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Costa Rica national football team

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This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Costa Rica women's national football team.

Costa Rica
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Los Ticos (The Ticos)
La Sele (The Selection)
La Tricolor (The Tricolor)
Los Diablos Rojos (The Red Devils)
AssociationFederación Costarricense de Fútbol (FCRF)[1]
ConfederationCONCACAF (North America)
Sub-confederationUNCAF (Central America)
Head coachClaudio Vivas (Interim)
CaptainFrancisco Calvo
Most capsCelso Borges (163)
Top scorerRolando Fonseca (47)
Home stadiumEstadio Nacional
FIFA codeCRC
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 50 Steady (24 October 2024)[2]
Highest13 (February–March 2015)
Lowest93 (July 1996)
First international
 Costa Rica 7–0 El Salvador 
(Guatemala City, Guatemala; 14 September 1921)
Biggest win
 Costa Rica 12–0 Puerto Rico 
(Barranquilla, Colombia; 10 December 1946)
Biggest defeat
 Mexico 7–0 Costa Rica 
(Mexico City, Mexico; 17 August 1975)
 Spain 7–0 Costa Rica 
(Doha, Qatar; 23 November 2022)
World Cup
Appearances6 (first in 1990)
Best resultQuarter-finals (2014)
CONCACAF Championship / Gold Cup
Appearances22 (first in 1963)
Best resultChampions (1963, 1969, 1989)
Nations League Finals
Appearances1 (first in 2021)
Best resultFourth place (2021)
Copa América
Appearances6 (first in 1997)
Best resultQuarter-finals (2001, 2004)
Medal record
CONCACAF Gold Cup
Gold medal – first place 1963 El Salvador Team
Gold medal – first place 1969 Costa Rica Team
Gold medal – first place 1989 North America Team
Silver medal – second place 2002 United States Team
Bronze medal – third place 1965 Guatemala Team
Bronze medal – third place 1971 Trinidad and Tobago Team
Bronze medal – third place 1985 North America Team
Bronze medal – third place 1993 North America Team
Copa Centroamericana
Gold medal – first place 1991 Costa Rica Team
Gold medal – first place 1997 Guatemala Team
Gold medal – first place 1999 Cost Rica Team
Gold medal – first place 2003 Panama Team
Gold medal – first place 2005 Guatemala Team
Gold medal – first place 2007 El Salvador Team
Gold medal – first place 2013 Costa Rica Team
Gold medal – first place 2014 United States Team
Silver medal – second place 1993 Honduras Team
Silver medal – second place 2001 Honduras Team
Silver medal – second place 2009 Honduras Team
Silver medal – second place 2011 Panama Team
Websitefcrf.cr/sele-mayor

The Costa Rica national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Costa Rica) represents Costa Rica in men's international football. The national team is administered by the Costa Rican Football Federation (FEDEFUTBOL), the governing body for football in Costa Rica. It has been a member of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) since 1927, the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) since 1961, and a member of the Central American Football Union (UNCAF) since 1990.

Costa Rica is the most successful national football team from the region of Central America, winning three CONCACAF Championships (1963, 1969, 1989) and leading the Copa Centroamericana tournament with four championships up until 2017, when it was absorbed into the CONCACAF Nations League. Costa Rica is the only national team in Central America to have played in six FIFA World Cup editions. Costa Rica's national football team has the all-time highest average Football Elo Ranking in Central America with 1597.1, and the all-time highest Football Elo Ranking in Central America, with 1806 in 2014.

Since the late 1980s, the team has continuously been visible as a solidly competitive side and has been widely considered to be the second or third best team in the CONCACAF, with a prominent performance in the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy, making it to the knockout stage in their debut after finishing second in their group during the first phase, below Brazil. They also qualified for the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. In 2014, Costa Rica achieved their best performance in history by finishing first in their group that consisted of three former World Cup champions: Uruguay, Italy, and England. During the round 16 they defeated Greece 5–3 via a penalty shoot-out after a 1–1 draw. Moreover, during their match against the Greek team, Keylor Navas saved more than 15 shots. They reached the quarter-finals for the first time but were defeated by the Netherlands, also in a penalty shoot-out (3–4) after a scoreless draw on 5 July.[4][5] Both their 2018 and 2022 World Cup campaigns ended in a fourth place group stage exit, with their only points coming from a 2–2 draw against Switzerland in 2018 and a 1–0 win over Japan in 2022.

History

[edit]

Early history

[edit]

The national team made its debut in the Independence Centenary Games held in Guatemala City in September 1921, winning their first game 7–0 against El Salvador. In the final, Costa Rica defeated 6–0 Guatemala to claim the trophy.[6]

Costa Rica's team in the late 1940s acquired the nickname "The Gold Shorties".[7] Throughout the '50s and '60s, they were the second strongest team in the CONCACAF zone behind Mexico, finishing runners-up in World Cup qualifying in the 1958, 1962 and 1966 qualifiers. Stars of the side during this period included Ruben Jimenez, Errol Daniels, Leonel Hernandez and Edgar Marin. However, Costa Rica was not able to utilize this advantage, hence failed to reach any World Cup at that decade.

At the end of the 1960s their fortunes declined as Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti, Trinidad & Tobago and Canada rose in prominence.

1980s

[edit]

Costa Rica failed to qualify for any of the World Cups in the 1970s and 1980s, and did not reach the final round of the CONCACAF qualifying until the 1986 qualifiers.

They participated in two consecutive Summer Olympic Games, in Moscow 1980 and in Los Angeles 1984. In 1980, Costa Rica competed against Yugoslavia, Finland and Iraq in Group D, losing 3–2, 3–0 and 3–0 respectively. In Los Angeles, the Ticos lost 3–0 against the United States, and 4–1 against Egypt, but beat a strong Italy team, which included Walter Zenga, Pietro Vierchowod, Franco Baresi and Aldo Serena, 1–0 with a goal by the midfielder Enrique Rivers.

1990 World Cup

[edit]
Costa Rica's starting lineup against Scotland at the 1990 FIFA World Cup

Costa Rica won the 1989 CONCACAF Championship to qualify for the finals of a World Cup for the first time. In the first round of the qualifiers, they beat Panama 3–1 on aggregate after a 2–0 away victory in the second leg, with goals by Juan Cayasso and Hernán Medford. They were drawn against Mexico in the second round, but advanced automatically when their opponents were disqualified for age fraud.

Costa Rica started the final qualifying group stage with a home victory and an away defeat against both Guatemala and the United States. They drew 1–1 with Trinidad and Tobago and then beat the same opponents 1–0 at home with a goal by Cayasso. They achieved an important away win, 4–2 against El Salvador at the Estadio Cuscatlán, with goals from Carlos Hidalgo, Cayasso and a brace from Leonidas Flores, before beating El Salvador 1–0 in San José with a goal from Pastor Fernández. They finished first in the group table, ahead of the United States on goal difference.

Main article: 1989 CONCACAF Championship
Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Costa Rica 8 5 1 2 10 6 +4 11
 United States 8 4 3 1 6 3 +3 11
 Trinidad and Tobago 8 3 3 2 7 5 +2 9
 Guatemala 6 1 1 4 4 7 −3 3
 El Salvador 6 0 2 4 2 8 −6 2
Source: RSSSF

Placed in Group C at the World Cup finals, Costa Rica began by beating Scotland 1–0 thanks to another goal by Cayasso. Although they lost to Brazil by the same score, they came from behind to beat Sweden 2–1 in their final group match to reach the knockout stages. There, they lost 4–1 to Czechoslovakia, for whom Tomáš Skuhravý scored a hat-trick.

Main article: 1990 FIFA World Cup Group C
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Brazil 3 3 0 0 4 1 +3 6 Advance to knockout stage
2  Costa Rica 3 2 0 1 3 2 +1 4
3  Scotland 3 1 0 2 2 3 −1 2
4  Sweden 3 0 0 3 3 6 −3 0
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers

2002 World Cup

[edit]

The Ticos played first in qualification for the 2002 World Cup held in South Korea and Japan. During the qualifiers, Costa Rica were coached by Brazilian Gílson Nunes, and then by the naturalised Brazilian, Alexandre Guimarães. The first qualifying group stage began with an unexpected 2–1 defeat to Barbados. After this humiliation, Costa Rica beat the United States 2–1 at the Ricardo Saprissa Stadium, with goals from Rolando Fonseca and Hernán Medford. They then beat Guatemala 2–1 in the Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, with two goals from Paulo Wanchope and Barbados 3–0 at the Ricardo Saprissa, with goals from Jafet Soto, Fonseca and Medford. A draw against the United States and a 2–1 defeat to Guatemala forced Costa Rica into a play-off against Guatemala in Miami. Costa Rica won 5–2 with two goals from Fonseca and one each from Wanchope, Reynaldo Parks and Jafeth Soto.

Costa Rica displayed fine attacking form during the final qualifying round, beginning with a 2–2 draw against Honduras at the Ricardo Saprissa, with goals from Fonseca and Rodrigo Cordero, and a 3–0 defeat of Trinidad and Tobago at the Morera Soto. Their only loss in this round came when the United States beat them 1–0. Costa Rica bounced back with a 2–1 win against Mexico in Mexico City, a match known as the Aztecazo,[8] with goals from Fonseca and Medford. Further wins over Jamaica, Honduras and Trinidad and Tobago took Costa Rica to the brink of qualification, which they sealed with an emotional 2–0 win against the United States in the Saprissa, with a double from Fonseca.

Main article: 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification – CONCACAF final round
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Costa Rica 10 7 2 1 17 7 +10 23 Qualified to the 2002 FIFA World Cup
2  Mexico 10 5 2 3 16 9 +7 17
3  United States 10 5 2 3 11 8 +3 17
4  Honduras 10 4 2 4 17 17 0 14
5  Jamaica 10 2 2 6 7 14 −7 8
6  Trinidad and Tobago 10 1 2 7 5 18 −13 5
Source: FIFA

In the finals, Costa Rica were drawn into Group C with Brazil, China, and Turkey. Their campaign started in Gwangju, where the Ticos beat China 2–0. In their second game against Turkey in Incheon, Winston Parks scored an 86th-minute goal to earn a 1–1 draw. Against Brazil, Costa Rica fought back from 3–0 down to 3–2 early in the second half, only to concede two further goals and lose 5–2. With Turkey beating China 3–0, Costa Rica finished behind Turkey on goal difference and were eliminated.

Main article: 2002 FIFA World Cup Group C
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Brazil 3 3 0 0 11 3 +8 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Turkey 3 1 1 1 5 3 +2 4
3  Costa Rica 3 1 1 1 5 6 −1 4
4  China 3 0 0 3 0 9 −9 0
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria

2006 World Cup

[edit]

Costa Rica again managed to qualify for the World Cup finals in 2006, albeit with difficulties that saw their American coach Steve Sampson depart after they required away goals to beat Cuba in the preliminary phase. The Colombian Jorge Luis Pinto took over for the next round, which began with a disastrous 5–2 defeat at home against Honduras and a 2–1 loss in Guatemala. Costa Rica recovered with two wins over Canada and a resounding 5–0 triumph over Guatemala, when Wanchope scored a hat-trick and Carlos Hernández and Fonseca added further goals. Costa Rica advanced to the hexagonal round by winning the group.

In the final round they started with a 2–1 defeat against Mexico at the Saprissa, before beating Panama by the same score, with goals from Wayne Wilson and Roy Myrie. Pinto was dismissed after a goalless draw with Trinidad and Tobago, and Guimarães returned as coach. His first match ended in a 3–0 defeat to the United States, but wins followed against Guatemala, Panama and Trinidad and Tobago. Costa Rica decisively beat the United States in the Saprissa, 3–0, with a goal from Wanchope and two from Hernández, to guarantee their third World Cup qualification.

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification – CONCACAF fourth round
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification United States Mexico Costa Rica Trinidad and Tobago Guatemala Panama
1  United States 10 7 1 2 16 6 +10 22[a] 2006 FIFA World Cup — 2–0 3–0 1–0 2–0 2–0
2  Mexico 10 7 1 2 22 9 +13 22[a] 2–1 — 2–0 2–0 5–2 5–0
3  Costa Rica 10 5 1 4 15 14 +1 16 3–0 1–2 — 2–0 3–2 2–1
4  Trinidad and Tobago 10 4 1 5 10 15 −5 13 Inter-confederation play-offs 1–2 2–1 0–0 — 3–2 2–0
5  Guatemala 10 3 2 5 16 18 −2 11 0–0 0–2 3–1 5–1 — 2–1
6  Panama 10 0 2 8 4 21 −17 2 0–3 1–1 1–3 0–1 0–0 —
Source: [9]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Tied on head-to-head points (3). Head-to-head goal difference: United States +1, Mexico −1.

On 9 June 2006, Costa Rica played their debut match in Munich in the opening match of the World Cup against the hosts, Germany. Wanchope scored to equalise after an early goal from Philipp Lahm, and later added another, but Costa Rica lost 4–2. They failed to match this encouraging performance in their remaining two games, losing 3–0 against Ecuador and 2–1 against Poland in a dead rubber.

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group A

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Germany (H) 3 3 0 0 8 2 +6 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Ecuador 3 2 0 1 5 3 +2 6
3  Poland 3 1 0 2 2 4 −2 3
4  Costa Rica 3 0 0 3 3 9 −6 0
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
(H) Hosts

2010 World Cup

[edit]

Costa Rica began the qualifying competition for the 2010 World Cup against Grenada, winning 5–2 on aggregate (2–2, 3–0). They won all six games played in the next phase, against El Salvador (1–0, 3–1), Haiti (3–1, 2–0) and Suriname (7–0, 4–1).

With two games left in the Hexagonal round, Costa Rica trailed Honduras by one point in trying to win the third automatic qualification place behind the United States and Mexico. When Honduras lost 3–2 at home to the United States, Costa Rica overtook them with a 4–0 win against Trinidad and Tobago. Needing to win the final match in Washington, D.C. against the United States to ensure qualification, the Ticos led 2–0 at half-time, but Jonathan Bornstein scored an injury-time equaliser to draw the match 2–2. Meanwhile, Honduras's 1–0 victory over El Salvador moved them into third place in the group table on goal difference.

Costa Rica finished fourth, pushing them into a play-off with the fifth-placed team from the CONMEBOL region, Uruguay. The Ticos lost the first leg in San José 1–0, after a goal by Diego Lugano, and finished with ten men after Randall Azofeifa was sent off. In the second leg, played at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, Sebastián Abreu put Uruguay ahead twenty minutes from time, and although Walter Centeno equalised, the 1–1 draw sent Uruguay to the World Cup finals, 2–1 on aggregate.

After failing to qualify, the team began a new era, with the young talent of players such as Azofeifa, Keylor Navas, Cristian Bolaños, Michael Barrantes and Joel Campbell. Rónald González was the interim coach before Ricardo La Volpe was appointed in September 2010. He lasted only ten months before being replaced by the Colombian, Jorge Luis Pinto, in his second spell in charge. During this period, Costa Rica played many friendlies against the top-ranked teams in the world, including the world champion Spain, most of them in the new national stadium, the Estadio Nacional, which was opened in 2011.

2014 World Cup

[edit]

The Ticos' 2014 World Cup campaign began with a 2–2 draw against El Salvador in the third round of the qualifiers. They followed this with a 4–0 win over Guyana with a hat-trick by Álvaro Saborío. Two defeats to Mexico put the Ticos one defeat away from elimination, but they resurrected their campaign with a 1–0 win against El Salvador, with the only goal scored by José Miguel Cubero. They clinched a final round berth with a 7–0 win over Guyana, with goals scored by Randall Brenes, Saborío, Cristian Bolaños, Celso Borges and Cristian Gamboa.

The fourth round began with a 2–2 draw against Panama. In March, Costa Rica lost 1–0 against the United States in Denver, and launched an unsuccessful appeal against the match because of inclement weather.[10] Costa Rica again fell 1–0 to the United States in the Gold Cup that June.[11] Costa Rica then won 2–0 against Jamaica, beat Honduras 1–0 against, drew 0–0 at the Azteca against Mexico and won at home 2–0 against Panama. In September, they won 3–1 against the United States in San José.

On 10 September 2013, Costa Rica drew 1–1 with Jamaica, thanks to a goal from Brenes, to qualify with two games to spare. After a 1–0 loss at Honduras and 2–1 win over Mexico in October, Costa Rica finished second in the table, behind the United States.

Main article: 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification – CONCACAF fourth round
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  United States 10 7 1 2 15 8 +7 22 Qualification to 2014 FIFA World Cup — 1–0 1–0 2–0 2–0 2–0
2  Costa Rica 10 5 3 2 13 7 +6 18 3–1 — 1–0 2–1 2–0 2–0
3  Honduras 10 4 3 3 13 12 +1 15 2–1 1–0 — 2–2 2–2 2–0
4  Mexico 10 2 5 3 7 9 −2 11 Advance to inter-confederation play-offs 0–0 0–0 1–2 — 2–1 0–0
5  Panama 10 1 5 4 10 14 −4 8 2–3 2–2 2–0 0–0 — 0–0
6  Jamaica 10 0 5 5 5 13 −8 5 1–2 1–1 2–2 0–1 1–1 —
Source: [12]

Costa Rica were drawn in finals Group D against three previous tournament winners – Italy, England and Uruguay – and were given odds of 2500–1 to win the tournament.[citation needed] However, they beat Uruguay and Italy and drew 0–0 with England to finish top of the group and qualify for the knockout stage.

Main article: 2014 FIFA World Cup Group D

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Costa Rica 3 2 1 0 4 1 +3 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Uruguay 3 2 0 1 4 4 0 6
3  Italy 3 1 0 2 2 3 −1 3
4  England 3 0 1 2 2 4 −2 1
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria

In the second round, they beat Greece 5–3 on penalties after a 1–1 draw, seeing them through to the quarter-finals for the first time. There, they held the Netherlands to a 0–0 draw after extra time, before losing 4–3 on penalties. Costa Rica rose 12 places to 16th in the FIFA World Rankings. Former player Rónald González cited their long-term progress since 2007 as the reason for their achievement.[13]

2018 World Cup

[edit]
Costa Rica national team at the 2018 World Cup in Russia

The Ticos' qualification for the 2018 World Cup started with a bye to the fourth qualifying round, where they won five games and drew one, winning their group. In the final round, they finished second behind Mexico to qualify automatically, winning four matches, drawing four and losing two.

Main article: 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – CONCACAF fifth round

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Mexico Costa Rica Panama Honduras United States Trinidad and Tobago
1  Mexico 10 6 3 1 16 7 +9 21 Qualification to 2018 FIFA World Cup — 2–0 1–0 3–0 1–1 3–1
2  Costa Rica 10 4 4 2 14 8 +6 16 1–1 — 0–0 1–1 4–0 2–1
3  Panama 10 3 4 3 9 10 −1 13 0–0 2–1 — 2–2 1–1 3–0
4  Honduras 10 3 4 3 13 19 −6 13 Advance to inter-confederation play-offs 3–2 1–1 0–1 — 1–1 3–1
5  United States 10 3 3 4 17 13 +4 12 1–2 0–2 4–0 6–0 — 2–0
6  Trinidad and Tobago 10 2 0 8 7 19 −12 6 0–1 0–2 1–0 1–2 2–1 —
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

Costa Rica were drawn in Group E alongside Brazil, Switzerland and Serbia. Many key players from 2014 remained in the squad, but they made a disappointing exit at the group stage. Costa Rica lost their first two games, against Serbia and Brazil, without scoring, but drew 2–2 with Switzerland in their last match after equalising in injury time.

Main article: 2018 FIFA World Cup Group E

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Brazil 3 2 1 0 5 1 +4 7 Advance to knockout stage
2   Switzerland 3 1 2 0 5 4 +1 5
3  Serbia 3 1 0 2 2 4 −2 3
4  Costa Rica 3 0 1 2 2 5 −3 1
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers

2022 World Cup

[edit]

The Ticos' qualification for the 2022 World Cup started with a bye to the final qualifying round. They finished fourth behind the United States to advance to inter-confederation play-offs winning seven matches, drawing four and losing three. In the inter-confederation play-offs in Al Rayyan, Qatar, Costa Rica won the match 1–0 against New Zealand and qualified for the World Cup.

Main article: 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – CONCACAF third round

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Canada 14 8 4 2 23 7 +16 28 2022 FIFA World Cup
2  Mexico 14 8 4 2 17 8 +9 28
3  United States 14 7 4 3 21 10 +11 25
4  Costa Rica 14 7 4 3 13 8 +5 25 Inter-confederation play-offs
5  Panama 14 6 3 5 17 19 −2 21
6  Jamaica 14 2 5 7 12 22 −10 11
7  El Salvador 14 2 4 8 8 18 −10 10
8  Honduras 14 0 4 10 7 26 −19 4
Source: FIFA, CONCACAF
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
Main article: 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF–OFC play-off)
Costa Rica 1–0 New Zealand
  • Campbell 3'
 Report
Attendance: 10,803


On November 23, 2022, Costa Rica lost 7–0 against Spain, the biggest World Cup loss since 2010.[14] This match also tied for their worst defeat in professional football with a match against Mexico, which ended with Mexico 7–0 Costa Rica in Mexico Cityon 17 August 1975. After defeating Japan and scoring two goals against Germany in the first half, the latter scored three goals and eliminated Costa Rica.

Main article: 2022 FIFA World Cup Group E
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Japan 3 2 0 1 4 3 +1 6 Advanced to knockout stage
2  Spain 3 1 1 1 9 3 +6 4
3  Germany 3 1 1 1 6 5 +1 4
4  Costa Rica 3 1 0 2 3 11 −8 3
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers

Home stadium

[edit]

Estadio Nacional is the home stadium of the Costa Rica national team since its opening on 10 January 2011 This venue hosts their friendly matches as well as the World Cup qualifying matches against CONCACAF rivals. Previous matches were played in Estadio Ricardo Saprissa or in Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto.[citation needed]

Team image

[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Costa Rica national football team kits.
Costa Rica's 2018 FIFA World Cup kit showcased in Limón

Costa Rica traditionally wears a red jersey with blue shorts and white socks. Their away kit historically was a Juventus-style black and white striped jersey with white shorts and white or black socks, due to these colors being the ones of CS La Libertad, one of the oldest clubs in Costa Rica. However, after 1997, the striped kit was replaced by a white kit. In 2015, Boston-based sportswear company New Balance became the provider of the national team, after taking over for Italian company Lotto. Since 2023, Adidas is the kit provider for the national team.

Kit sponsorship

[edit]
Supplier Period
Costa Rica Desport 1980–1989
Italy Lotto 1990–1994
United States Reebok 1995–1999
Costa Rica Trooper 1999
Mexico Atletica 2000–2001
Spain Joma 2001–2007
Italy Lotto 2007–2014
United States New Balance 2015–2022
Germany Adidas 2023–present

Results and fixtures

[edit]
Main article: Costa Rica national football team results (2020–present)

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

[edit]
16 November 2023–24 Nations League QF Costa Rica  0–3  Panama San José, Costa Rica
21:00 UTC−6 Report
Stadium: Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá
Attendance: 17,787
Referee: Mario Escobar (Guatemala)
20 November 2023–24 Nations League QF Panama  3–1
(6–1 agg.)		  Costa Rica Panama City, Panama
21:00 UTC−5
Report Calvo 51' Stadium: Estadio Rommel Fernández
Attendance: 15,288
Referee: Saíd Martínez (Honduras)
Note: Panama won 6–1 on aggregate and qualified to the 2024 Copa América. Costa Rica advanced to the play-in.

2024

[edit]
2 February Friendly Costa Rica  2–0  El Salvador San José, Costa Rica
20:00 UTC−6
Report Stadium: Estadio Nacional
Referee: Steven Madrigal (Costa Rica)
23 March 2024 Copa América qualifying play-offs Costa Rica  3–1  Honduras Frisco, United States
18:15 UTC−5
Report
Stadium: Toyota Stadium
Attendance: 15,299
Referee: Ismail Elfath (United States)
Note: Costa Rica qualified for the 2024 Copa América after winning this game.
26 March Friendly Argentina  3–1  Costa Rica Los Angeles, United States
20:00 UTC−7
Report
Stadium: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Referee: Josef Mickelson (United States)
31 May Friendly Costa Rica  0–0  Uruguay A' San José, Costa Rica
20:00 UTC−6 Report Stadium: Estadio Nacional
Referee: Óscar Barrera (El Salvador)
6 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Costa Rica  4–0  Saint Kitts and Nevis San José, Costa Rica
20:30 UTC−6
Report Stadium: Estadio Nacional
Attendance: 5,150
Referee: Julio Luna (Guatemala)
9 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Grenada  0–3  Costa Rica St. George's, Grenada
17:30 UTC−4 Report
Stadium: Kirani James Athletic Stadium
Attendance: 2,780
Referee: Steffon Dewar (Jamaica)
24 June 2024 Copa América GS Brazil  0–0  Costa Rica Inglewood, United States
18:00 UTC−7 Report Stadium: SoFi Stadium
Attendance: 67,158
Referee: César Ramos (Mexico)
28 June 2024 Copa América GS Colombia  3–0  Costa Rica Glendale, United States
15:00 UTC−7
Report Stadium: State Farm Stadium
Attendance: 27,386
Referee: Gustavo Tejera (Uruguay)
2 July 2024 Copa América GS Costa Rica  2–1  Paraguay Austin, United States
20:00 UTC−5
Report
Stadium: Q2 Stadium
Attendance: 12,765
Referee: Yael Falcón (Argentina)
5 September 2024–25 Nations League Costa Rica  3–0  Guadeloupe San José, Costa Rica
18:00 UTC−6
Report Stadium: Estadio Nacional
Attendance: 7,542
Referee: Katia García (Mexico)
9 September 2024–25 Nations League Guatemala  0–0  Costa Rica Guatemala City, Guatemala
20:00 UTC−6 Report Stadium: Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores
Attendance: 18,115
Referee: Daniel Quintero (Mexico)
11 October 2024–25 Nations League Suriname  1–1  Costa Rica Paramaribo, Suriname
19:00 UTC−3
Report
Stadium: Dr. Ir. Franklin Essed Stadion
Attendance: 3,274
Referee: Adonai Escobedo (Mexico)
15 October 2024–25 Nations League Costa Rica  3–0  Guatemala San José, Costa Rica
18:00 UTC−6
Report Stadium: Estadio Nacional
Attendance: 20,450
Referee: Joseph Dickerson (United States)
14 November 2024–25 Nations League QF Costa Rica  v  Panama San José, Costa Rica
20:00 UTC−6 Stadium: Estadio Nacional
18 November 2024–25 Nations League QF Panama  v  Costa Rica Panama City, Panama
21:00 UTC−5 Stadium: Estadio Rommel Fernández

2025

[edit]
7 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Bahamas  v  Costa Rica Bahamas
--:-- UTC−4
10 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Costa Rica  v  Trinidad and Tobago Costa Rica
--:-- UTC−6

Coaching staff

[edit]
Current manager Gustavo Alfaro
Position Name
Manager Argentina Gustavo Alfaro
Assistant coach 1 Argentina Carlos Gonzalez
Assistant coach 2 Argentina Claudio Cristofanelli
Goalkeeper's coach Argentina Diego Martin Carranza
Fitness coach 1 Argentina Sergio Omar
Fitness coach 2 Argentina Pedro Ignacio
Video analyst Argentina Alejandro Juan
Doctor Costa Rica Alejandro Ramírez
Physiotherapist Costa Rica Martha Sisfontes
Physiotherapist Costa Rica Brayner Sánchez
Nutritionist Costa Rica Alhelí Mateos
Massage therapist Costa Rica Óscar Segura
Props Costa Rica Randall Obando
Props Costa Rica Alberto Mena
Team administrator Costa Rica Alvaro Herrera
Sporting director Argentina Claudio Vivas

Coaching history

[edit]
Caretaker managers are listed in italics.

Players

[edit]

Current squad

[edit]

The following players were called up to the squad for the 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League matches against Suriname and Guatemala on 11 and 15 October 2024, respectively.[15]

Caps and goals as of 15 October 2024, after the match against  Guatemala.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Patrick Sequeira (1999-03-01) 1 March 1999 (age 25) 14 0 Portugal Casa Pia
1GK Kevin Briceño (1991-10-21) 21 October 1991 (age 33) 1 0 Costa Rica Cartaginés
1GK Alexandre Lezcano (2001-08-26) 26 August 2001 (age 23) 0 0 Costa Rica Santos de Guápiles
2DF Francisco Calvo (1992-07-08) 8 July 1992 (age 32) 100 14 Turkey Atakaş Hatayspor
2DF Juan Pablo Vargas (1995-06-06) 6 June 1995 (age 29) 29 3 Colombia Millonarios
2DF Ariel Lassiter (1994-09-27) 27 September 1994 (age 30) 27 2 United States Chicago Fire
2DF Joseph Mora (1993-01-15) 15 January 1993 (age 31) 12 0 Costa Rica Saprissa
2DF Haxzel Quirós (1998-06-03) 3 June 1998 (age 26) 12 0 Costa Rica Herediano
2DF Julio Cascante (1993-10-03) 3 October 1993 (age 31) 11 1 United States Austin
2DF Jeyland Mitchell (2004-09-29) 29 September 2004 (age 20) 11 0 Netherlands Feyenoord
2DF Fernán Faerrón (2000-08-22) 22 August 2000 (age 24) 3 0 Costa Rica Herediano
2DF Yostin Salinas (1998-09-14) 14 September 1998 (age 26) 3 0 Costa Rica Sporting San José
3MF Brandon Aguilera (2003-06-28) 28 June 2003 (age 21) 22 0 Portugal Rio Ave
3MF Jefferson Brenes (1997-04-13) 13 April 1997 (age 27) 18 1 Costa Rica Saprissa
3MF Alejandro Bran (2001-03-05) 5 March 2001 (age 23) 11 0 England Burton Albion
3MF Sebastián Acuña (2002-06-25) 25 June 2002 (age 22) 5 0 Costa Rica San Carlos
3MF Rashir Parkins (2001-02-23) 23 February 2001 (age 23) 1 0 Costa Rica Alajuelense
4FW Joel Campbell (1992-06-26) 26 June 1992 (age 32) 146 27 Brazil Atlético Goianiense
4FW Warren Madrigal (2004-07-24) 24 July 2004 (age 20) 20 4 Spain Valencia Mestalla
4FW Josimar Alcócer (2004-07-07) 7 July 2004 (age 20) 17 4 Belgium Westerlo
4FW Alonso Martínez (1998-10-15) 15 October 1998 (age 26) 17 0 United States New York City
4FW Manfred Ugalde (2002-05-25) 25 May 2002 (age 22) 16 3 Russia Spartak Moscow
4FW Álvaro Zamora (2002-03-09) 9 March 2002 (age 22) 16 1 Greece Aris
4FW Kenneth Vargas (2002-04-17) 17 April 2002 (age 22) 8 1 Scotland Heart of Midlothian
4FW Andy Rojas (2005-12-05) 5 December 2005 (age 18) 3 1 Costa Rica Herediano

Recent call-ups

[edit]

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

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Aarón Cruz (1991-05-25) 25 May 1991 (age 33) 4 0 Costa Rica Herediano v.  Guatemala, 9 September 2024
GK Kevin Chamorro (2000-04-08) 8 April 2000 (age 24) 11 0 Portugal Estoril 2024 Copa América
GK Alexandre Lezcano (2001-08-26) 26 August 2001 (age 23) 0 0 Costa Rica Herediano Microcycle, 27–31 May 2024
GK Keylor NavasRET (1986-12-15) 15 December 1986 (age 37) 114 0 Unattached v.  Argentina, 26 March 2024
DF Gerald Taylor (2001-05-28) 28 May 2001 (age 23) 8 1 Scotland Heart of Midlothian v.  Guatemala, 9 September 2024
DF Yeison Molina (1996-01-25) 25 January 1996 (age 28) 1 0 Costa Rica Guanacasteca 2024 Copa América
DF Douglas Sequeira (2003-09-16) 16 September 2003 (age 21) 0 0 Portugal Nacional 2024 Copa América
DF Yurguin Román (1997-01-19) 19 January 1997 (age 27) 0 0 Costa Rica San Carlos v.  Uruguay, 31 May 2024
DF Joseth Peraza (2004-12-09) 9 December 2004 (age 19) 0 0 Costa Rica San Carlos v.  Uruguay, 31 May 2024
DF Iverson Salmerón (2003-03-06) 6 March 2003 (age 21) 0 0 Costa Rica Municipal Grecia Microcycle, 27–31 May 2024
DF Yael López (1998-12-17) 17 December 1998 (age 25) 3 0 Costa Rica Alajuelense v.  Argentina, 26 March 2024
DF Alexis Gamboa (1999-03-20) 20 March 1999 (age 25) 3 0 Costa Rica Alajuelense v.  Argentina, 26 March 2024
DF Pablo Arboine (1998-04-03) April 3, 1998 (age 26) 9 0 Costa Rica Saprissa v.  Argentina, 26 March 2024
DF Jefry Valverde (1995-06-10) 10 June 1995 (age 29) 3 0 Costa Rica Saprissa v.  El Salvador, 2 February 2024
DF Ian Lawrence (2002-05-28) 28 May 2002 (age 22) 4 0 Costa Rica Alajuelense v.  El Salvador, 2 February 2024
DF Giancarlo González (1988-02-08) 8 February 1988 (age 36) 90 2 Costa Rica Sporting San José v.  Panama, 20 November 2023
DF Bryan Oviedo (1990-02-18) 18 February 1990 (age 34) 81 2 Unattached v.  Panama, 20 November 2023
MF Orlando Galo (2000-08-11) 11 August 2000 (age 24) 19 3 Latvia Riga 2024 Copa América
MF Carlos Mora (2001-03-18) 18 March 2001 (age 23) 8 0 Romania U Craiova v.  Uruguay, 31 May 2024
MF Douglas López (1998-09-21) 21 September 1998 (age 26) 3 0 Costa Rica Cartaginés v.  Uruguay, 31 May 2024
MF Allan Cruz (1996-02-24) 24 February 1996 (age 28) 24 2 Costa Rica Herediano Microcycle, 27–31 May 2024
MF Elías Aguilar (1991-11-07) 7 November 1991 (age 33) 22 2 Costa Rica Herediano Microcycle, 27–31 May 2024
MF Kendall Porras (2002-09-08) 8 September 2002 (age 22) 0 0 Costa Rica Sporting San José Microcycle, 27–31 May 2024
MF Randall Leal (1997-01-14) 14 January 1997 (age 27) 29 1 United States Nashville v.  El Salvador, 2 February 2024
MF Aarón Suárez (2002-06-27) 27 June 2002 (age 22) 7 1 Costa Rica Alajuelense v.  El Salvador, 2 February 2024
MF Luis Flores (1994-01-23) 23 January 1994 (age 30) 1 0 Costa Rica Sporting San José v.  El Salvador, 2 February 2024
MF Yeltsin Tejeda (1992-03-17) 17 March 1992 (age 32) 78 1 Costa Rica Herediano v.  Panama, 20 November 2023
MF Jewison Bennette (2004-06-15) 15 June 2004 (age 20) 11 2 England Sunderland v.  Panama, 20 November 2023
MF Youstin Salas (1996-06-17) 17 June 1996 (age 28) 6 0 Costa Rica Saprissa v.  Panama, 16 November 2023
FW Anthony Contreras (2000-01-29) 29 January 2000 (age 24) 28 4 Latvia Riga 2024 Copa América
FW Steven Cárdenas (1991-12-13) 13 December 1991 (age 32) 0 0 Costa Rica Sporting San José v.  Uruguay, 31 May 2024
FW Julián Ugalde (2005-04-12) 12 April 2005 (age 19) 0 0 Costa Rica Municipal Grecia Microcycle, 27–31 May 2024
FW Jostin Daly (1998-04-23) 23 April 1998 (age 26) 2 1 Costa Rica Cartaginés v.  El Salvador, 2 February 2024

INJ Withdrew due to injury.
RET Retired from the national team.
ILL Withdrew due to illness.
PRE Preliminary squad.
WD Withdrew for personal reasons.

Records

[edit]
As of 15 October 2024[16]
Players in bold are still active with Costa Rica.

Most appearances

[edit]
Celso Borges is Costa Rica's most capped player with 163 appearances.
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Celso Borges 163 27 2008–2023
2 Bryan Ruiz 147 29 2005–2022
3 Joel Campbell 146 27 2011–present
4 Walter Centeno 137 24 1995–2009
5 Luis Marín 128 5 1993–2009
6 Keylor Navas 114 0 2008–2024
7 Rolando Fonseca 113 47 1992–2011
8 Álvaro Saborío 112 36 2002–2021
9 Mauricio Solís 110 6 1993–2006
10 Michael Umaña 102 1 2004–2017

Top goalscorers

[edit]
Rolando Fonseca is Costa Rica's all-time top scorer with 47 goals.
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Rolando Fonseca 47 113 0.42 1992–2011
2 Paulo Wanchope 45 73 0.62 1996–2008
3 Álvaro Saborío 36 112 0.32 2002–2021
4 Bryan Ruiz 29 147 0.2 2005–2022
5 Juan Ulloa 27 27 1 1955–1970
Joel Campbell 27 146 0.18 2011–present
Celso Borges 27 163 0.17 2008–2023
8 Rónald Gómez 24 91 0.26 1993–2008
Walter Centeno 24 137 0.18 1995–2009
10 Jorge Monge 23 27 0.85 1955–1961

Competitive record

[edit]

FIFA World Cup

[edit]
Main article: Costa Rica at the FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Did not enter Declined invitation
Italy 1934 Did not enter
France 1938 Withdrew Withdrew
Brazil 1950 Did not enter Did not enter
Switzerland 1954 Entry not accepted by FIFA Entry not accepted by FIFA
Sweden 1958 Did not qualify 6 4 1 1 16 7
Chile 1962 9 5 1 3 22 14
England 1966 8 5 2 1 17 3
Mexico 1970 4 2 1 1 7 3
West Germany 1974 2 0 1 1 4 5
Argentina 1978 6 1 4 1 8 6
Spain 1982 8 1 4 3 6 10
Mexico 1986 8 2 5 1 10 8
Italy 1990 Round of 16 13th 4 2 0 2 4 6 Squad 10 6 2 2 13 7
United States 1994 Did not qualify 8 4 0 4 16 11
France 1998 16 7 3 6 22 17
South Korea Japan 2002 Group stage 19th 3 1 1 1 5 6 Squad 17 11 3 3 31 10
Germany 2006 31st 3 0 0 3 3 9 Squad 18 8 4 6 30 25
South Africa 2010 Did not qualify 20 12 3 5 41 22
Brazil 2014 Quarter-finals 8th 5 2 3 0 5 2 Squad 16 8 4 4 27 12
Russia 2018 Group stage 29th 3 0 1 2 2 5 Squad 16 9 5 2 25 11
Qatar 2022 27th 3 1 0 2 3 11 Squad 15 8 4 3 14 8
Canada Mexico United States 2026 Qualification in progress 2 2 0 0 7 0
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total Quarter-finals 6/22 21 6 5 10 22 39 — 189 95 47 47 316 184
*Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

CONCACAF Gold Cup

[edit]
Main article: Costa Rica at the CONCACAF Gold Cup
CONCACAF Championship & Gold Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
El Salvador 1963 Champions 1st 6 5 1 0 14 2 Squad Qualified automatically
Guatemala 1965 Third place 3rd 5 2 2 1 11 4 Squad Automatically entered
Honduras 1967 Did not enter Did not enter
Costa Rica 1969 Champions 1st 5 4 1 0 13 2 Squad Qualified as hosts
Trinidad and Tobago 1971 Third place 3rd 5 2 1 2 6 5 Squad Qualified as defending champions
Haiti 1973 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 4 5
Mexico 1977 6 1 4 1 8 6
Honduras 1981 8 1 4 3 6 10
1985 Third place 3rd 8 2 5 1 10 8 Squad 5 1 0 4 5 9
1989 Champions 1st 8 5 1 2 10 6 Squad Qualified automatically
United States 1991 Fourth place 4th 5 1 0 4 5 9 Squad Qualified as defending champions
Mexico United States 1993 Third place 3rd 5 1 3 1 6 5 Squad 5 4 0 1 11 2
United States 1996 Did not qualify 4 1 1 2 5 6
United States 1998 Group stage 5th 2 1 0 1 8 4 Squad 5 3 2 0 12 3
United States 2000 Quarter-finals 6th 3 0 2 1 5 6 Squad 5 3 0 2 13 3
United States 2002 Runners-up 2nd 5 3 1 1 8 5 Squad 5 2 2 1 8 5
Mexico United States 2003 Fourth place 4th 5 2 0 3 10 8 Squad 5 4 1 0 5 1
United States 2005 Quarter-finals 6th 4 2 1 1 6 4 Squad 4 3 1 0 8 2
United States 2007 7th 4 1 1 2 3 4 Squad 4 2 1 1 6 3
United States 2009 Semi-finals 4th 5 2 2 1 10 6 Squad 4 3 1 0 9 1
United States 2011 Quarter-finals 5th 4 1 2 1 8 6 Squad 4 1 2 1 5 4
United States 2013 5th 4 2 0 2 4 2 Squad 5 4 1 0 6 1
Canada United States 2015 7th 4 0 3 1 3 4 Squad 3 2 1 0 7 3
United States 2017 Semi-finals 4th 5 3 1 1 6 3 Squad 5 1 3 1 4 2
Costa Rica Jamaica United States 2019 Quarter-finals 5th 4 2 1 1 8 4 Squad Qualified automatically
United States 2021 5th 4 3 0 1 6 4 Squad 4 1 3 0 4 3
Canada United States 2023 7th 4 1 1 2 7 8 Squad 4 2 0 2 4 4
Total 3 Titles 22/27 104 45 29 30 167 109 — 82 38 28 16 125 64

CONCACAF Nations League

[edit]
CONCACAF Nations League record
League Finals
Season Division Group Pld W D L GF GA P/R Year Result Pld W D L GF GA Squad
2019−20 A D 4 1 3 0 4 3 Same position United States 2021 Fourth place 2 0 2 0 2 0 Squad
2022–23 A B 4 2 0 2 4 4 Same position United States 2023 Did not qualify
2023–24 A Bye Same position United States 2024
2024–25 A A In progress 2025 To be determined
Total — — 8 3 3 2 8 7 — Total 0 Titles 2 0 2 0 2 0 —

Copa América

[edit]
Main article: Costa Rica at the Copa América
Copa América record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
Ecuador 1993* Not invited
Uruguay 1995
Bolivia 1997 Group stage 10th 3 0 1 2 2 10 Squad
Paraguay 1999 Not invited
Colombia 2001 Quarter-finals 5th 4 2 1 1 7 3 Squad
Peru 2004 7th 4 1 0 3 3 8 Squad
Venezuela 2007 Not invited
Argentina 2011 Group stage 9th 3 1 0 2 2 4 Squad
Chile 2015 Not invited
United States 2016 Group stage 10th 3 1 1 1 3 6 Squad
Brazil 2019 Not invited
Brazil 2021
United States 2024 Group stage 10th 3 1 1 1 2 4 Squad
Total Quarter-finals 6/13 20 6 4 10 19 35 —
*The 1993 Copa América was the first time nations from outside CONMEBOL were invited.

Copa Centroamericana

[edit]
Copa Centroamericana record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Costa Rica 1991 Champions 1st 3 3 0 0 10 1
Honduras 1993 Runners-up 2nd 3 2 0 1 3 2
El Salvador 1995 Fourth place 4th 4 1 1 2 5 6
Guatemala 1997 Champions 1st 5 3 2 0 12 3
Costa Rica 1999 Champions 1st 5 3 0 2 13 3
Honduras 2001 Runners-up 2nd 5 2 2 1 8 5
Panama 2003 Champions 1st 5 4 1 0 5 1
Guatemala 2005 Champions 1st 4 3 1 0 8 2
El Salvador 2007 Champions 1st 4 2 1 1 5 2
Honduras 2009 Runners-up 2nd 4 3 1 0 9 1
Panama 2011 Runners-up 2nd 4 1 2 1 6 5
Costa Rica 2013 Champions 1st 5 4 1 0 6 1
United States 2014 Champions 1st 3 2 1 0 7 3
Panama 2017 Fourth place 4th 5 1 3 1 4 2
Total 8 Titles 14/14 59 34 16 9 103 37

CCCF Championship

[edit]
CCCF Championship record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Costa Rica 1941 Champions 1st 4 4 0 0 23 5
El Salvador 1943 Third place 3rd 6 3 0 3 20 15
Costa Rica 1946 Champions 1st 5 4 0 1 24 6
Guatemala 1948 Champions 1st 8 5 1 2 25 11
Panama 1951 Runners-up 2nd 4 2 1 1 13 5
Costa Rica 1953 Champions 1st 6 6 0 0 19 2
Honduras 1955 Champions 1st 6 6 0 0 19 4
Netherlands Antilles 1957 Withdrew
Cuba 1960 Champions 1st 5 3 2 0 14 4
Costa Rica 1961 Champions 1st 7 7 0 0 32 4
Total 7 Titles 9/10 51 40 4 7 191 56

Olympic Games

[edit]
Olympic Games record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
France 1900 Only club teams participated
United States 1904
United Kingdom 1908 No national representative
Sweden 1912
Belgium 1920
France 1924 Not an IOC member
Netherlands 1928
Nazi Germany 1936 Did not participate
United Kingdom 1948
Finland 1952
Australia 1956
Italy 1960
Japan 1964
Mexico 1968 Did not qualify
West Germany 1972
Canada 1976
Soviet Union 1980 Group stage 16th 3 0 0 3 2 9 Squad
United States 1984 Group stage 13th 3 1 0 2 2 7 Squad
South Korea 1988 Did not qualify
Since 1992 See Costa Rica national under-23 football team
Total Quarter-finals 2/12 6 1 0 5 4 16 —

Pan American Games

[edit]
Pan American Games record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Argentina 1951 Silver medal 2nd 4 2 1 1 9 12
Mexico 1955 Did not participate
United States 1959 Round-robin 5th 6 2 1 3 10 16
Brazil 1963 Did not participate
Canada 1967
Colombia 1971
Mexico 1975 Fourth place 4th 6 2 1 3 7 13
Puerto Rico 1979 Fourth place 4th 5 2 0 3 8 7
Venezuela 1983 Did not participate
United States 1987
Cuba 1991
Argentina 1995 Quarter-finals 6th 4 2 0 2 12 6
Since 1999 See Costa Rica national under-23 football team
Total 1 Silver medal 5/12 25 10 3 12 46 54

Panamerican Championship

[edit]
Panamerican Championship record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Chile 1952 Did not participate
Mexico 1956 Third place 3rd 5 2 1 2 11 15
Costa Rica 1960 Fourth place 4th 6 1 2 3 4 10
Total Third place 2/3 11 3 3 5 15 25

Head-to-head record

[edit]
Main article: Costa Rica national football team results

The following table shows Costa Rica's all-time international record, correct as of 15 October 2024.

  Positive Record   Neutral Record   Negative Record

Team M W D L GF GA GD
 Argentina 7 0 2 5 6 15 –9
 Aruba 2 1 1 0 4 3 1
 Australia 1 0 0 1 0 1 –1
 Austria 2 0 1 1 2 4 –2
 Barbados 2 1 0 1 4 2 2
 Belgium 2 0 0 2 1 5 –4
 Belize 6 6 0 0 18 1 17
 Bermuda 1 1 0 0 2 1 1
 Bolivia 3 2 1 0 7 1 6
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
 Brazil 12 1 1 10 9 34 –25
 Cameroon 1 1 0 0 5 0 5
 Canada 24 9 9 6 22 18 4
 Chile 11 6 2 3 13 10 3
 China 5 2 2 1 8 6 2
 Colombia 15 4 1 10 17 30 –13
 Cuba 18 15 3 0 57 11 46
 Curaçao 2 1 1 0 3 2 1
 Czech Republic[a] 2 0 0 2 1 5 –5
 Dominican Republic 2 2 0 0 8 1 7
 Ecuador 12 1 5 6 10 22 –12
 El Salvador 69 40 15 14 151 58 93
 England 2 0 1 1 0 2 –2
 Finland 1 1 0 0 2 1 1
 France 2 0 0 2 3 5 –2
 French Guiana 1 1 0 0 3 0 3
 Germany 2 0 0 2 4 8 –4
 Greece 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Grenada 3 2 1 0 8 2 6
 Guadeloupe 4 4 0 0 12 2 10
 Guatemala 66 33 16 17 135 72 63
 Guyana 2 2 0 0 11 0 11
 Haiti 16 8 6 2 31 13 18
 Honduras 69 26 24 19 114 84 30
 Hungary 1 0 0 1 0 1 –1
 Iran 2 0 1 1 2 3 –1
 Italy 2 1 0 1 1 1 0
 Jamaica 31 15 11 4 56 19 37
 Japan 6 1 1 4 4 13 –9
 Martinique 5 5 0 0 15 6 9
 Mexico 58 6 20 32 34 88 –54
 Netherlands 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
 New Zealand 3 3 0 0 6 0 6
 Nicaragua 19 17 1 1 72 10 62
 Nigeria 1 1 0 0 2 0 2
 Northern Ireland 1 1 0 0 3 0 3
 Norway 2 0 1 1 0 1 –1
 Oman 1 1 0 0 4 3 1
 Panama 42 29 14 19 119 61 58
 Paraguay 10 4 3 3 7 7 0
 Peru 9 2 1 6 10 18 –8
 Poland 3 0 0 3 3 8 –5
 Puerto Rico 1 1 0 0 13 0 13
 Qatar 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Republic of Ireland 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Russia[b] 2 1 0 1 5 5 0
 Saint Kitts and Nevis 1 1 0 0 4 0 4
 Saudi Arabia 5 4 0 1 12 6 6
 Scotland 2 2 0 0 2 0 2
 Serbia 1 0 0 1 0 1 –1
 Slovakia 3 1 1 1 6 5 1
 South Africa 2 0 0 2 1 3 –2
 South Korea 11 3 3 5 12 14 –2
 Spain 4 0 1 3 3 16 –13
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3 3 0 0 13 1 12
 Suriname 7 6 1 0 20 5 15
 Sweden 2 1 0 1 2 2 0
  Switzerland 3 1 1 1 3 4 –1
 Trinidad and Tobago 26 19 4 3 59 15 44
 Tunisia 1 0 0 1 0 1 –1
 Turkey 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Ukraine 1 0 0 1 0 4 –4
 Uruguay 15 3 4 8 19 26 –7
 United Arab Emirates 1 0 0 1 1 4 –3
 United States 41 17 5 19 49 49 0
 Uzbekistan 1 1 0 0 2 1 1
 Venezuela 16 7 5 4 28 24 4
 Wales 2 1 0 1 1 1 0
Total (78) 719 207 135 235 1,268 849 +419
  1. ^ include  Czechoslovakia
  2. ^ include  Soviet Union

Honours

[edit]
Costa Rica national football team players celebrating their classification at the FIFA World Cup 2014 for the round of 16 in first place of Group D at Mineirão stadium in Belo Horizonte after their draw with England.

Major competitions

[edit]

Continental

[edit]

Regional

[edit]

Friendly

[edit]

Summary

[edit]
Senior Competition 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Total
CONCACAF Gold Cup 3 1 4 8
Panamerican Championship 0 0 1 1
CCCF Championship1 7 1 1 9
Total 10 2 6 18
  1. According to FIFA statutes, official major competition organized by CCCF for senior national teams. It was the predecessor confederation of CONCACAF and affiliated with FIFA as the governing football body in Central America and Caribbean from 1938 to 1961.

FIFA World Ranking

[edit]
See also: FIFA World Rankings

Last update was on 27 May 2021 Source:[17]

  Best Ranking    Worst Ranking    Best Mover    Worst Mover  

Costa Rica's FIFA World Ranking History
Rank Year Best Worst
Rank Move Rank Move
50 2021 — — — —
51 2020 46 Steady 51 Decrease 4
46 2019 37 Increase 1 47 Decrease 5
36 2018 23 Increase 2 37 Decrease 9
26 2017 17 Increase 5 26 Decrease 7
17 2016 17 Increase 8 37 Decrease 4
37 2015 13 Increase 3 42 Decrease 27
16 2014 15 Increase 12 35 Decrease 3
31 2013 31 Increase 16 66 Decrease 3
66 2012 57 Increase 8 72 Decrease 6
65 2011 48 Increase 21 69 Decrease 5
69 2010 40 Increase 3 69 Decrease 13
44 2009 30 Increase 11 47 Decrease 8
53 2008 53 Increase 12 79 Decrease 4
70 2007 46 Increase 12 70 Decrease 10
68 2006 21 Steady 68 Decrease 19
21 2005 19 Increase 6 27 Decrease 3
27 2004 17 Increase 5 33 Decrease 5
17 2003 17 Increase 3 22 Decrease 2
21 2002 21 Increase 5 30 Decrease 2
30 2001 29 Increase 14 56 Decrease 2
60 2000 54 Increase 8 69 Decrease 5
64 1999 64 Increase 5 69 Decrease 2
67 1998 46 Increase 7 67 Decrease 15
51 1997 51 Increase 9 66 Decrease 2
72 1996 72 Increase 12 93 Decrease 6
78 1995 56 Increase 18 78 Decrease 13
65 1994 39 Increase 3 65 Decrease 9
42 1993 37 Increase 1 42 Decrease 5

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Araya, José Fernando (24 November 2021). "Esta es la nueva imagen de la Federación Costarricense de Fútbol | Teletica". Teletica (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 25 November 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  2. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 24 October 2024. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  3. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 13 November 2024. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  4. ^ Campomar, Andreas (4 July 2014). "The Hopes of Central America Rest on a Perpetual Underdog : World Cup 2014: Costa Rica Could Learn From Uruguay's Example". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 20 December 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  5. ^ "When Saturday Comes – Costa Rica goes crazy for the "team of migrants"". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 July 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  6. ^ Romero, Marcos (28 August 2009). "Costa Rica International Soccer Matches Since 1920". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
  7. ^ ""Los Chaparritos de Oro", la increíble generación de la Selección de Costa Rica en los 50". Fútbol Centroamérica (in European Spanish). 22 April 2022. Archived from the original on 23 April 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  8. ^ "¡Aztecazo!". Nación.com. Archived from the original on 29 June 2019. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
  9. ^ "FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF) 2006, football - table and standings". soccer365.me. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  10. ^ "U.S. win stands as Costa Rica appeal blown away". CNN. 26 March 2013. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  11. ^ "U.S. downs Costa Rica 1–0 in Gold Cup group stage, advances to quarters". CBSSports.com. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  12. ^ "FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF) 2014, football - table and standings". soccer365.me. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  13. ^ "El éxito de Costa Rica se debe a la paciencia, según exmundialista González". mundodeportivo.com. 7 July 2014. Archived from the original on 21 August 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  14. ^ Group E. Spain 7– Costa Rica 0 Archived 23 November 2022 at the Wayback Machine FIFA
  15. ^ "Los convocados". Facebook. Federación Costarricense de Fútbol.
  16. ^ Luis Fernando Passo Alpuin. "Costa Rica – Record International Players". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 20 July 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  17. ^ "Costa Rica in the FIFA World Ranking". Archived from the original on 24 November 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
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