6 2 2 21 8 +13 20 Play-offs 2–0 1–2 4–1 2–1 6–0
3   Switzerland 10 5 3 2 21 12 +9 18 2–2 1–1 1–2 4–2 5–0
4  Albania 10 5 1 4 12 17 −5 16 3–2 0–0 1–3 2–0 1–0
5  Montenegro 10 2 1 7 8 19 −11 7 2–6 1–2 0–2 1–0 0–0
6  Armenia 10 0 2 8 2 21 −19 2 0–1 1–3 0–0 1–2 0–1
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

2027 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualification

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Spain 7 7 0 0 26 2 +24 21 Final tournament 2–1 6 Oct 2–0 3–0 7–0
2  Finland 7 5 1 1 26 2 +24 16 Final tournament or Play-offs 25 Sep 2–0 0–0 3–0 7–0
3  Romania 7 4 1 2 8 4 +4 13 0–2 30 Sep 0–0 2–0 3–0
4  Kosovo 7 2 2 3 12 6 +6 8 1–3 6 Oct 0–1 30 Sep 7–0
5  Cyprus (E) 7 1 0 6 5 24 −19 3 0–7 0–5 25 Sep 0–4 6 Oct
6  San Marino (E) 7 0 0 7 0 39 −39 0 30 Sep 0–8 0–2 25 Sep 0–5
Updated to match(es) played on 31 March 2025. Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(E) Eliminated

Current squad

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The following players have been called up in the squad for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification matches against San Marino and Cyprus on 26 and 31 March 2026, respectively.[3][4]

  • Caps and goals as of 31 March 2026 after the match against Cyprus.
  • Players in bold have been called up or have played at least one full international match with senior national team.
No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Jaaso Jantunen (2005-01-31) 31 January 2005 (age 21) 7 0 German Football Association SC Freiburg II
12 1GK Eero Vuorjoki (2006-07-09) 9 July 2006 (age 19) 0 0 Football Association of Finland Inter Turku
23 1GK Oliver Heino (2005-05-30) 30 May 2005 (age 20) 0 0 Football Association of Finland EIF

2 2DF Arttu Lötjönen (2004-01-28) 28 January 2004 (age 22) 7 1 Football Association of Finland KuPS
3 2DF Tomas Galvez (2005-01-28) 28 January 2005 (age 21) 15 1 Royal Dutch Football Association Cambuur
4 2DF Rony Jansson (2004-01-10) 10 January 2004 (age 22) 18 0 Swedish Football Association Kalmar
5 2DF Emil Leveälahti (2006-08-22) 22 August 2006 (age 19) 1 0 Football Association of Finland HJK
15 2DF Oskari Väistö (2005-09-15) 15 September 2005 (age 20) 1 0 Football Association of Finland SJK
16 2DF Dario Naamo (2005-05-14) 14 May 2005 (age 20) 14 0 Scottish Football Association Dundee United
22 2DF Miska Ylitolva (2004-05-23) 23 May 2004 (age 21) 25 2 Football Association of Finland HJK
2DF Oscar Häggström (2004-04-24) 24 April 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Football Association of Finland TPS

6 3MF Matias Siltanen (2007-03-29) 29 March 2007 (age 19) 7 3 Swedish Football Association Djurgårdens IF
8 3MF Pyry Mentu (2006-11-01) 1 November 2006 (age 19) 6 1 Football Association of Finland HJK
9 3MF Julius Paananen (2006-11-26) 26 November 2006 (age 19) 0 0 Football Association of Finland AC Oulu
10 3MF Jimi Tauriainen (2004-03-08) 8 March 2004 (age 22) 2 1 The Football Association Chelsea
11 3MF Marius Söderbäck (2004-02-06) 6 February 2004 (age 22) 7 4 Swedish Football Association Kalmar
17 3MF Otto Ruoppi (2006-01-31) 31 January 2006 (age 20) 7 3 Football Association of Finland KuPS
18 3MF Niilo Kujasalo (2004-03-17) 17 March 2004 (age 22) 3 0 Football Association of Finland KuPS
19 3MF Tuomas Pippola (2004-10-12) 12 October 2004 (age 21) 2 0 Norwegian Football Federation Sogndal
20 3MF Otso Liimatta (2004-07-10) 10 July 2004 (age 21) 29 8 Swedish Football Association Halmstad
21 3MF Altti Hellemaa (2004-07-25) 25 July 2004 (age 21) 2 0 Swedish Football Association Elfsborg

7 4FW Juho Talvitie (2005-03-25) 25 March 2005 (age 21) 23 4 Royal Dutch Football Association NAC Breda
13 4FW Vincent Ulundu (2005-03-25) 25 March 2005 (age 21) 3 0 Football Association of Finland Inter Turku
14 4FW Onni Helén (2006-01-19) 19 January 2006 (age 20) 4 2 Norwegian Football Federation Sogndal

Recent callups

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The following players have also been called up to the Finland under-21 squad and remain eligible:

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Aleksi Piispa (2005-12-18) 18 December 2005 (age 20) 0 0 Finland VPS v.  Kosovo, 18 November 2025
GK Johannes Viitala (2006-08-10) 10 August 2006 (age 19) 0 0 Finland SJK v.  Spain, 14 October 2025

DF Samuli Miettinen (2004-06-16) 16 June 2004 (age 21) 6 0 Croatia Istra 1961 v.  Kosovo, 18 November 2025
DF Akseli Puukko (2006-08-24) 24 August 2006 (age 19) 2 0 Finland KuPS v.  Kosovo, 18 November 2025
DF Kaius Simojoki (2006-03-21) 21 March 2006 (age 20) 0 0 Finland HJK v.  Kosovo, 18 November 2025
DF Daniel Armstrong (2005-03-24) 24 March 2005 (age 21) 2 0 Italy Bra v.  Cyprus, 9 September 2025
DF Juho Lähteenmäki (2006-06-15) 15 June 2006 (age 19) 2 1 Denmark FC Nordsjælland v.  Cyprus, 9 September 2025
DF Lucas von Hellens (2005-03-05) 5 March 2005 (age 21) 2 0 Finland Gnistan v.  Lithuania, 9 June 2024
DF Joona Kuismala (2005-11-23) 23 November 2005 (age 20) 1 0 Finland MyPa v.  Lithuania, 9 June 2024

MF Luka Hyryläinen (2004-08-25) 25 August 2004 (age 21) 18 1 Germany 1. FC Magdeburg v.  Kosovo, 18 November 2025
MF Liam Möller (2004-12-21) 21 December 2004 (age 21) 6 0 Finland HJK v.  Kosovo, 18 November 2025
MF Samuel Pasanen (2006-01-31) 31 January 2006 (age 20) 0 0 Finland KuPS v.  Romania, 14 November 2025 INJ
MF Matias Ritari (2005-07-15) 15 July 2005 (age 20) 1 0 Sweden FC Rosengård v.  Spain, 14 October 2025
MF Marlo Hyvönen (2005-05-02) 2 May 2005 (age 20) 2 0 Finland IFK Mariehamn v.  Lithuania, 9 June 2024
MF Daniel Rökman (2004-03-20) 20 March 2004 (age 22) 1 0 Finland KäPa v.  Lithuania, 9 June 2024
MF Dren Terrnava (2005-05-21) 21 May 2005 (age 20) 1 0 Italy Perugia v.  Lithuania, 9 June 2024
MF Ville Vuorinen (2005-02-21) 21 February 2005 (age 21) 2 0 Finland Jaro v.  Lithuania, 9 June 2024

FW Adrian Svanbäck (2004-06-08) 8 June 2004 (age 21) 2 4 Sweden Häcken v.  San Marino, 26 March 2026 INJ
FW Lauri Laine (2005-05-30) 30 May 2005 (age 20) 0 0 Czech Republic Baník Ostrava v.  Kosovo, 18 November 2025
FW David Ezeh (2006-02-13) 13 February 2006 (age 20) 2 1 Finland HJK v.  Cyprus, 9 September 2025
FW Danila Bulgakov (2005-01-20) 20 January 2005 (age 21) 2 0 Finland SJK v.  Lithuania, 9 June 2024
FW Roni Hudd (2005-01-20) 20 January 2005 (age 21) 2 1 Finland HJK v.  Armenia, 21 November 2023

Notes
  • INJ = Withdrew due to an injury
  • ILL = Withdrew due to an illness
  • WD = Withdrew due to a non-injury issue
  • PRE = Preliminary squad / standby

Coaching staff

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[5]

Position Name
Head coach Finland Mika Lehkosuo
Assistant coach Finland Matti Lähitie
Goalkeeping coach Finland Eemeli Reponen
Video analyst Finland Robert Nygård
Fitness coach Finland Mika Lähderinne

Past squads

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Pikkuhuuhkajat". Archived from the original on 2017-11-20. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  2. ^ https://yle.fi/a/74-20217615
  3. ^ "Pikkuhuuhkajat nimetty maaliskuun EM-karsintaotteluihin". 18 March 2026.
  4. ^ "Pikkuhuuhkajien mediaohjelma San Marinossa ja Tampereella". 23 March 2026.
  5. ^ "Pikkuhuuhkajien taustatiimi uudistuu" (in Finnish). Finnish Football Association. Retrieved 27 August 2025.