Finland men's national floorball team

Last updated

Finland Men's National Floorball Team
Finland national floorball team logo.svg
Founded1985
Manager Flag of Finland.svg Jari Oksanen
Coach Flag of Finland.svg Petri Kettunen
First game1–13, vs. Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden
(09.28.1985)
Largest win38–0, vs. Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine
(01.31.2014)
Largest defeat1–13, vs. Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden
(09.28.1985)
All-time top scorer Tero Tiitu (110 goals)
Championships Gold medal world centered-2.svg 5: World Championships (2008, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2024)
Gold medal europe.svg 1: European Championships
(1995)
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks long.svg
Home colors
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks long.svg
Away colors

Finland Men's National Floorball Team is the national floorball team of Finland. The national team was founded in 1985 and they played their first official game against Sweden in 1985. Finland has won five World Championships (2008, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2024) and one European Championships (1995). Finland has appeared in every World and European Championships tournament organised by the IFF and is the only team with Sweden to have won such a tournament.

Contents

History

Early years

The Finland national floorball team was founded in 1985 and they played their first game against Sweden in Sollentuna on 28 September 1985. Finland lost 1–13 and it is still the worst defeat the national team has suffered so far. Pekka Kainulainen scored the first goal of the match and the first official national team goal leading Finland to early 1–0 lead. [1]

1991–2000

The 1994 and 1995 European Championships
The national team participated to the 1994 and 1995 European Championships, which were the first organised international floorball tournaments between national teams. In 1994 tournament Finland lost to Sweden in the final (4–1) on home ground in Helsinki after upsetting the Swedes earlier in the group stage. The 1995 European Championships tournament was held in Switzerland and the national team succeeded in making their way in to the final, where they were to meet Sweden again. This time Finland fared better and after a stalemate in regular time and overtime, Finland won the championships in a penalty shootout. Successful penalty shots by Jari Pekkola and Jari-Pekka Lehtonen, and goaltending by Jan Gråsten guaranteed the victory. [1] [2]

1996 World Championships
The first ever World Championship tournament was held in Stockholm, Sweden. Finland placed second after being clearly outplayed by Sweden and losing 5–0 in the final. The final match was played in Stockholm Globe Arena in front of 15,106 spectators. [1] [3]

1998 World Championships
The tournament in Prague, Czech Republic was a disappointment for team Finland. Finland lost to Switzerland (4–5) in the semi-finals in a penalty shootout and the national team placed third after beating Denmark 4–1 in the bronze medal game. Mika Kohonen was Finland's leading forward with 6 goals and 2 assists in 5 games. [1] [3]

2000 World Championships
Finland was expected to challenge Sweden for real this time around and two teams met yet again in the final match. The final match was played in Jordal Amfi in Oslo, Norway and it was the closest World Championships final yet, with Sweden taking the title with a 5–3 victory. [1] [3]

2001–2010

Finland playing against Sweden. Floorball game.jpg
Finland playing against Sweden.

2002 World Championships
The 2002 World Championships tournament was hosted in Helsinki, Finland and the national team was eager to bring home the title in front of their home crowd. Finland battled its way to the final to meet Sweden. The final match was played in Hartwall Arena with 13,665 spectators, who witnessed Sweden grabbing yet another World Championships title in thriller of a match with 3 goals score in the last minute. The final score was 6–4 to Sweden. [1] [3]

2004 World Championships
This time Finland and Sweden met in the semi-finals. Sweden gained the upper hand, were victorious and continued on to the final. Finland was to settle for the bronze medal game where they met Switzerland, an upcoming floorball nation, who had upset Finland earlier in the group stage with a 4–3 victory. The game was again close fought with team Finland emerging on top in a high scoring 8–7 win decided in a penalty shootout. Henri Toivoniemi (GK), Jari Lehtonen (D) and Mika Kohonen (F) were selected to the tournament's All-Stars line-up. [1] [3]

2006 World Championships
The tournament was played in Stockholm, Sweden. Finland and Sweden met in the final in Stockholm Globe Arena. The match ended 7–6 to Sweden with Magnus Svensson scoring the deciding sudden death goal in overtime. [1] [3]

2008 World Championships
Finland finally won its first World Championships title after beating Sweden 7–6 in overtime, in a final match played in Prague, Czech Republic. The game-deciding goal was scored by Tero Tiitu. After losing to Sweden four times in earlier World Championships finals, Finland finally laid its hands on the coveted trophy as the team captain Mikael Järvi lifted the prize for the very first time in Finnish floorball history. [1] [3]

2010 World Championships
For the first time Finland came into the tournament as reigning world champions. The home games were held in Helsinki, Finland. As expected Finland met its nemesis Sweden in the final. Finland were the dominant team and took the title for the second time in front of a roaring home crowd. The final game ended 6–2 to Finland. Mika Kohonen scored a hat-trick in the game. [1] [3]

2011 – present

The Finnish men celebrating having become the 2018 world champions Finland is the World Champion in Floorball.jpg
The Finnish men celebrating having become the 2018 world champions

2012 World Championships
The tournament was held in Switzerland and the two floorball juggernauts clashed again in the final game. Sweden totally devastated the Finnish side with quickly gaining a 9–0 lead. The game soon evened out, but with such an advantage given early on, Sweden coasted to victory with the final score being 11–5. [1] [3]

2014 World Championships
The 2014 World Championships were played in Gothenburg, Sweden in December 2014. Finland ended with silver. [3]

2016 World Championships
World Championship tournament was held first time in Riga, Latvia. Finland and Sweden met in the final in Arena Riga. The match ended 4–3 to Finland and it took the title for the third time in penalty shootout.

2018 World Championships
The 2018 World Championships were played for the third time in Prague, Czech Republic. Finland met his neighbor Sweden in the finals. Finland won and took the title for the fourth time in the same place where they won the first title in 10 years ago.

2024 World Championships
Finland won their fifth World Championship, defeating hosts Sweden 5–4 in overtime having comeback from 4–0 behind. [4]

Players and staff

Roster for 2014 World championships

Goalkeepers
NumberPlayer nameClub
31 Tomi Ikonen Flag of Finland.svg Oilers, Espoo
48 Eero Kosonen Flag of Finland.svg Happee, Jyväskylä
Defensemen
NumberPlayer nameClub
8 Juha Kivilehto Flag of Finland.svg SPV, Seinäjoki
13 Risto Töllikkö Flag of Finland.svg NST, Lappeenranta
17 Janne Lamminen Flag of Finland.svg SC Classic, Tampere
20 Nico Salo Flag of Finland.svg SC Classic, Tampere
21 Tatu Väänänen Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg SV Wiler-Ersigen, Ersigen
30 Lauri Stenfors Flag of Finland.svg SSV, Helsinki
33 Mikael Lax Flag of Finland.svg SSV, Helsinki
Forwards
NumberPlayer nameClub
5 Jami Manninen Flag of Finland.svg Happee, Jyväskylä
9 Eemeli Salin Flag of Finland.svg Koovee, Tampere
11 Mika Moilanen Flag of Sweden.svg FC Helsingborg, Helsingborg
15 Miko Kailiala Flag of Finland.svg SSV, Helsinki
16 Kari Koskelainen Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Chur Unihockey, Chur
18 Lauri Kapanen Flag of Finland.svg Tapanilan Erä, Helsinki
22 Jani Kukkola Flag of Sweden.svg FC Helsingborg, Helsingborg
23 Oscar Hänninen Flag of Finland.svg Oilers, Espoo
27 Rickie Hyvärinen Flag of Sweden.svg Storvreta IBK, Storvreta
29 Mika Kohonen Flag of Sweden.svg Storvreta IBK, Storvreta
50 Tero Tiitu Flag of Sweden.svg IBK Falun, Falun

Team staff for 2014 World Championships

Updated 2 Dec 2014. [5] [6]

Past rosters

2010 World Champions [7]

2008 World Champions [8]

World championships

YearHosting CountryRank
1996 Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden 2nd place
1998 Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic 3rd place
2000 Flag of Norway.svg Norway 2nd place
2002 Flag of Finland.svg Finland 2nd place
2004 Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland 3rd place
2006 Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden 2nd place
2008 Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic 1st place
2010 Flag of Finland.svg Finland 1st place
2012 Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland 2nd place
2014 Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden 2nd place
2016 Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia 1st place
2018 Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic 1st place
2020 Flag of Finland.svg Finland 2nd place
2022 Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland 3rd place
2024 Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden 1st place
2026 Flag of Finland.svg Finland

Honours

World Games

World championships

European championships

Records

All-time World Championships record

TournamentGPWDLGFGA+/-
Sweden 1996 76016610+56
Czech Republic 1998 5401269+17
Norway 2000 53112611+15
Finland 2002 64023513+22
Switzerland 2004 64026019+41
Sweden 2006 65016115+46
Czech Republic 2008 66004515+30
Finland 2010 66006010+50
Switzerland 2012 65016820+48
Sweden 2014 64023215+17
Latvia 2016 66004314+29
Totals6553111522151+371

Updated 11 Dec 2016. [9]

Individual records

Updated 2 Dec 2014. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Floorball</span> Indoor team sport

Floorball is a type of floor hockey with five players and a goalkeeper in each team. It is played indoors with 96–115.5 cm-long (37.8–45.5 in) sticks and a 70–72 mm-diameter (2.76–2.83 in) hollow plastic ball with holes. Matches are played in three twenty-minute periods. The sport of bandy also played a role in the game's development.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tappara</span> Professional ice hockey club based in Tampere, Finland

Tappara is a Finnish professional ice hockey team playing in the SM-liiga. They play at Nokia Arena in Tampere, Finland. The team has won 20 Finnish league championships, which makes them the most successful club in Finland. The team continued the traditions of the Tammerfors Bollklub.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Finland men's national ice hockey team</span>

The Finnish men's national ice hockey team, nicknamed Leijonat / Lejonen, is governed by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association. Finland is one of the most successful national ice hockey teams in the world and a member of the so-called "Big Six", the unofficial group of the six strongest men's ice hockey nations, along with Canada, the United States, Czechia, Russia, and Sweden.

The 2006 Men's Floorball Championships were the sixth Men's World Floorball Championship. It was held in May 2006 in Sweden, with the host country defeating Finland in sudden victory in the gold medal game. Sweden thus continued its tradition of winning these championships, but for the first time in their history the team failed to win all games. Switzerland became the first team to accomplish a draw versus Sweden in a world championship game, and later won the bronze medal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niklas Jihde</span> Swedish former floorball player (born 1976)

Niklas Jihde is a Swedish former floorball player. Jihde has won the Floorball World Championship with Sweden five times, in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006. He scored 80 goals with the Swedish national floorball team.

The 2004 Men's Floorball Championships were the fifth Men's World Floorball Championship. It was held in May 2004 in Switzerland, and won by Sweden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian rules football in Finland</span>

Australian rules football in Finland is controlled by the Finland AFL, which formed in 2006 after the creation of Finland's first Australian football club around a year earlier. Domestic matches began in 2007 with two teams, the Helsinki Heatseekers and Salo Juggernauts. A third team, the Espoo Roos was created in 2008 but only lasted one season due to insufficient members. The remaining players joined the Helsinki team, but there are plans to revive Espoo in the future. A third standalone club, the Turku Dockers, was formed in late 2008 by Australian Ex-pats Craig Primmer and Grant Siermans. During the 2010 season, Helsinki players Mika Kupila and Kaj Karlsson who study in Vaasa decided to create a team in the city, the Vaasa Wombats, and they are hoping to join the league in 2011.

Sport is considered a national pastime in Finland and many Finns visit different sporting events regularly. Pesäpallo is the national sport of Finland, although the most popular forms of sport in terms of television viewers and media coverage are ice hockey and Formula One. In spectator attendance, harness racing comes right after ice hockey in popularity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swedish Super League (men's floorball)</span> Highest of the Swedish floorball leagues

Swedish Super League is the highest league in the league system of Swedish floorball and comprises the top 14 Swedish floorball teams. The first season began in 1995–96. The season ends with a play-off and a final.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 Men's World Floorball Championships</span>

The 2002 Men's World Floorball Championships were the fourth men's Floorball World Championships. It was held from 18–25 May 2002 in Finland. Sweden won the tournament for a fourth time after defeating Finland in the final.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mika Kohonen</span> Finnish floorball player

Mika Kohonen is a retired Finnish floorball player and nowadays a floorball coach. He currently coaches Storvreta IBK, a club in the Swedish Super League. He has also played for Balrog IK in SSL and Happee in Salibandyliiga. He also used be a part of Finland's national floorball team for many years both as a player and assistant coach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Men's World Floorball Championships</span>

The 2008 Men's World Floorball Championships were the seventh men's Floorball World Championships. The tournament was held from 6 to 14 December 2008. The tournament took place in the cities of Prague and Ostrava. All group stage matches were played in Ostrava's ČEZ Aréna, and all playoff matches were played in Prague's O2 Arena, with the exception of the 9th place match, which was played in Prague's Sparta Arena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F-liiga</span>

The F-liiga is the top men's floorball league in Finland. The league was founded as Salibandyn SM-sarja in 1986 by the Finnish Floorball Federation (SSBL). It was renamed to Salibandyliiga for the 1994–95 season. The Salibandyliiga was operated by the company SSBL Salibandy Oy, a subsidiary of the Finnish Floorball Federation. The current name F-liiga is used since season 2020–21.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MTV Max</span> Television channel

MTV Max is a Finnish pay television channel owned and operated by MTV Oy. The channel started broadcasting in November 2006 and was originally dedicated to F1 coverage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Esport Oilers</span> Finish floor hockey team

Esport Oilers is a floorball club based in Espoo, Finland, whose men's team competes in F-liiga, the top flight of Finnish floorball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tero Tiitu</span> Finnish floorball player (born 1982)

Tero Tiitu is a Finnish floorball player currently playing for EräViikingit of the F-liiga.

The 2011 IIHF World Championship final was played at the Orange Arena in Bratislava, Slovakia on 15 May between Sweden and Finland. Finland won the match 6–1 and became world champions for the first time since the 1995 tournament, and for the second time in history. This match was Finland's first final since 2007 and Sweden's first final since 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Bandy World Championship</span> International ice hockey competition

The 2014 Bandy World Championship was held between 26 January and 2 February 2014, in Irkutsk and Shelekhov, Russia. 17 nations participated in the tournament, playing in two divisions partitioned into two subdivisions. A team representing Somalia took part, the first squad from Africa to play in the Bandy World Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kiekko-Espoo</span> Ice hockey club in Espoo, Finland

Kiekko-Espoo is a Finnish professional ice hockey club founded in 2018 as a continuation of the Kiekko-Espoo team originally founded in 1984. Kiekko-Espoo men's team plays in the Liiga, where they were promoted for the 2024–25 season, and the women's team plays in the Auroraliiga, where they hold the most championships of any club.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Haastajasta kaksinkertaiseksi maailmanmestariksi". floorball.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Floorball Federation. 24 June 2014. Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  2. "European Championships". floorball.sport. International Floorball Federation. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Men's World Championships". floorball.org. International Floorball Federation. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  4. "Finland are floorball world champions for the fifth time". Blue News. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
  5. "Miehet – Joukkue". floorball.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Floorball Federation. 14 November 2014. Archived from the original on 24 April 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  6. Oikarinen, Johannes (13 November 2014). "Salibandyn MM: Kokenut kolmikko vielä kerran yhdessä". yle.fi (in Finnish). YLE. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  7. "Maailmanmestarit 2010". floorball.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Floorball Federation. Archived from the original on 22 June 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  8. "Maailmanmestarit 2008" (in Finnish). Finnish Floorball Federation. Archived from the original on 22 June 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  9. "Pelatut ottelut". floorball.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Floorball Federation. 9 November 2014. Archived from the original on 22 June 2017. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  10. "Ennätykset". floorball.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Floorball Federation. Archived from the original on 22 June 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2014.