Slovakia has participated in internationalfootball as an independent nation ever since 1993 whenCzechoslovakia was divided into two new states.^[1][2][3] Slovakia qualified to theFIFA World Cup for the first time in2010, where the side upset perennial powerItaly and lost in the Round of 16.^[4] Since independence, they qualified for theUEFA European Championship for their first time in2016. Football is the most popular sport in the Slovak Republic. Approximately half of the Slovak people are interested in football^[5]

TheSlovak Football Association was a member of FIFA from April 1939 to 1945 and resumed in 1994.^[6]

The Slovak club's football tournament is held every season in theSlovak First Football League. The first Slovak football league was formed in its current form in 1993, when the Czechoslovak league was discontinued after the end of the federation with the Czech Republic. In2007-08 there was an average of approximately 3000 spectators per game. The clubs sell their players to financially stronger clubs from western Europe. Examples of players that have succeeded in notable leagues areMarek Hamšík, former captain of Italian clubSSC Napoli,Peter Pekarík who captainsBundesliga sideHertha BSC andMartin Škrtel, a well-known formerLiverpool centre-back. Moreover, over the last few years more and more youngsters have been given the chance to perform regularly in the league before being transferred abroad. For exampleLeon Bailey,Milan Škriniar,Stanislav Lobotka andSamuel Kalu all played in the Slovak league.

The record champion isŠK Slovan Bratislava with 13 titles, followed byMŠK Žilina with 7 titles.

The second-tier football league in Slovakia is called2. Liga and 16 teams compete in it. The third tier league (known as3. Liga) consists of four divisions of which three (division East, division Middle & division Bratislava) are of 16 teams and the other one (division West) consists of 18 teams.

In2010, MŠK Žilina became the third Slovak club to participate in theChampions League, where they were eliminated in the group stage.

As of the 2024–25 season:^[7]

TheSlovak Cup is the football cup competition for Slovak club teams. It is organized annually by theSlovak Football Association (Slovenský futbalový zväz, SFZ). The cup has been held since the 1969/70 season, the first winner wasSlovan Bratislava, who is also the record holder, with 17 titles.

The men's national team qualified as group winners for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. At the final tournament, the Slovak team surprisingly won against the world champions Italy 3–2, the Slovaks also qualified for the knockout stages, where they were eliminated after a 2–1 defeat against the eventual finalistsNetherlands.^[8]

The Slovak national team also qualified forUEFA Euro 2016, reaching the round of 16, andUEFA Euro 2020, where they were eliminated in the group stage.^[9]

• Sport in Slovakia
• List of football stadiums in Slovakia

• (in English)slovakia leagues summary(flashscore)

• Football in Slovakia

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata