The Lithuania national football team represents Lithuania in men's international football, and is controlled by the Lithuanian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Lithuania. They played their first match in 1923. In 1940, Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union; the country regained its independence in 1990 and played their first match thereafter against Georgia on 27 May of that year.
The Lithuanian Football Federation is the governing body of football in Lithuania. The Federation is responsible for football development in the country and for the national teams, including the Lithuania national football team. It is based in Vilnius. LFF became a member of FIFA in 1923, but following Lithuania's annexation by the Soviet Union it was disbanded. It became a member again in 1992 after Lithuania regained its independence. The top division is A Lyga.
The Latvia national football team represents Latvia in men's international football, and is controlled by the Latvian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Latvia. They have never qualified for the FIFA World Cup, but did qualify for the European Championship in 2004 under head coach Aleksandrs Starkovs.
Futbolo klubas Žalgiris, commonly known as FK Žalgiris, Žalgiris Vilnius or simply Žalgiris, is a Lithuanian professional football club based in Vilnius. The club competes in the A Lyga, the top flight of Lithuanian football. The club was founded as Dinamo in 1947. The club's name commemorates the victorious Battle of Žalgiris. Žalgiris has featured many Lithuanian football legends during its history including Arminas Narbekovas, Valdas Ivanauskas, Edgaras Jankauskas and Deividas Šemberas. They have won the Lithuanian Championship 10 times, the Lithuanian Football Cup 14 times, and the Lithuanian Supercup 7 times.
The Estonia men's national football team represents Estonia in international football matches and is controlled by the Estonian Football Association, the governing body for football in Estonia. Estonia's home ground is Lilleküla Stadium in the capital city Tallinn.
The Baltic Cup is an international football competition contested by the national teams of the Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Sometimes guests from the Northern Europe subregion are also invited: Finland has participated in the event twice, Iceland once, and Faroe Islands are scheduled to make a debut appearance in 2024. Though originally held annually the competition has been biennial since 2008. The 2020 tournament was postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic, and took place in 2021.
The 2004–05 UEFA Champions League was the 50th season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, and the 13th since it was rebranded as the UEFA Champions League in 1992. The competition was won by Liverpool, who beat Milan on penalties in the final, having come back from 3–0 down at half-time. Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard was named as UEFA's Footballer of the Year for his key role in the final and throughout the Champions League season. The final, played at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, is often regarded as one of the best in the history of the tournament.
The 1991 season was the 71st season of competitive football (soccer) in Estonia, and the last one in the Baltic country as a part of the Soviet Union. The championship began in the spring of 1991. In the First Division or Premier League ("Meistriliiga") thirteen teams played, in the Second Division ("Esiliiga") twelve teams. The Third Division played in regional groups followed by a promotion play-off on completion of the group stage.
The 1992 season was the 72nd season of competitive football (soccer) in Estonia, and the first one in the Baltic country as an independent nation. The championship was played in the spring of 1992.
The 1993 season was the second complete year of competitive football (soccer) in Estonia since gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991-08-20. The Men's National Team booked its first victory since independence by defeating Lithuania at the Baltic Cup, on 1993-07-04.
The 1996 season was the fifth full year of competitive football (soccer) in Estonia since gaining independence from the Soviet Union on 20 August 1991.
The 1997 season was the sixth full year of competitive football (soccer) in Estonia since gaining independence from the Soviet Union on 20 August 1991.
The 1993 season was the third year of competitive football (soccer) in Lithuania as an independent nation since regaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. In the Premier League, named A Lyga, fourteen teams competed, with FK Ekranas winning the title.
The 1992 season was the 72nd season of competitive football (soccer) in Estonia, and the first one in the Baltic country as an independent nation. The Estonia national football team under the guidance of manager Uno Piir played its first FIFA-recognized match after the restoration of independence against Slovenia on June 3, 1992: a 1-1 draw in the capital Tallinn. The team played a total number of five official matches in the year 1992, including two qualifiers for the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States.
The 1993 season was the second full year of competitive football in the Baltic country as an independent nation. After one loss and one draw in 1992 the Estonia national football team, led by manager Uno Piir, carried on in the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification. Estonia played a total number of fourteen official matches in 1993. The only win came on July 4 against Lithuania in the Baltic Cup 1993, which was played in the Pärnu Kalevi Stadium.
The 1994 season was the third full year of competitive football in the Baltic country as an independent nation. After having failed to qualify for the 1994 FIFA World Cup the Estonia national football team for the first time in history competed at the qualifying tournament for the European Championship. Manager Uno Piir was replaced by Roman Ubakivi after the 4-0 loss against the United States on 7 May 1994. In twelve games Estonia only managed to get one draw.
The 1995 season was the fourth full year of competitive football in Estonia as an independent nation. After having changed managers in 1994 — Roman Ubakivi replaced Uno Piir — the Estonia national football team continued in the qualifying tournament for the European Championship. Estonia performed worse in 1995 with twelve defeats in twelve games including four major losses. At the Baltic Cup the Estonian U-23 team competed, led by coach Aavo Sarap.
The 1997 season was the sixth full year of competitive football in the Baltic country as an independent nation. The Estonia national football team continued in the qualifying tournament for the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France. The team ended up in fifth place in the final ranking of group 4, with one win, one draw and eight losses.
1990 Baltic League was an international football competition organized in 1990 between three Baltic states with the ongoing dissolution of the Soviet Union. The league consisting of 18 clubs from the Lithuania SSR, Estonian SSR, the Latvian SSR and a special invitee FC Progress Cherniakhovsk from Kaliningrad Oblast. For Lithuanian teams the league also served as a preliminary tournament for the first post-Soviet Lithuanian football championship.
The Lithuanian A Lyga 1990 was the first season of top-tier football in Lithuania since it broke off from the Soviet Union.
