Spain national team in 2012
The Spain women's national football team (Spanish: Selección femenina de fútbol de España) represents Spain in international women's football.[3] Although not considered a powerhouse like most of the other famous European nations, it has achieved some success like reaching the European Championship's semifinals in 1997. Its youth division has enjoyed some big success in recent times, like their two consecutive wins at the UEFA Women's Under-17 Championship in 2010 and 2011, as well as their third-place finish at the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, which brought hope to the women's senior team.[4]
In October 2012 the senior team qualified for the European Championship for a second time sixteen years later, after beating Scotland in repechage in the extra time's overtime.[5]
History
After underground women's football clubs started appearing in Spain around 1970 one of its instigators, Rafael Muga, decided to create a national team. It was an unofficial project as football was considered an unsuitable sport for women by both the Royal Spanish Football Federation and National Movement's Women's Section, which organized women's sports in Francoist Spain. When asked about the initiative in January 1971 RFEF president José Luis Pérez Payá answered I'm not against women's football, but I don't like it either. I don't think it's feminine from a esthetic point of view. Women are not favored wearing shirt and trousers. Any regional dress would fit them better.[6]
One month later, on 21 February 1971, the unofficial Spanish national team, including Conchi Sánchez, who played professionally in the Italian league, made its debut in Murcia's La Condomina against Portugal, ending in a 3–3 draw. The team wasn't allowed to wear RFEF's crest and the referee couldn't wear an official uniform either. On July 15, with a 5-days delay for transfer issues, it played its first game abroad against Italy in Turin's Stadio Comunale, suffering an 8–1 defeat. It was then invited to the 2nd edition of unofficial Women's World Cup, but RFEF forbid them to take part in the competition.[7] Despite these conditions Spain was entrusted hosting the 1972 World Cup. RFEF vetoed the project, and the competition was cancelled and disbanded. The unofficial Spanish team itself broke up shortly after.
After the transition to democracy in the second half of the decade RFEF finally accepted women's football in November 1980, creating first a national cup and next a national team, which finally made its debut under coach Teodoro Nieto on 5 February 1983 in A Guarda, Pontevedra. The opponent was again Portugal, which defeated Spain 0–1. The team subsequently played 2-leg friendlies against France and Switzerland drawing with both opponents in Aranjuez and Barcelona and losing in Perpignan before it finally clinched its first victory in Zürich (0–1).[8] On 27 April 1985 it played its first official match in the 1987 European Championship's qualification, losing 1–0 against Hungary. After losing the first four matches Spain defeated Switzerland and drew with Italy to end third. The team also ended in its group's bottom positions in the subsequent 1989 and 1991 qualifiers. After the former Nieto was replaced by Ignacio Quereda, who has coached the team since September 1, 1988.
The 1995 Euro qualifying marked an improvement as Spain ended 2nd, one point from England, which qualified for the final tournament. In these qualifiers Spain attained its biggest victory to date, a 17-0 over Slovenia. In the 1997 Euro qualifying it made a weaker performance, including a record 0–8 loss against Sweden in Gandia, but the European Championship was expanded to eight teams and Spain still made it to the repechage, where it defeated England on a 3–2 aggregate to qualify for the competition for the first time. In the first stage the team drew 1–1 against France, lost 0–1 against host Sweden, and beat 1–0 Russia to qualify on goal average over France to the semifinals, where it was defeated 2–1 by Italy. All three goals were scored by Ángeles Parejo.
This success was followed by a long series of unsuccessful qualifiers. In the 1999 World Cup's qualifying Spain ended last for the first time, not winning a single game. In the 2001 Euro's it made it to the repechage, where it suffered a 3–10 aggregate defeat against Denmark. In the 2003 World Cup's it again ended last despite starting with a 6–1 win over Iceland. In the 2005 Euro's, where a 9–1 win over Belgium was followed by a 5-game non scoring streak, it ended 3rd behind Denmark and Norway. In the 2007 World Cup's the team again ended 3rd behind Denmark and Finland despite earning 7 more points.
In the 2009 Euro's Spain made its better performance since the 1995 qualifiers, narrowly missing qualification as England clinched the top position by overcoming a 2–0 in the final match's second half. Spain had to play the repechage, where it lost both games against the Netherlands. In the 2011 World Cup's Spain again ended 2nd, with no repechage, after England again overcame a half-time 2–0 in their second confrontation.
Spain achieved 16 years later a place for the final stage of a European Championship. The team qualified for the UEFA Women's Euro 2013, after beating Scotland in the qualifiers playoff. In the group stage, a win over England and a draw against Russia was enough to qualify for the quarterfinals, where it was eliminated by Norway.
Two years later, Spain qualified for the first time ever to a World Cup, winning nine of its ten matches of the qualifying round. In the group stage of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. Their campaign, however, ended up being a disaster. Spain managed only a 1-1 draw into the weakest team in the group, Costa Rica, before losing 0-1 to Brazil. In the last match with South Korea, they still lost 1-2 after an initial lead, becoming the worst European team in the tournament. After the World Cup, the 23 players on the roster issued a collective statement for the end of Ignacio Quereda’s reign as head coach.[9] Later that summer, Quereda stepped down and was replaced by Jorge Vilda, who had previously coached the U-19 team, and was on the shortlist for the 2014 FIFA World Coach of the Year.[10][11]
Competitive record
World Cup record
Olympic Games record
European Championship
Players
Current squad
The following squad was announced for UEFA Women's Euro 2017 qualification against Montenegro on 24 January.
- Caps and goals as of 31 January 2015
Head coach: Jorge Vilda
Recent call-ups
The following players were named to a squad in the last twelve months.
Previous squads
- World Cup
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- European Football Championship
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Coaching staff
Results and fixtures
- For all past match results of the national team, see single-season articles and the team's results page
The following matches were played or are scheduled to be played by the national team in the current or upcoming seasons.
Win
Draw
Loss
| Date |
Venue |
Opponent |
Result |
Competition |
| October 27, 2013 |
 Collado Villalba |
Estonia  |
6–0 |
2015 World Cup qualifying |
| October 31, 2013 |
Madrid |
Italy  |
2–0 |
| November 23, 2013 |
Aranjuez |
Romania  |
1–0 |
| November 27, 2013 |
Fuenlabrada |
Czech Republic  |
3–2 |
| January 14, 2014 |
La Manga |
Norway  |
1–2 |
00Friendly |
| February 13, 2014 |
Logroño |
Macedonia  |
12–0 |
2015 World Cup qualifying |
| April 5, 2014 |
Vicenza |
Italy |
0–0 |
| April 10, 2014 |
Skopje |
Macedonia |
0–10 |
| May 8, 2014 |
Tallinn |
Estonia |
0-5 |
| September 13, 2014 |
Iaşi |
Romania |
0-2 |
| September 17, 2014 |
Písek |
Czech Republic |
0-1 |
| February 10, 2015 |
San Pedro del Pinatar |
Austria  |
2–2 |
00Friendly |
| February 11, 2015 |
San Pedro del Pinatar |
Belgium .svg.png) |
2–1 |
| March 3, 2015 |
Guadalajara |
New Zealand  |
2–2 |
| March 5, 2015 |
La Roda |
New Zealand |
0–0 |
| April 8, 2015 |
Gijón |
Republic of Ireland  |
1–0 |
| June 9, 2015 |
 Montreal |
Costa Rica  |
1-1 |
002015 World Cup |
| June 13, 2015 |
Montreal |
Brazil  |
0–1 |
| June 17, 2015 |
Ottawa |
South Korea  |
1–2 |
| September 18, 2015 |
 Weinan |
China PR |
1–3 |
00Friendly |
| September 21, 2015 |
Chenzhou |
China PR |
1–2 |
| October 27, 2015 |
 Helsinki |
Finland |
1–2 |
002017 Euro qualifying |
| November 26, 2015 |
Dublin |
Republic of Ireland |
0–3 |
| December 1, 2015 |
Badajoz |
Portugal  |
2–0 |
| January 24, 2016 |
 Petrovac na moru |
Montenegro |
0–7 |
| mid-February |
 |
|
|
00Friendly? |
| early March |
|
|
|
00Friendly? |
| April 8, 2016 |
|
Portugal |
|
002017 Euro qualifying |
| April 12, 2015 |
Las Rozas |
Republic of Ireland |
|
| early May |
|
|
|
00Friendly? |
| September 15, 2016 |
|
Montenegro |
|
002017 Euro qualifying |
| September 20, 2016 |
|
Finland |
|
|
Overall official record
| Competition | Stage | Result | Opponent | Position | Scorers |
| 1987 EC QS | Regular stage | 0–1, 1–2 | .svg.png) Hungary | 3 / 4 | |
| 0–2, 3–0 |  Switzerland | |
| 2–3, 1–1 | Italy | |
| 1989 EC QS | Regular stage | 1–1, 1–0 | .svg.png) Bulgaria | 4 / 5 | |
| 0–1, 0–2 | Czechoslovakia | |
| 1–0, 0–1 | Belgium | |
| 1–3, 0–0 |  France | |
| 1991 EC QS | Regular stage | 0–0, 1–2 | Switzerland | 4 / 5 | |
| 1–3, 0–5 |  Denmark | |
| 1–0, 0–1 | Belgium | |
| 1–3, 0–0 | France | |
| 1993 EC QS | Regular stage | 0–4, 1–1 |  Sweden | 2 / 3 | |
| 0–1, 1–0 | Republic of Ireland | |
| 1995 EC QS | Regular stage | 0–0, 4–0 | Belgium | 2 / 4 | |
| 0–0, 0–0 |  England | |
| 17–0, 8–0 |  Slovenia | |
| 1997 EC QS | Regular stage (Class A) | 0–1, 0–2 | Denmark | 3 / 4 | |
| 5–1, 2–2 | Romania | |
| 1–1, 0–8 | Sweden | |
| Repechage | 2–1, 1–1 | England | 1 / 2 | |
| 1997 Euro | Group stage | 1–1 | France | 2 / 4 | |
| 0–1 | Sweden | |
| 1–0 |  Russia | |
| Semifinals | 1–2 | Italy | 3 / 8 | |
| 1999 WC QS | Regular stage (Class A) | 1–2, 1–2 |  Ukraine | 4 / 4 | |
| 1–2, 1–3 | Sweden | |
| 0–0, 1–1 |  Iceland | |
| Promotion | 3–0, 4–1 |  Scotland | 1 / 2 | Monforte (2), Auxi, Cabezón, Gimbert, Marco, Mateos |
| 2001 EC QS | Regular stage (Class A) | 2–5, 0–7 | Sweden | 3 / 4 | ?? |
| 0–1, 1–2 | France | Mateos |
| 1–1, 2–1 |  Netherlands | "Chola", Fuentes, Gimbert |
| Repechage | 1–6, 2–4 | Denmark | 2 / 2 | Cabezón, Gimbert, Mateos |
| 2003 WC QS | Regular stage (Class A) | 6–1, 0–3 | Iceland | 4 / 4 | Auxi (2), Del Río (2), Ferreira, Gimbert |
| 0–2, 2–1 | Russia | Auxi, Del Río |
| 0–3, 0–1 | Italy | |
| Promotion | Cancelled |  Hungary | – | |
| 2005 EC QS | Regular stage (Class A) | 1–0, 0–0 | Netherlands | 3 / 5 | Del Río |
| 0–2, 0–2 | Norway | |
| 9–1, 0–2 | Belgium | Del Río (5), Vázquez (2), Castillo, Gurrutxaga |
| 0–1, 0–2 | Denmark | |
| 2007 WC QS | Regular stage (Class A) | 2–3, 7–0 |  Poland | 3 / 5 | Del Río (2) |
| 1–0, 0–0 | Finland | Cabezón |
| 3–2, 4–2 | Belgium | Adriana (2), Cabezón, Gimbert, Gurrutxaga, Del Río + 1 o.g. |
| 2–2, 0–5 | Denmark | Adriana, Vilanova |
| 2009 EC QS | Regular stage | 3–0, 6–1 |  Belarus | 2 / 5 | Vázquez (3), Romero (2), Azagra, Cuesta, Auxi, Pérez |
| 2–2, 4–1 | Czech Republic | Boquete (2), Adriana, Gimbert, Torrejón, Vilanova |
| 0–1, 2–2 | England | Bermúdez, Boquete |
| 4–0, 3–0 |  Northern Ireland | Vázquez (2), Bermúdez, Boquete, García, Del Río, Vilas |
| Repechage | 0–2, 0–2 | Netherlands | 2 / 2 | |
| 2011 WC QS | Regular stage | 13–0, 9–0 |  Malta | 3 / 5 | Adriana (8), Bermúdez (3), Boquete (3), Romero (3), Ibarra (2), Casado, Meseguer + 1 o.g. |
| 2–0, 1–0 | Austria | Adriana (2), Bermúdez |
| 5–0, 5–1 |  Turkey | Adriana (5), Bermúdez (2), Boquete, Olabarrieta, Torrejón |
| 0–1, 2–2 | England | Adriana, Bermúdez |
| 2013 EC QS | Regular stage | 10–1, 4–0 | Turkey | 2 / 6 | Adriana (4), Boquete (3), Bermúdez (2), Borja, Corredera, Olabarrieta, Vilas + 1 o.g. |
| 3–2, 3–4 | Switzerland | Adriana (2), Boquete (2), García, Vilas |
| 4–0, 13–0 |  Kazakhstan | Vilas (7), Bermúdez (3), Boquete (2), Borja (2), Adriana, Meseguer, Torrejón |
| 4–0, 0–0 | Romania | Boquete (2), Adriana, Bermúdez |
| 2–2, 0–5 |  Germany | Boquete, Romero |
| Repechage | 1–1, 3–2 | Scotland | 1 / 2 | Adriana (2), Boquete, Meseguer |
| 2013 Euro | Group stage | 3–2 | England | 2 / 4 | Boquete, Hermoso, Putellas |
| 0–1 | France | |
| 1–1 | Russia | Boquete |
| Quarter-finals | 1–3 | Norway | 2 / 2 | Hermoso |
| 2015 WC QS | Regular stage | 6–0, 5–0 | Estonia | 1 / 6 | Natalia (3), Bermúdez (2), Vicky (2), Hermoso (2), Torrejón, Paredes |
| 2–0, 0–0 | Italy | Bermúdez, Natalia |
| 1–0, 2–0 | Romania | Natalia (2), García |
| 3–2, 1–0 | Czech Republic | Bermúdez (2), Corredera, Boquete |
| 12–0, 10–0 | Macedonia | Natalia (6), Bermúdez (5), Hermoso (5), Boquete (2), Calderón (2), Losada, Torrejón |
| 2015 World Cup | Group stage | 1-1 | Costa Rica | 4 / 4 | Losada |
| 0-1 | Brazil | |
| 1-2 | South Korea | Boquete |
| 2017 EC QS | Regular stage | 2-1 | Finland | 1 / 5 | Putellas, Torrecilla |
| 3-0 | Republic of Ireland | Hermoso, Losada, + 1 o.g. |
| 2–0 | Portugal | Losada, Bermúdez |
| 7–0 | Montenegro | Losada (2), Boquete, Hermoso, Putellas, Sampedro, Torrecilla |
|
Statistics
Most capped Spanish players
- Still active national team players in bold.
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Top Spain goalscorers
- Still active national team players in bold.
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Hat-tricks
4 Player scored 4 goals
5 Player scored 5 goals
7 Player scored 7 goals
Youth teams
U-20
U-19
U-18
U-17
- FIFA Under-17 Women's World Cup
- UEFA Women's Under-17 Championship
References
External links
| Spain squads – FIFA Women's World Cup |
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| Spain squads – UEFA Women's Championship |
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| | General | |
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| | Venues | |
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| | Statistics | |
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| | Players | |
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| | World Cup Finals | |
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| | UEFA Euro Finals | |
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| | Other tournaments | |
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| | Other RFEF teams | |
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| | | | National teams | |
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| | League system | | Level 1 | |
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| | Level 2 | |
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| | Level 3 | |
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| | Level 4 | |
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| | Levels 5–10 | |
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| | Women's league system | | Level 1 | |
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| | Level 2 | |
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| | Levels 3–5 |
- Ligas Regionales (Andalusia, Aragon, Asturias, Balearic, Basque, Canary, Cantabria, Castile-La Mancha, Castile and León, Catalonia, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia, Navarre, Valencia, Ceuta, Melilla)
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| | Youth league system | |
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| | Domestic cups | |
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| | Women's domestic cups | |
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| | Youth domestic cups | |
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| | | | Asia | | |
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| | Africa | |
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| North America,
Central America
and the Caribbean | |
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| | South America | |
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| | Oceania | |
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| | Europe | |
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| | Non-FIFA | |
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| | Games | |
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4 (18 December 2015)
1999
2000
2004
2012
Dolores Gallardo .svg.png){kind=small}
Sandra Paños 
Irene Paredes 
Marta Torrejón 
Jennifer Hermoso 
Silvia Meseguer 
Virginia Torrecilla 
Verónica Boquete (c) 
Ainhoa Tirapu 
Irene del Río 
Champion
