TheDenmark national football team (Danish:Danmarks herre-fodboldlandshold orherrelandsholdet) representsDenmark andGreenland in men's internationalfootball competitions. It is controlled by theDanish Football Association (DBU), the governing body for the football clubs which are organised under DBU. Denmark's home stadium isParken Stadium in theØsterbro district ofCopenhagen.
Denmark were winners of the unofficial1906 Intercalated Games football competition and silver medalists at the1908 and1912 Olympics. However, as amateurs who prohibited their internationals from becoming professionals at foreign clubs, Denmark did not qualify for theFIFA World Cup until1986, although they won another Olympic silver in1960.
Since the 1980s and the "Danish Dynamite" team, Denmark has remained competitive in international tournaments. Triumph in the1992 European Championship in Sweden marked the team's most prominent victory, defeating defending championsthe Netherlands in the semi-final and world championsGermany in the final. They also won the1995 King Fahd Cup, defeatingArgentina in the final. Their best World Cup result was achieved in 1998, where they narrowly lost 3–2 in a quarter-final againstBrazil. Denmark also made the round of 16 in 1986, 2002 and 2018. Their most prominent result in recent history was atEuro 2020, where the team lost in the semi-final againstEngland after extra time.
Apart from the men's senior A-level team, Denmark competes with awomen's national team, and has teams at various youth levels for both men and women, most prominently theunder-21 national team. Historically, the A-level team competed in theOlympics until and including the 1988 tournament, whereafter Olympic games count as under-21 national games. In addition to the A-level team and youth teams, Denmark also has a special league national team namedLigalandsholdet, with the best Danish footballers from the Nordic leagues. The Ligalandsholdet was created in January 1983, and has played unofficial games for the national team during the winter break of the Nordic leagues every year since, save for 2005 and 2011. Sometimes the media also refer to Ligalandsholdet as Denmark's B-team, as the best Danish footballers selected for the A-team often play in leagues outside of the Nordic countries. As such, the national team coach has on several occasions outlined the purpose of having unofficial matches played by Ligalandsholdet as an opportunity of testing new potential upcoming Danish players for the A-team.
The Danish team that won their first silver medal at the1908 Summer OlympicsDanish team, winning the silver medals at the1912 Olympics
On 12 April 1896, Denmark XI defeated Podilatikos Syllogos Athinon, either 9–0 or 15–0, at theNeo Phaliron Velodrome inAthens in a demonstration game during the 1896 Olympic Games.[5]
On 18 April 1897, a game was played inHamburg when a selection team from theDanish Football Association defeated a selection team from the Hamburg-Altona Football Association, 5–0 in the presence of 5,000 spectators.[6][7][8]
The first three editions of the Olympic football event in 1900–1906 had an unofficial status, as the event was not yet open for national football teams to compete, and only had limited participation of three or four club teams from a few nations. Denmark had no club team invited in the1900 Olympics and the1904 Olympics, but then received a special invitation for the unofficial1906 Olympics, to compete against one Greek club team (Athens) and two club teams from the Ottoman Empire (Smyrna andThessaloniki). The team to represent Denmark was compiled of players from theCopenhagen Football Association (KBU), and they won the event, and thereby an unofficial gold medal. Two years later, in the first official football tournament at the1908 Olympics, Denmark won a silver medal. At the next Olympics, in1912, the team again won a silver medal, which was followed by a golden era from July 1912 until August 1920, with Denmark ranked most of the time as number one in the world by theElo ranking. The first official national football match was played on 19 October 1908 during theOlympic Games inLondon. Denmark beat France's second team 9–0 in the tournament's quarterfinals.
Although Denmark figured fairly prominently in the pre-FIFA World Cup era, international success would elude them for years from the first World Cup in 1930 and forward. Despite the country's ability to produce outstanding football talents, theDanish Football Union (DBU) only had the ambition (or economy) to send the national team to play friendly matches and in the regional tournament, theNordic Championship, from October 1920 until June 1948. When DBU opted to set their sights higher, they allowed the national team to start contesting the Olympics again, promptly resulting in a bronze medal at the1948 Olympics. After, the team only reached the quarter-final at the1952 Olympics, with the DBU choosing not to contest the next1956 Olympics. As football remained an amateur past-time, most of the best Danish footballers moved abroad to make a living,[9] and due to DBU enforcing the rule to bar all professionals from the national team, it started to become difficult to assemble a highly competitive team.
Denmark experienced their next revival at the1960 Olympics with a third set of Olympic silver medals. This was followed by another notable performance at the1964 European Nations' Cup, where Denmark impressively finished in fourth place. However, this finish was considered by many as being more the result of a comparatively easy draw rather than a result of a well-playing team. In order for Denmark to qualify for the semi-final, they only had to defeatMalta,Albania andLuxembourg. In the semi-final, Denmark fell 3–0 to theSoviet Union, then lost the third-place match toHungary.
The strict rule of only allowing amateurism at the national team was finally abolished by the DBU in May 1971, as they had acknowledged this change was needed in order to build a highly competitive team. In February 1978, when the DBU also decided to allow professional football to be introduced in the Danish leagues, the way was at the same time paved for the national team to sign its first sponsorship with the well-known Danish breweryCarlsberg. The new sponsorship enabled the DBU to hire the GermanSepp Piontek in July 1979 as the first full-time professional coach of the national team. The full transition of the national team from amateurism to professionalism had now been accomplished, and indeed, this would soon lead to a vast improvement in the performances of the team.[9]
According to Rob Smyth and Lars Eriksen, authors of a book on the "Danish Dynamite" team that would soon emerge:
That process [the transition to professionalism] was accelerated by the fact that so many of the national team were playing abroad, and values learned there were slowly seeping in. ... Denmark got a headstart on football globalisation, benefiting from the enlightenment and experience that comes with playing abroad. AtEuro 84, their 20-man squad contained 14 overseas-based players; the other seven teams had only five between them. AtMexico 86, their squad included players from the champions ofItaly,West Germany,England,Holland andBelgium, but notDenmark.[10]
In the1982 FIFA World Cup qualification, Denmark finished with four wins and four losses, including a 3–1 win against the eventualWorld Cup championsItaly, but Denmark failed to qualify for the final tournament. Qualification forUEFA Euro 1984 saw Denmark defeatEngland atWembley Stadium whenAllan Simonsen converted apenalty kick for a 1–0 win. Denmark qualified for their first international tournament since 1964, and the team was dubbed "Danish Dynamite" in a competition for the official Danish Euro 1984 song.[9] Denmark's participation ended in the semi-final when the team lost onpenalties toSpain, most remembered forPreben Elkjær's penalty miss, his shorts torn apart. Following the strong performance at the finals, the name "Danish Dynamite" became a mainstay for the following decade of the Denmark national team under head coach Sepp Piontek.[11]
Denmark made their first World Cup appearance in the1986 World Cup, and with the attacking duo ofMichael Laudrup and Preben Elkjær, thrashedUruguay 6–1. In the second round, Denmark once again faced Spain and once more lost, 5–1, including four goals byEmilio Butragueño. The first Spanish goal was caused by a miss-timed backpass byJesper Olsen to Butragueño, an unfortunate action subsequently coined as "a real Jesper Olsen" ("en rigtig Jesper Olsen"). The phrase would live on for 13 years, and was repeated by the Danish TV commentators in 1999, when an identical backpass was carried out byJesper Grønkjær toFilippo Inzaghi in Grønkjær's debut for the national team.[12]
Denmark qualified forEuro 1988, and nearly made the1988 Olympics.Richard Møller Nielsen guided Denmark to a secured spot for the final tournament – ahead of West Germany, but following the discovery that DanePer Frimann was not eligible for the team's 2–0 win overPoland, Denmark was penalised, and subsequently failed to qualify. At Euro 1988, Denmark's participation ended in early defeat after Denmark lost all the group games to Spain 3–2, West Germany 2–0 and Italy 2–0. They then failed to qualify for the1990 World Cup; Sepp Piontek resigned as head coach of the national team in April 1990, where he was replaced by Richard Møller Nielsen.
The Møller Nielsen fairytale: 1992 European Championship
Denmark began Euro 1992 qualification with a home victory against theFaroe Islands, and followed up with an away draw againstNorthern Ireland and a 2–0 home loss againstYugoslavia. BrothersMichael Laudrup andBrian Laudrup opted to quit the national team in November 1990. When Nielsen subsequently decided to dismiss quality players such asJan Mølby andJan Heintze from the squad due to disciplinary problems, several newspapers began demanding that Nielsen step down as head coach. Despite this, Denmark won the rest of their five matches in the qualification group, including a 2–1 away win against Yugoslavia. This was not enough to qualify, as the team still had to settle for second place in the group, behind Yugoslavia.[citation needed]
Due to international sanctions resulting from theYugoslav wars,UEFA announced on 31 May 1992 – only 10 days before the competition – thatYugoslavia was excluded from the competition and their place given to Denmark, who finished as the second-placed team in its qualifying group and ironically the best runner-up across all groups.[13][14][15][16]
Contrary to popular belief,[9] the team did not enter the tournament completely unprepared, after having rallied home from seaside vacations. The majority of players had been assembled to play a friendly match against theCIS when Denmark officially received Yugoslavia's spot.[17] Relying heavily on goalkeeperPeter Schmeichel and his defense, as well as creative spark Brian Laudrup – having decided to make a comeback for the national team in April 1992 – the Danish team created one of the biggest surprises in the event's history, as they went on to win theEuropean Championship trophy under head coach Nielsen's defensive playing style. Advancing from the group stage ahead of England andFrance, Denmark defeated the Netherlands – the defending Euro 1988 champions – on penalties in the semi-final. Later, in thefinal, Denmark won 2–0 win against reigningWorld Cup champions Germany, ensuring Denmark its first international trophy.
In August 1993, Michael Laudrup decided to settle his ongoing dispute with Richard Møller Nielsen about the team tactics and made a comeback to the national team. However, the following years Denmark saw mixed results, as they first failed to qualify for the1994 World Cup, but then won the1995 Confederations Cup (then known as King Fahd Cup), beatingCopa América championsArgentina 2–0 in the final. As defending champions atEuro 1996, Denmark disappointed with a lackluster performance after an early elimination in the group stage. The team had achieved a respectable win againstTurkey, a draw againstPortugal and only a defeat toCroatia.
Nielsen's replacement was SwedeBo "Bosse" Johansson, who gave the team a more offensive strategy, and the1998 World Cup saw the revival of the Danish team, starring both Laudrup brothers in their last international campaign. After defeatingSaudi Arabia 1–0, drawing withSouth Africa and losing 2–1 to eventual champions France, Denmark defeatedNigeria 4–1 in the round of 16. They exited in the quarterfinals with a 3–2 loss toBrazil.
Without the Laudrup brothers, Denmark qualified for Euro 2000, only to lose all three matches in the group stage.
Morten Olsen was named the new manager for Denmark in 2000 and the team was quickly dubbed the "Olsen Gang", a reference tothe series of Danish movies based around the main characterEgon Olsen and his genius (criminal) plans. The nickname was also used for the Danish team as an alternative to the more commonly used "Danish Dynamite", already in those days when Olsen played as a captain. Denmark's tactics shifted from the preferred 4–4–2 formation practised by Bo Johansson to an even more attacking style with an emphasis on the wingers available at the time, namelyJesper Grønkjær andDennis Rommedahl.[18] Accordingly, Olsen's preferred formation was either a 4–3–3 or a 4–2–3–1.[19][20] Olsen even possessed an outspoken opposition to the 4–4–2 system, as he threatened to leave his position as head coach in the event he was asked to deploy Denmark in that formation.[21] To support the development of players for the new tactical 4–3–3 system, all national youth teams also changed their formation.[22] Another change Olsen brought to the national team was to stress the importance of only using fit players who had been granted regular playing time at their club. However, at times he was forced to compromise from this principle, as the pool of players available in the relatively small nation did not always provide him viable substitute options.
Denmark qualified both for the2002 World Cup andEuro 2004, but despite impressive results in the group stage in both tournaments, especially the 2–0 win against reigning World Cup winners France in 2002, Denmark failed to advance any further. At the 2002 World Cup, Denmark was defeated by England in the round of 16, and at Euro 2004, they were eliminated in the quarter-finals against theCzech Republic.
For the2006 World Cup qualification, Denmark was paired with 2002 semi-finalists Turkey and eventual Euro 2004 championsGreece. Following a poor start to qualification, Denmark was trailing both Turkey andUkraine. After failing to qualify for the2006 World Cup, Morten Olsen considered leaving the job, having received several offers from club teams, but decided to stay and extended his contract until after the2010 World Cup.[23]
Denmark failed to qualify forEuro 2008, but qualified for the 2010 World Cup by winning their qualifying group, earning two wins against Sweden and four points against Portugal. Olsen's contract was extended for two more years, untilEuro 2012.[24] At the 2010 World Cup, Denmark was grouped withJapan,Cameroon and the Netherlands. Denmark lost the first match 2–0 to the Netherlands, but then scored a 2–1 victory against Cameroon. The game against Japan, however ended with a 3–1 defeat.
In qualification for Euro 2012, Denmark was once again grouped with Portugal; Denmark secured first place in the group, qualifying directly for the final tournament. Out of eight qualifying matches, Denmark won six, drew one and lost one, resulting Olsen's contract to be extended until after the2014 World Cup.
At Euro 2012, Denmark were drawn in the proclaimed "group of death",Group B, alongside Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal. After defeating the Netherlands 1–0, they lost 3–2 to Portugal, requiring a win against Germany to advance in the tournament. DespiteMichael Krohn-Dehli's equaliser, Denmark lost 2–1 to Germany, and with Portugal defeating the Netherlands 2–1, Denmark was eliminated from the tournament after finishing third in Group B.
Denmark failed to qualify for the next two tournaments under Olsen. They finished second in their 2014 World Cup qualifying group but failed to achieve a play-off berth as they were the worst UEFA group runners-up after removing results against the last-place teams.[25][26] InEuro 2016 qualifying they finished third in their group, behindAlbania and eventual winners Portugal, but lost to Sweden in the play-offs.
When measuring the performance of the national team by winning share and earned points, Olsen's reign of the Denmark national team from July 2000 until January 2012 had at the time been the second-most successful in the era of full-time professional coaches, which began in July 1979. As of January 2012, Olsen had a winning share of 52.8%, and with three points for a victory and one for a draw, an average of 1.84 points per match.[27] In comparison, Richard Møller Nielsen still had the best record among the professional coaches of the national team, with a 54.8% winning share and an average of 1.89 points per game.[28]
Denmark wereallocated into Pot 3 in advance of thedraw for the2018 FIFA World Cup.[36] They were drawn intoGroup C, alongsideAustralia,Peru, andFrance.[37] Their campaign in Russia began in theMordovia Arena,Saransk, against Peru. AYussuf Poulsen goal in the second half secured three points for the Danes.[38] However, they struggled against Australia in their second tie, as Christian Eriksen's early goal was cancelled out by aVAR-awarded penalty, converted byMile Jedinak, in a game that ended 1–1.[39] Denmark secured qualification in their final group game, playing out the only goalless draw in the entire tournament,[40]in theLuzhniki Stadium against France; a result which saw both teams progress.[41]
Denmark facedCroatia in theround of 16, with the Croats toppingGroup D with three wins.[42]Mathias Jørgensen scored within the first minute of the game to give Denmark the lead, butMario Mandzukic equalised only three minutes later, leaving the teams equally perched at one goal apiece.[43] The match remained at 1–1 after ninety minutes, necessitating thirty minutes ofextra-time, which still failed to separate the teams, asLuka Modrić saw his late penalty saved by goalkeeperKasper Schmeichel.[43] As such, the tie was to be decided with apenalty shoot-out, with Schmeichel and his Croatian counterpart,Danijel Subašić, positioning themselves on the line to face five penalties each.[44] Croatia advanced, as Subašić saved three shots from Eriksen,Lasse Schöne andNicolai Jørgensen respectively.Ivan Rakitić scored the decisive penalty to eliminate the Danes,[44] putting an end to their best World Cup campaign since 2002.[45]
Owing to a dispute with theplayers' union regarding the commercial rights of the players,[49] theDanish Football Union named an entirely uncapped squad, consisting of a mixture offutsal players and players from theDanish 2nd Division and theDenmark Series (the third and fourth tier of Danish football respectively), in lieu of the regular side, to faceSlovakia in a pre-Nations League friendly, and it was feared that the same squad would be used for the competitive fixture againstWales.[50][51] The dispute arose due to theimage rights of the players,[52] withHummel having the exclusive right to the manufacture and marketing of Danish kits.[53] TheDBU wanted to use individual players, without explicit permissions, in their advertising.[54][55] Hareide would similarly not be involved, with the side instead falling under the temporary management ofJohn Jensen, with Hasse Kuhn serving as the assistant manager.[49] The Danish FA was under a four-yearprobationary period withUEFA for having forfeited aWomen's World Cup qualificationgame againstSweden in 2017 due to a similar dispute with thewomen's team,[56] and a further violation could have resulted in Denmark being prohibited from participation in either the2018–19 UEFA Nations League or the2020 European Championship.[57] After a temporary agreement enabled the return of the regular players, the Danes won their first Nations League fixture 2–0.[58]
Hareide managed Denmark duringUEFA Euro 2020 qualifying and won four matches, drawing four more. This meant Denmark qualified for the tournament, but due to theCOVID-19 pandemic the tournament was postponed to 2021, and Hareide's contract expired on 30 June 2020. He was replaced byKasper Hjulmand.
AtUEFA Euro 2020, Denmark were beaten 1–0 byFinland; in a match marked byChristian Eriksen's heart attack in the 42nd minute[59] which led to the match being suspended for over two hours. In the following match, Denmark lost their second match toBelgium 2–1, despite initially taking the lead. They avoided elimination in the final round of matches with an impressive 4–1 victory againstRussia. They therefore became the first team to qualify for the knockout phase of a European Championship despite two opening defeats. FacingWales in the round of 16, Denmark won by a large margin (4–0) which earned them a quarter-final tie with theCzech Republic. Denmark won the tie 2–1 to progress to the next round.[60] Their European Championship run ended with an extra time defeat toEngland in the semi-finals.[61]Mikkel Damsgaard opened the scoring with a sublime free-kick on the half-hour mark before England equalised and subsequently won in extra time. Despite the elimination, Denmark's performance was widely praised by the sporting press, in particular for its resilience in overcoming the difficult situation caused by Eriksen's heart condition in the first group match, and for its high-quality teamwork and attacking play.[60]
At the 2022 World Cup, Denmark were drawn again with France,Tunisia andAustralia ingroup D.[67] They began their campaign with a goalless draw with Tunisia.[68] In the second game, Denmark lost 2–1 to France after a brace fromKylian Mbappé.[69] With a win essential, Denmark were unable to defeat Australia and were therefore eliminated; finishing bottom of their group.[70]
TheUEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers were also a tough affair for Denmark, seeded first in the draw but struggling in most of their matches, including a humiliating 3–2 defeat inKazakhstan after leading 2–0. Nevertheless, the Danish team managed to finish top of their group with 7 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats, and qualified for their 10th continental finals.[71] AtUEFA Euro 2024, Denmark qualified as runners-up in their group but were eliminated byGermany in the round of 16.[72] Following the tournament, Hjulmand resigned on 19 July 2024, and his assistantMorten Wieghorst was named as the new manager on a short-term contract until the end of 2024.[73]
Apart from the national team, Denmark is famous for its traveling fans, known asroligans. The movement emerged during the 1980s as the declared opposition tohooliganism. The goal of the roligan movement is calm, yet cheerful, support during the matches, as "rolig" means "calm" in theDanish language. Theroligans have since developed an image of easy-going nature and rabid support, and are often considered amongst the world's best national team fans, along with theTartan Army of Scotland. They were collectively given the FIFA FairPlay Award at the 1984 European Championships.[74] The term "roligan" was invented by the editors of the Danish newspaperB.T. in 1985, and later included in the Danish dictionary.[75] Just before the 1986 World Cup, the roligan movement was organized in order to support the national team at the tournament.
The reputation of the Danish supporters was sullied by an attack from a fan which occurred in June 2007 in theEuro 2008 qualifying match against Sweden, when an enraged Danish supporter invaded the pitch and tried to attack the referee, following his decision to hand out a red card for Christian Poulsen and a penalty kick to Sweden in the last minute of the match. The attacking fan was stopped by some of the Danish football players on the field before he reached the referee, but due to the episode, the match was immediately cancelled by the referee, with UEFA subsequently deciding to award a 3–0 default defeat to Denmark as punishment.[citation needed]
Denmark's main rival isSweden. The countries have played against each other 107 times, of which Denmark have won 40, drawn 20 and lost 47. The first match between the teams was an 8–0 Denmark win in May 1913. Denmark won their first five matches against Sweden before their first defeat in October 1916, 4–0.
The first competitive match between the countries was a 1–0 loss for Denmark in the group stage ofUEFA Euro 1992. Both teams advanced from the group stage and Denmark went on to win the tournament. InUEFA Euro 2004 the teams drew 2–2 in the last group match, ensuring that both teams advanced at the expense ofItaly. In Denmark's home match against Sweden in thequalification forUEFA Euro 2008, the visitorswere awarded a 3–0 win after a Danish fan invaded the pitch and attacked the referee. The reverse fixture ended in a goalless draw and Denmark failed to qualify for the final tournament.
In thequalification for the2010 FIFA World Cup, Denmark won both matches against Sweden 1–0 and qualified for the World Cup. In the play-off round of thequalification forUEFA Euro 2016, Denmark lost to Sweden 4–3 on aggregate and failed to qualify for the finals. The most recent match between the countries was a 2–1 win for Denmark in June 2024.[76]
The team kit is produced by Danish companyHummel. It is all-red with white details to reflect the colours of theDanish national flag. Prior to the period ofAdidas sponsorship, the kit provider was also Hummel from 1979 to 2004.[77]
Parken Stadium, with a capacity of 38,065 spectators, located in Copenhagen, and used as official home stadium by the Denmark football team
The first home match for the Denmark national team was a 2–1 friendly win over England on 25 May 1910, taking place with 12,000 spectators at the stadium "KBs baner" (located in the area "Granen", where theForum Copenhagen later was built).[78] As the facilities were considered too small, a new stadium inCopenhagen was built with the nameIdrætsparken. Since its opening on 25 May 1911, it has hosted all the home matches of the football clubKB and most of the home matches of the national team. During the first 82 years of the national team, from October 1908 until November 1990, Denmark played a total number of 254 A-level home matches, of which 232 were played in Idrætsparken. Among all the played home matches in Idrætsparken, Denmark achieved 125 victories (54%), 41 draws (18%) and 66 defeats (28%). The stadium reached a record of 51,600 spectators for the 1–2 game against Sweden in June 1957.[79]
In regards of the first era from 1908 to 1990, only 22 home matches were played at other stadiums than Idrætsparken, of which 11 took place atAarhus Idrætspark (then known as Atletion) inAarhus, followed byAalborg Stadion inAalborg with six games, and the remaining five matches hosted by four other stadiums. Whenever another stadium than Idrætsparken was used for a home match, it was only for some of the less important friendly games or Olympic qualifiers, while only Idrætsparken was used to host the matches related to bigger tournaments, like theNordic championship, the European Championship and World Cup. When a major rebuild of Idrætsparken began in December 1990, the subsequent two official Euro 1992 qualification matches were moved toOdense Stadium inOdense.
On 9 September 1992, the rebuilt Idrætsparken, now calledParken and later renamedTelia Parken for sponsorship reasons, became the biggest venue in Denmark with a capacity of 42,358 spectators, and was opened with a friendly 1–2 defeat against Germany. This first match in Parken was viewed by 40,500 spectators,[80] while the current stadium record of 42,099 spectators was set on 8 October 2005 for a World Cup qualifying match against Greece.[81]
The capacity of the stadium was later reduced to 38,009 seats after the upper part of the D-side was converted from 4,000 extra seats into office and VIP areas in June 2009.[82][83] Despite this decrease in capacity, the stadium is today still thebiggest venue in Denmark by far; the next largest venue,Brøndby Stadium, only has a capacity of 26,000 seats. From September 1992 to May 2006, Parken was the sole stadium of all the men's senior national team matches. However, meagre spectator support at some of the friendly matches at Parken, which from 2000 to 2005 attracted an acceptable average of 23,862 per match – but down to 9,598 for the friendly 3–1 win overIsrael in April 2002[84] – prompted the DBU to start hosting many of the friendly matches to other stadiums around Denmark. These other stadiums had less spectator capacity than Parken, but just about enough to cover the Danes' somewhat lesser interest for friendly matches.
On 27 May 2006, Parken's 13-year monopoly on national team matches was broken for the first time when Denmark played a friendly match at theAarhus Idrætspark against upcoming 2006 World Cup participantsParaguay. Tickets to this match were sold out quickly, with almost 19,000 of the 20,227 tickets sold within the first hour of sale,[85] and was support-wise a big success with a total audience of 20,047 spectators.[86] When the two next friendly matches were played at other new venues, such as a match on 16 August at Fionia Park in Odense againstPoland, and on 1 September at Brøndby Stadium against Portugal, the number of spectators dropped. The Poland match attracted only 11,088 spectators,[87] while the Portugal match had only 13,186 fans.[88] In particular, the Portugal match was deemed as a support-wise failure because it featured a higher-ranked opponent, which spectators normally would have a high interest to watch. The main reasons why Brøndby Stadium failed to attract a high number of spectators were generally thought to be a combination of the poor rainy weather and the fact the stadium is located on the outskirts of Copenhagen, and as such does not attract a new demographic audience compared to Parken, due to the travel distances being more or less the same for the majority of the population.
Currently, while most of the friendly matches continue to be played at some of the smaller stadiums in Denmark, it has been decided to continue playing all of the qualifying matches for the European Championships and World Cup only at Parken Stadium.[89] Those friendly matches, which are believed to create a high interest from spectators, will also continue to be played at Parken. For example, the friendly against Germany in August 2010 was played at Parken Stadium due to the high expectation of spectators desiring to watch the match. However, after Denmark's performance at the 2010 World Cup, the friendly only drew 19,071 spectators.[90] From September 1992 to January 2012, Denmark played a total of 77 A-level matches at Parken Stadium, of which 49 were won, 16 were drawn and 12 lost.[91]
The responsibility and job description for the manager of the Denmark national football team has changed throughout the history. From 1908 to 1918, the DBU preferred to assign a manager with the overall responsibility. This was followed by a long era from 1919 to 1956 where either no manager or only acaretaker manager was assigned. When the DBU assignedArne Sørensen (November 1956 – December 1961) andPoul Petersen (January 1962 –December 1966) as managers for a rolling period of several years, they were given the responsibility to coach the physical training and decide the team tactics before and during each match, but had no influence upon the selection of players for the national squad, which was a job for the specially-appointed selection committee, theUdtagelsesKomitéen.[93]
From 1967 to 1969, the management of the team more or less became a sole responsibility for theUdtagelsesKomitéen, following a new approach. In this new approach, the job to select players continued to be the responsibility for theUdtagelsesKomitéen, but the chairman of the committee was now also appointed to be the "tactical manager" of the national team, as the DBU realized the need of having a special tactical manager assigned to get influence upon both the selection of players and the related tactics before and during the game. However, the appointed tactical manager did not have the responsibility to train the squad, as a special physical coach was instead selected for that job. In 1970, the approach with two managers assigned was again abandoned when the DBU realized the need to assign only one manager with the sole responsibility for the squad.[93]
From 1970 to 1979, the job to select players was not yet a sole responsibility of the manager alone, but only a shared responsibility, as this continued to be a matter for theUdtagelsesKomitéen to decide. When a selection of players had to be made, it was decided by a vote in the committee, with the appointed manager being granted an influence of three votes and the four members of the committee being granted one vote each. This special selection procedure continued until July 1979, where it was decided to award the sole responsibility of all manager-related areas to the manager himself, with the assignment ofSepp Piontek as the first full-time professional manager of the national team.[93]
This is a complete overview of every national team manager since the first official game in October 1908. From 1911 to 1961, a total of 169 games were played without a designated manager.
The players are freely chosen by the national team manager. They are normally assembled from their respective club teams at the Hotel Marienlyst inElsinore for a week-long training camp preluding the upcoming match. Friendly matches are typically played on a Wednesday evening. World Cup qualifiers are played on both Saturday and Wednesday evenings, while Euro qualifiers now take place on both a Friday and Tuesday evening when playing two matches in a row, or on a Friday/Saturday/Tuesday at rounds with only one match scheduled.[94][95]
Denmark's Hall of Fame was established in October 2008, as a special award to celebrate the best footballers, teams and coaches; throughout the history of the national team. A jury with six people (representing the newspapers, authors of football books, active players of the national team,TV2, the DBU, and a Hall of Fame member), each year has the job to award one or two new members for the Hall of Fame. The award is handed out at the official Danish Football Awards, which is a yearly television broadcast event – organized by the DBU in November throughout 2008 to 2013 and subsequently moved to a later date in February. Besides receiving the award, all Hall of Fame members are also invited to leave a footprint in bronze, to decorate the entrance hall at "Fodboldens hus" -the DBU headquarters inBrøndby.[97] When the DBU celebrated its 125-year anniversary in May 2014, it decided to make an extraordinary award of nine additional Hall of Fame Members, all playing during the first half of the DBU national team's existence, from 1908 to 1964.[98] Because of financial restraints, the DBU cancelled the planned televised broadcast of the Football Award in February 2015, and for the same reason opted not to award any new Hall of Fame members in this specific year. The DBU expected to return awarding new Hall of Fame members again, when the next broadcast Football Award event was organized in February 2016.[99]
Each national team player receives a set amount of money per match, including bonuses for a win and qualification for European Championship and World Cup tournaments. Throughout the years, the prize money has gone from around €1,340 for a match win in 1987 and around €26,800 for the Euro 1988 participation alone, to around €67,000 for the 1998 World Cup, and up to €107,000 for the 2002 World Cup, per player.[128]
Currently, the payments for participation in games outside the big tournaments are regulated by a collective agreement – to be renegotiated after a certain number of years – while all payments for participation of players in a final tournament squad are regulated by the "1998 agreement" between the DBU andSpillerforeningen. The "1998 agreement" stipulates that whenever the national team qualifies for a World Cup or European Championship tournament, the selected players for the final tournament shall receive 50% of the DBU's revenues from the event, and 65% of the DBU's revenues from the sale of merchandise and license agreements. Additionally, the sponsors of the national team also pay a relatively high "qualification bonus" each time the team qualifies for a final tournament. This bonus is shared between the group of players being selected for the final 18-man squad, to one or several of the qualification matches played, with the exact distribution normally decided according to the number of times the player was selected.[129]
Each of the 23 selected players for the 2002 World Cup received DKK 498,000 (equal to €66,800) from the event revenues,[129] plus DKK 122,900 (equal to €16,500) from the sale of merchandise and license agreements, plus an unknown qualification bonus from the sponsors, plus the standard payment from the DBU each time they were selected for the final 18-man squad to a qualification match.[130] In comparison, each of the 23 selected players for the 2010 World Cup received DKK 635,000 (equal to €85,100) from the event revenues, plus DKK 98,900 (equal to €13,200) from the sale of merchandise and license agreements, plus a qualification bonus from the sponsors at DKK 2,800,000 (equal to €375,000) to be shared between the players – corresponding to an amount of €2,080 per time the player was selected for the final 18-man squad to a qualification match. In addition to the qualification bonus, the players also received this standard payment from the DBU each time they were selected for the 18-man squad to a qualification match:[130]
Starting fee: home games = DKK 1,2 per spectator, away games = DKK 8,290
Bonus for a draw: home games = DKK 0, away games = DKK 9,475
Bonus for a win: home games = DKK 17,765, away games = DKK 29,600
Based on Denmark's results and number of spectators at home matches,[27] the standard qualification match payment to a player selected for all of Denmark's qualification matches equals a total amount of DKK 235,898 (or €31,600) for the six qualification matches in the 2008–09 season, and a total amount of DKK 170,788 (or €22,900) for the four qualification matches in the 2009–10 season. Finally, the players could also add a seasonal payment named "regular bonus" from the sponsors, with a total of DKK 4,350,000 (equal to €583,100) to be shared each season by the squad of 18 players selected for a match, meaning a player who was selected for all national team matches from 1 August to 31 July would receive an additional DKK 241,700 (equal to €32,400) payment in both the 2008–09 and 2009–10 seasons.[130]
The last amount of a players income generated by the national team is the standard payment received for each friendly match:[131]
Starting fee: home games = DKK 1,0 per spectator, away games = DKK 5,000
Bonus for a draw: home games = DKK 0, away games = DKK 0
Bonus for a win: home games = DKK 10,000, away games = DKK 10,000
Based on Denmark's results and number of spectators at home matches,[27] the standard payment to a player selected for all Denmark's friendly matches equals a total amount of DKK 41,426 (or €5,500) for the three friendly matches in the 2008–09 season, and a total amount of DKK 88,773 (or €11,900) for the seven friendly matches in the 2009–10 season.[citation needed]
When all these payments are added together for a player, under the assumption a player was selected for all matches in each season as well as the final 2010 World Cup squad, he would have received a total payment from the DBU of €69,500 in the 2008–09 season and a total payment from the DBU of €186,300 in the 2009–10 season.[citation needed]
^abcdBirger B. Peitersen (2003)."Danish Football"(PDF). Royal Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with Danmark's Nationalleksikon. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 12 June 2011.
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