Montenegro national football team

Montenegro
Nickname(s)Hrabri sokoli / Храбри соколи
(The Brave Falcons)
AssociationFootball Association of Montenegro (FSCG)
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachMirko Vučinić
CaptainStevan Jovetić
Most capsStevan Jovetić (90)
Top scorerStevan Jovetić (37)
Home stadiumPodgorica City Stadium
FIFA codeMNE
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 83 (22 December 2025)[1]
Highest16 (June 2011)
Lowest199 (June 2007)
First international
 Montenegro 2–1 Hungary 
(Podgorica, Montenegro; 24 March 2007)
Biggest win
 San Marino 0–6 Montenegro 
(Serravalle, San Marino; 11 September 2012)
Biggest defeat
 England 7–0 Montenegro 
(London, England; 14 November 2019)

The Montenegro national football team (Montenegrin: Fudbalska reprezentacija Crne Gore) has represented Montenegro in men's international football since 2007. It is controlled by the Football Association of Montenegro, the governing body for football in Montenegro. Montenegro's home ground is Podgorica City Stadium in Podgorica.

Montenegro is one of the world's youngest international teams, having joined FIFA and UEFA in 2007 following the 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum. The team played its first official international match against Hungary in March 2007.

History

Formation

Following the independence of Montenegro from Serbia and Montenegro, Serbia was set to represent both Serbia and Montenegro in the Euro 2008 qualifying stage. However, UEFA would include Montenegro as a late entry if FIFA ratified a separate Montenegrin Football Association before September 2006. Moreover, this did not occur before the competition began.[3][4][5]

In October 2006, Montenegro was granted provisional membership of UEFA, with a debate regarding full membership scheduled at a full UEFA Congress in January 2007.[6] Montenegro's first FIFA World Ranking was joint 199th place, the last place on the list by default.

First matches

On 26 January 2007, the Montenegro FA was granted full membership of UEFA.[7] The team played its first FIFA-recognized friendly match against Hungary on 24 March 2007 at Stadion Pod Goricom in Podgorica. Montenegro won 2–1 in front of 12,000 spectators. Striker Mirko Vučinić scored the country's first goal in the 62nd minute.[8][9] On 31 May 2007, Montenegro was admitted as FIFA's 208th member.[10]

'Golden' era

On 11 September 2012, Montenegro played against San Marino in Seravalle. In a one-sided match, Montenegro won 6–0,[11] the biggest win in the team's history. Montenegro then beat Ukraine 1–0 in Kyiv,[12] with the only goal scored by Dejan Damjanović.

Ups and downs

On 23 February 2014 in Nice, Montenegro were drawn for qualification in UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group G alongside Russia, Sweden, Austria, Moldova and Liechtenstein. Although Montenegro, opened their campaign with a 2–0 victory against Moldova, they failed to qualify with goalless draw against Liechtenstein, a 1–0 loss against Austria and a 1–1 home draw against Sweden. On 27 March 2015, Montenegro's home match against Russia was abandoned after 67 minutes due to crowd violence, after the Russian left-back Dmitri Kombarov was hit by a projectile. The score was goalless and Russia had missed a penalty moments before the match was abandoned. The Russian goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev was hit by a flare, causing a second 33-minute delay.[13] The abandoned match was ruled a 3–0 victory in Russia's favour. Montenegro finished fourth at the end of the campaign and placed 95th on the FIFA ranking list.

Stadium and facilities

Montenegro play their home matches at the Podgorica City Stadium (Montenegrin: Stadion pod Goricom). The stadium's capacity is 15,230, but international matches reduce this to between 10,700 and 13,000.

Camp FSCG

The Football Association of Montenegro owns Camp FSCG, a Montenegrin training ground. Built in 2007, the centre has a total area of 54,000 square metres.[14] It is located on Ćemovsko polje, a plain located in the outskirts of Podgorica outskirts between the settlements of Stari Aerodrom and Konik. It consists of six pitches with stands and floodlights,[15] and House of Football – the seat of the Football Association of Montenegro.[16]

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

2025

22 March 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Montenegro  3–1  Gibraltar Nikšić, Montenegro
18:00 UTC+1
  • Jovetić 22'
  • Tući 70'
  • Marušić 73'
Report
Stadium: Gradski stadion
Attendance: 3,021
Referee: António Nobre (Portugal)
25 March 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Montenegro  1–0  Faroe Islands Nikšić, Montenegro
20:45 UTC+1
Report Stadium: Gradski stadion
Attendance: 3,226
Referee: Allard Lindhout (Netherlands)
9 June Friendly Montenegro  2–2  Armenia Nikšić, Montenegro
20:00 UTC+2 Report
Stadium: Gradski stadion
Attendance: 1,398
Referee: Jasmin Šabotić (Luxembourg)
5 September 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Montenegro  0–2  Czech Republic Podgorica, Montenegro
20:45 UTC+2 Report
Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium
Attendance: 6,315
Referee: Marco Guida (Italy)
8 September 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Croatia  4–0  Montenegro Zagreb, Croatia
20:45 UTC+2
Report Stadium: Stadion Maksimir
Attendance: 21,209
Referee: Felix Zwayer (Germany)
9 October 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Faroe Islands  4–0  Montenegro Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
19:45 UTC+1
Report Stadium: Tórsvøllur
Attendance: 2,034
Referee: Javier Alberola Rojas (Spain)
13 October Friendly Montenegro  2–1  Liechtenstein Podgorica, Montenegro
18:00 UTC+2 Report
Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium
Attendance: 1,732
Referee: Igor Stojchevski (North Macedonia)
14 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Gibraltar  1–2  Montenegro Europa Point, Gibraltar
20:45 UTC+1
Report
Stadium: Europa Sports Park
Attendance: 668
Referee: Anastasios Papapetrou (Greece)
17 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Montenegro  2–3  Croatia Podgorica, Montenegro
20:45 UTC+1 Report
Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium
Attendance: 4,673
Referee: Halil Umut Meler (Turkey)

Coaching history

Manager Career Pld W D L GF GA GD Win %
Zoran Filipović 2006–2009 23 8 8 7 28 31 −3 034.78
Zlatko Kranjčar 2010–2011 13 6 2 5 14 11 +3 046.15
Branko Brnović 2011–2015 34 11 9 14 44 50 −6 032.35
Ljubiša Tumbaković 2016–2019 26 7 7 12 33 33 +0 026.92
Miodrag Džudović 2019 (caretaker) 2 0 1 1 1 4 −3 000.00
Faruk Hadžibegić 2019–2020 13 5 4 4 13 16 −3 038.46
Miodrag Radulović 2020–2023 23 6 4 13 22 35 −13 026.09
Robert Prosinečki 2024–2025 13 5 0 8 11 17 −6 038.46
Mirko Vučinić 2025–present 4 2 0 2 6 9 −3 050.00

Players

In international football, footballers can normally only play for one national team once they play in all or part of any match recognised as a full international by FIFA. However, an exception is made in cases where one or more newly-independent states are created out of a former state. Based on current FIFA rules, a footballer will be eligible to play for Montenegro, even if they had previously represented Serbia and Montenegro or any other country and at least one of the following statements applies:[17]

  • The footballer was born in Montenegro;
  • At least one of their parents and/or at least one of their grandparents was born in Montenegro;
  • The player has lived in Montenegro continuously for any five-year period.

Due to mixed ancestries, it is likely that a high percentage of the footballers eligible to play for Montenegro will also remain eligible to play for Serbia, and vice versa. However, once they have played for either Serbia or Montenegro in any competitive fixture, they are no longer eligible to play for any other nation.

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Gibraltar and against Croatia on 14 and 17 November 2025; respectively.[18]

Caps and goals as of 17 November 2025, after the match against Croatia.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Balša Popović (2000-06-10) 10 June 2000 2 0 OFK Beograd
12 1GK Danijel Petković (1993-05-25) 25 May 1993 28 0 Liepāja
13 1GK Igor Nikić (2000-08-25) 25 August 2000 9 0 Mirandés

2 2DF Stefan Milić (2000-07-06) 6 July 2000 1 0 Partizan
3 2DF Risto Radunović (1992-05-04) 4 May 1992 42 1 FCSB
5 2DF Slobodan Rubežić (2000-03-21) 21 March 2000 11 1 Korona Kielce
6 2DF Marko Tući (1998-12-04) 4 December 1998 10 1 Gangwon
7 2DF Marko Vešović (1991-08-28) 28 August 1991 59 2 Lokomotiva
15 2DF Nikola Šipčić (1995-05-17) 17 May 1995 21 0 Asteras Tripolis
23 2DF Adam Marušić (1992-10-17) 17 October 1992 68 5 Lazio

4 3MF Marko Šimun (2001-06-16) 16 June 2001 2 0 Sutjeska Nikšić
8 3MF Marko Janković (1995-07-09) 9 July 1995 57 1 Qarabağ
11 3MF Milan Vukotić (2002-10-05) 5 October 2002 9 0 Partizan
14 3MF Miloš Brnović (2000-04-26) 26 April 2000 12 0 Arsenal Tula
17 3MF Vasilije Adžić (2006-05-12) 12 May 2006 6 2 Juventus
19 3MF Stefan Lončar (1996-02-19) 19 February 1996 23 0 Akron Tolyatti
21 3MF Andrija Bulatović (2006-12-27) 27 December 2006 6 1 Lens
3MF Driton Camaj (1997-03-07) 7 March 1997 28 2 Astana

9 4FW Nikola Krstović (2000-04-05) 5 April 2000 33 8 Atalanta
10 4FW Stevan Jovetić (captain) (1989-11-02) 2 November 1989 90 37 Omonia
16 2DF Marko Perović (2006-03-05) 5 March 2006 4 0 Almería
18 4FW Andrej Kostić (2007-01-16) 16 January 2007 2 0 Partizan
20 4FW Milutin Osmajić (1999-07-25) 25 July 1999 32 4 Preston North End
22 4FW Viktor Đukanović (2004-01-29) 29 January 2004 7 1 Dunajska Streda

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up in the last twelve months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Miloš Dragojević (1989-02-03) 3 February 1989 2 0 Dečić v.  Croatia, 8 September 2025
GK Milan Mijatović (1987-07-26) 26 July 1987 40 0 Budućnost Podgorica v.  Faroe Islands, 25 March 2025

DF Stefan Savić (1991-01-08) 8 January 1991 77 9 Trabzonspor v.  Gibraltar, 14 November 2025INJ
DF Igor Vujačić (1994-08-08) 8 August 1994 42 0 Rubin Kazan v.  Gibraltar, 14 November 2025INJ
DF Marko Vukčević (1993-06-07) 7 June 1993 32 1 Tobol v.  Liechtenstein, 13 October 2025
DF Andrija Vukčević (1996-10-11) 11 October 1996 21 0 Preston North End v.  Liechtenstein, 13 October 2025
DF Milan Roganović (2005-10-28) 28 October 2005 3 0 Partizan v.  Liechtenstein, 13 October 2025
DF Robert Gjelaj (2002-09-23) 23 September 2002 0 0 Dečić v.  Croatia, 8 September 2025
DF Ognjen Gašević (2002-04-02) 2 April 2002 2 0 CSKA 1948 v.  Armenia, 9 June 2025

MF Marko Bakić (1993-11-01) 1 November 1993 38 0 Persepolis v.  Gibraltar, 14 November 2025INJ
MF Edvin Kuč (1993-10-27) 27 October 1993 16 4 Neftçi v.  Liechtenstein, 13 October 2025
MF Andrej Bajović (2003-06-06) 6 June 2003 2 0 Dečić v.  Liechtenstein, 13 October 2025
MF Vladimir Jovović (1994-10-26) 26 October 1994 63 0 Neftchi Fergana v.  Faroe Islands, 25 March 2025

FW Dušan Vuković (2002-08-06) 6 August 2002 0 0 Lokomotiva Zagreb v.  Croatia, 8 September 2025
FW Stefan Mugoša (1992-02-23) 23 February 1992 64 15 Incheon United v.  Croatia, 8 September 2025
FW Andrija Radulović (2002-07-03) 3 July 2002 7 0 Rapid Wien v.  Czech Republic, 5 September 2025INJ

Notes
  • WD = Player withdrew from the current squad due to non-injury issue.
  • INJ = Not part of the current squad due to injury.

Player records

As of 19 November 2025[19]
Players in bold are still active with Montenegro.

Most appearances

Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Stevan Jovetić 90 37 2007–present
2 Fatos Bećiraj 86 15 2009–2022
3 Stefan Savić 77 9 2010–present
4 Adam Marušić 68 5 2015–present
5 Stefan Mugoša 64 15 2015–present
Žarko Tomašević 64 5 2010–2023
7 Vladimir Jovović 63 0 2013–present
8 Elsad Zverotić 61 5 2008–2017
9 Marko Vešović 59 2 2013–present
10 Marko Janković 57 1 2016–present

Top goalscorers

Rank Player Goals Caps Average Career
1 Stevan Jovetić 37 90 0.41 2007–present
2 Mirko Vučinić 17 46 0.37 2007–2017
3 Stefan Mugoša 15 64 0.23 2015–present
Fatos Bećiraj 15 86 0.17 2009–2022
5 Stefan Savić 9 77 0.12 2010–present
6 Nikola Krstović 8 33 0.24 2022–present
Dejan Damjanović 8 30 0.27 2008–2015
7 Radomir Đalović 7 26 0.27 2007–2012
8 Andrija Delibašić 6 21 0.29 2009–2013
9 Elsad Zverotić 5 61 0.08 2008–2017
Žarko Tomašević 5 64 0.08 2010–2023
Adam Marušić 5 68 0.07 2015–present

Competitive record

Competition Pld W D L GF GA GD
FIFA World Cup qualifiers 45 14 13 18 65 70 -5
UEFA European Championship qualifiers 37 10 10 17 32 57 −25
UEFA Nations League 24 9 3 15 25 28 -3
Friendly games 53 20 13 19 62 64 -2
Overall 158 52 39 69 182 218 −36

Updated: November 19 2025

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Pos Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 1938 Part of  Yugoslavia Part of  Yugoslavia
1950 to 1990 Part of  Yugoslavia Part of  Yugoslavia
1994 to 2002 Part of  FR Yugoslavia Part of  FR Yugoslavia
2006 Part of  Serbia and Montenegro Part of  Serbia and Montenegro
2010 Did not qualify 5th 10 1 6 3 9 14
2014 3rd 10 4 3 3 18 17
2018 3rd 10 5 1 4 20 12
2022 4th 10 3 3 4 14 15
2026 4th 6 2 0 4 4 13
2030 To be determined
2034
Total 0/4 46 15 13 18 65 71

UEFA European Championship

UEFA European Championship record Qualification record Qualification play-offs record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Pos. Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1960 Part of  Yugoslavia Part of  Yugoslavia Part of  Yugoslavia
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996 Part of  FR Yugoslavia Part of  FR Yugoslavia Part of  FR Yugoslavia
2000
2004 Part of  Serbia and Montenegro Part of  Serbia and Montenegro Part of  Serbia and Montenegro
2008 Did not enter Did not enter Did not enter
2012 Did not qualify PO 8 3 3 2 7 7 2 0 0 2 0 3
2016 4th 10 3 2 5 10 13 Did not qualify
2020 5th 8 0 3 5 3 22
2024 3rd 8 3 2 3 9 11
2028 To be determined To be determined To be determined
2032
Total 0/4 34 9 10 15 29 53 2 0 0 2 0 3

UEFA Nations League

UEFA Nations League record
Season Division Group Pld W D L GF GA P/R RK
2018–19 C 4 6 2 1 3 7 6 35th
2020–21 C 1 6 4 1 1 10 2 34th
2022–23 B 3 6 2 1 3 6 6 28th
2024–25 B 4 6 1 0 5 4 9 30th
2026–27 C TBD 0 0 0 0 0 0 TBD
Total 24 9 3 12 27 23 28th

Head-to-head record

Below is a summary of Montenegrin national team results against every opponent country.

As of 17 November 2025
Opponent P W D L GF GA GD Win %
 Albania 2 0 0 2 2 4 −2 000.00
 Armenia 4 1 1 2 8 7 +1 025.00
 Austria 2 0 0 2 2 4 −2 000.00
 Azerbaijan 3 2 1 0 4 0 +4 066.67
 Belarus 5 3 2 0 6 1 +5 060.00
 Belgium 2 0 1 1 2 4 −2 000.00
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 4 0 3 1 1 2 −1 000.00
 Bulgaria 8 3 4 1 9 9 +0 037.50
 Colombia 1 0 0 1 0 1 −1 000.00
 Croatia 2 0 0 2 2 7 −5 000.00
 Cyprus 5 2 3 0 9 3 +6 040.00
 Czech Republic 7 0 0 7 1 17 −16 000.00
 Denmark 3 1 0 2 2 3 −1 033.33
 England 6 0 3 3 5 19 −14 000.00
 Estonia 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 100.00
 Faroe Islands 2 1 0 1 1 4 −3 050.00
 Finland 2 0 0 2 0 4 −4 000.00
 Georgia 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 033.33
 Ghana 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 100.00
 Gibraltar 4 4 0 0 12 3 +9 100.00
 Greece 2 1 0 1 2 2 +0 050.00
 Hungary 5 2 2 1 8 8 +0 040.00
 Iceland 3 1 0 2 2 5 −3 033.33
 Israel 1 0 0 1 1 3 −2 000.00
 Iran 2 0 1 1 1 2 −1 000.00
 Italy 2 0 0 2 1 4 −3 000.00
 Japan 1 0 0 1 0 2 −2 000.00
 Kazakhstan 4 3 1 0 11 0 +11 075.00
 Kosovo 2 0 1 1 1 3 −2 000.00
 Latvia 4 2 2 0 5 2 +3 050.00
 Lebanon 1 1 0 0 3 2 +1 100.00
 Liechtenstein 3 2 1 0 4 1 +3 066.67
 Lithuania 4 3 1 0 10 3 +7 075.00
 Luxembourg 3 2 0 1 6 3 +3 066.67
 Moldova 4 3 0 1 7 5 +2 075.00
 North Macedonia 4 2 0 2 5 7 −2 050.00
 Netherlands 2 0 1 1 2 6 −4 000.00
 Northern Ireland 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2 100.00
 Norway 4 1 0 3 4 6 −2 025.00
 Poland 4 0 2 2 6 9 −3 000.00
 Republic of Ireland 2 0 2 0 0 0 +0 000.00
 Romania 7 3 2 2 7 6 +1 042.86
 Russia 2 0 0 2 0 5 −5 000.00
 San Marino 2 2 0 0 9 0 +9 100.00
 Serbia 4 0 0 4 2 9 −7 000.00
 Slovakia 2 0 1 1 2 4 −2 000.00
 Slovenia 3 0 1 2 1 4 −3 000.00
 Sweden 3 0 1 2 3 6 −3 000.00
  Switzerland 2 1 0 1 1 2 −1 050.00
 Turkey 6 1 2 3 8 9 −1 016.67
 Ukraine 2 1 0 1 1 4 −3 050.00
 Uzbekistan 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 100.00
 Wales 5 2 0 3 5 6 −1 040.00
53 Teams 164 55 40 69 192 224 −32 033.54


FIFA rankings

See also

Notes

References

  1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 22 December 2025. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
  2. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 21 December 2025. Retrieved 21 December 2025.
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  4. ^ "Montenegro named UEFA member". UEFA. 26 January 2007. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  5. ^ Frylan, Kevin (9 August 2007). "UEFA admits Montenegro". Reuters. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  6. ^ Chaplin, Mark (2006). "No decision yet on Gibraltar". UEFA. Archived from the original on 28 November 2006. Retrieved 11 April 2007.
  7. ^ Simon Hart (2007). "UEFA to consider 24-team Euro". UEFA. Archived from the original on 19 February 2007. Retrieved 11 April 2007.
  8. ^ "Soccer-Montenegro beat Hungary 2–1 in international debut". Reuters. United Kingdom. 24 March 2007. Archived from the original on 11 January 2009. Retrieved 11 April 2007.
  9. ^ "Montenegro take a bow with victory". UEFA. Archived from the original on 4 June 2007. Retrieved 11 April 2007.
  10. ^ "Blatter's third term confirmed". FIFA. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 17 October 2007.
  11. ^ "Crna Gora ubjedljiva protiv San Marina - pukla šestica, oboren rekord". Vijesti (in Montenegrin). 11 September 2012. Archived from the original on 19 September 2018. Retrieved 11 September 2012.
  12. ^ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil | Matches | Ukraine-Montenegro". FIFA. 16 October 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  13. ^ "Montenegro Arrests Fans for Football Violence". Balkan Insight. Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. 31 March 2015. Archived from the original on 21 August 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  14. ^ "Sportski objekti na teritoriji Glavnog grada Podgorica". Podgorica.me (in Montenegrin). Archived from the original on 27 April 2023. Retrieved 11 December 2006.
  15. ^ "Fudbalski savez Crne Gore". Archived from the original on 5 June 2014. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
  16. ^ "VIDEO: Zavirite u novu Kuću fudbala". CDM (in Montenegrin). Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2006.
  17. ^ "Regulations for the Status and Transfer of Players" (PDF). FIFA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 September 2007.
  18. ^ "Spisak za mečeve sa Gibraltarom i Hrvatskom" (in Montenegrin). Fudbalski savez Crne Gore. 3 November 2025. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  19. ^ Mamrud, Roberto. "Montenegro: Record International Players". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2013.