Finland women's national football team

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

Finland

Nickname(s)	Helmarit (the Boreal Owls) [1]
Association	Football Association of Finland (Suomen Palloliitto)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Marko Saloranta
Captain	Tinja-Riikka Korpela
Most caps	Anna Westerlund (145)
Top scorer	Linda Sällström (59)
FIFA code	FIN
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	26 (13 December 2024) [2]
Highest	14 (September 2005)
Lowest	32 (March 2019)
First international
Finland 0–0 Sweden   (Mariehamn, Finland; 25 August 1973)
Biggest win
Bulgaria 0–8 Finland   (Lovech, Bulgaria; 21 August 2014)   Finland 8–0 Hungary   (Larnaca, Cyprus; 19 February 2023)
Biggest defeat
Denmark 9–0 Finland   (Vejen, Denmark; 26 July 1975)
European Championship
Appearances	5 (first in 2005 )
Best result	Semi-finals (2005)

The Finland women's national football team (Finnish : Suomen naisten jalkapallomaajoukkue, Swedish : Finlands damlandslag i fotboll), also known as nickname The Boreal Owls (Finnish : Helmarit), ^[1] represents Finland in international women's football. The team, controlled by the Football Association of Finland (SPL/FBF), reached the semi-finals of the 2005 European Championship, surprising the female football world having drawn with Sweden and beaten Denmark before losing to Germany in the semifinals. ^[3] Finland hosted the 2009 European Championship. ^[4]

The Finnish team has had a few players that are considered to be among the best in women's football, such as Laura Österberg Kalmari, Sanna Valkonen and Anne Mäkinen.

As of December 2023, the team is ranked 27th in the FIFA world ranking. ^[5]

History

The beginning

The Finland women's national football team played its first international match in 1973 against Sweden. ^[6] The game was played in Mariehamn, Åland.

Team image

Nicknames

The Finland women's national football team has been known or nicknamed as the "Helmarit (the Boreal Owls)". ^[1]

Results and fixtures

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

2024

Finland   v   Philippines

21 February Friendly	Finland	4–0	Philippines	San Pedro del Pinatar
	Sevenius 24', 43', 72' Nyström 28'	Report		Stadium: Pinatar Arena

Slovenia   v   Finland

24 February 2024 Pinatar Cup SF	Slovenia	0–1	Finland	San Pedro del Pinatar
				Stadium: Pinatar Arena

Scotland   v   Finland

27 February 2024 Pinatar Cup Final	Scotland	1–1 (4–5 p)	Finland	San Pedro del Pinatar
				Stadium: Pinatar Arena

Norway   v   Finland

5 April Euro 2025 qualifying	Norway	4–0	Finland	Oslo
18:00		Report		Stadium: Ullevaal Stadion Referee: Catarina Campos (Portugal)

Finland   v   Italy

9 April Euro 2025 qualifying	Finland	2–1	Italy	Helsinki
18:15		Report		Stadium: Helsinki Football Stadium Referee: Marta Huerta de Aza (Spain)

Netherlands   v   Finland

31 May Euro 2025 qualifying	Netherlands	1–0	Finland	Rotterdam
20:45	Beerensteyn 65'	Report		Stadium: Sparta Stadion Het Kasteel Attendance: 9,089 Referee: Frida Klarlund (Denmark)

Finland   v   Netherlands

4 June Euro 2025 qualifying	Finland	1–1	Netherlands	Tampere
18:00	Rantala 77'	Report	Beerensteyn 17'	Stadium: Tammelan Stadion Attendance: 7,677 Referee: Sandra Bastos (Portugal)

Finland   v   Norway

12 July Euro 2025 qualifying	Finland	1–1	Norway	Turku
		Report		Stadium: Veritas Stadion

Italy   v   Finland

16 July Euro 2025 qualifying	Italy	4–0	Finland	Bolzano
19:00		Report		Stadium: Stadio Druso

Montenegro   v   Finland

25 October Euro 2025 qualifying play-offs	Montenegro	0–1	Finland	Podgorica
17:30		Report		Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium

Finland   v   Montenegro

29 October Euro 2025 qualifying play-offs	Finland	5–0 (6–0 agg.)	Montenegro	Tampere
18:30 CEST (UTC+02:00)	Öling 7' Lehtola 12' Koivisto 31' Sällström 65' Halttunen 80'	Report		Stadium: Tammelan Stadion Attendance: 4,849 Referee: Eleni Antoniou (Greece)

Scotland   v   Finland

29 November Euro 2025 qualifying play-offs	Scotland	0–0	Finland	Edinburgh
20:35 WET (UTC+00:00)		Report		Stadium: Easter Road

Finland   v   Scotland

3 December Euro 2025 qualifying play-offs	Finland	2–0 (2–0 agg.)	Scotland	Helsinki
(UTC+03:00)	Kuikka 8' Lehtola 28'	Report		Stadium: Bolt Arena Attendance: 7,259

2025

Serbia   v   Finland

21 February 2025 Nations League

Serbia

v

Finland

Hungary   v   Finland

25 February 2025 Nations League

Hungary

v

Finland

Finland   v   Belarus

4 April 2025 Nations League

Finland

v

Belarus

Finland   v   Hungary

8 April 2025 Nations League

Finland

v

Hungary

Belarus   v   Finland

30 May 2025 Nations League

Belarus

v

Finland

Finland   v   Serbia

3 June 2025 Nations League

Finland

v

Serbia

Iceland   v   Finland

2 July Euro 2025 Group stage	Iceland	v	Finland	Thun
				Stadium: Stockhorn Arena

Norway   v   Finland

6 July Euro 2025 Group stage	Norway	v	Finland	Sion
				Stadium: Stade de Tourbillon

Finland   v   Switzerland

10 July Euro 2025 Group stage	Finland	v	Switzerland	Geneva
				Stadium: Stade de Genève

Coaching staff

Current coaching staff

As of October 2024 ^[7]

• Head coach: Marko Saloranta
• Assistant coach: Jonne Kunnas
• Assistant coach: Liisa-Maija Rautio
• Goalkeeping coach: Tommi Laitila
• Fitness coach: Kristoffer Weckström
• Psychological coach: Tatja Holm
• Doctor: Pippa Laukka
• Physiotherapist: Markus Rosenblad
• Physiotherapist: Sannakaisa Vastamäki
• Kit manager: Piia Karonen
• Kit manager: Alban Saliko
• Video Analyst: Jouko Kylmäoja
• Team manager: Outi Saarinen
• Team manager: Sanna Pirhonen
• Press officer: Eveliina Parikka
• Press officer: Jyri Sulander
• Media officer: Taru Nyholm

Manager history

See also: Category:Finland women's national football team managers

As of 3 December 2024

Tenure	Coach	Record
G	W	D	L	Win %
1973–77	Juhani Nirkkonen	12	1	1	10	008.33
1978	Simo Syrjävaara	3	1	1	1	033.33
1979–89	Kaj Österberg	44	13	12	19	029.55
1989–92	Jyrki Nieminen	24	3	4	17	012.50
1993–96	Nils Suomalainen	24	4	5	15	016.67
1996–00	Reima Kokko	46	11	3	32	023.91
2001–09	Michael Käld	107	35	22	50	032.71
2010–16	Andrée Jeglertz	76	27	13	36	035.53
2017	Marko Saloranta	6	2	0	4	033.33
2017–2022	Anna Signeul	47	19	11	17	040.43
2022–	Marko Saloranta	29	17	6	6	058.62

Players

Current squad

• The following players were called up for the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifying matches against Scotland on 29 November and 3 December 2024 respectively. ^[8]

Stats after match with Scotland on 18 July 2023.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
23	1 GK	Tinja-Riikka Korpela (captain)	(1986-05-05) 5 May 1986 (age 38)	115	0	Servette
	1 GK	Anna Tamminen	(1994-10-30) 30 October 1994 (age 30)	6	0	Hammarby
	1 GK	Anna Koivunen	(1999-11-28) 28 November 1999 (age 25)		0	Djurgården
15	2 DF	Natalia Kuikka	(1995-12-01) 1 December 1995 (age 29)	71	3	Chicago Red Stars
	2 DF	Joanna Tynnilä	(2001-09-01) 1 September 2001 (age 23)	3	0	Brann
3	2 DF	Eva Nyström	(1999-11-29) 29 November 1999 (age 25)	8	0	Hammarby
	2 DF	Emmi Siren	(2001-02-23) 23 February 2001 (age 23)	3	0	Nordsjælland
5	2 DF	Emma Koivisto	(1994-09-25) 25 September 1994 (age 30)	78	3	AC Milan
11	2 DF	Nora Heroum	(1994-07-20) 20 July 1994 (age 30)	84	1	Sampdoria
	2 DF	Nea Lehtola	(1998-10-24) 24 October 1998 (age 26)	2	0	Brann
	3 MF	Katariina Kosola	(2001-02-24) 24 February 2001 (age 23)	8	1	Malmö FF
	3 MF	Vilma Koivisto	(2002-11-21) 21 November 2002 (age 22)	6	1	Linköping
	3 MF	Eveliina Summanen	(1998-05-29) 29 May 1998 (age 26)	53	11	Tottenham Hotspur
	3 MF	Oona Siren	(2001-02-23) 23 February 2001 (age 23)	3	0	West Ham United
	3 MF	Anni Hartikainen	(2003-08-19) 19 August 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Rosengård
	3 MF	Olga Ahtinen	(1997-08-15) 15 August 1997 (age 27)	55	3	Tottenham Hotspur
4	3 MF	Ria Öling	(1994-09-15) 15 September 1994 (age 30)	62	9	Crystal Palace
	3 MF	Emmi Alanen	(1991-04-30) 30 April 1991 (age 33)	101	21	Kristianstads DFF
17	4 FW	Sanni Franssi	(1995-03-19) 19 March 1995 (age 29)	60	4	Real Sociedad
18	4 FW	Linda Sällström	(1988-07-13) 13 July 1988 (age 36)	120	51	Vittsjö GIK
	4 FW	Heidi Kollanen	(1997-06-06) 6 June 1997 (age 27)	19	2	Vittsjö GIK
	4 FW	Oona Sevenius	(2004-04-28) 28 April 2004 (age 20)	2	0	AC Milan
	4 FW	Dana Leskinen	(2001-09-22) 22 September 2001 (age 23)	1	0	IFK Norrköping
	4 FW	Lilli Halttunen				Linköping

Recent call ups

The following players have been called up to the squad in the past 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Katriina Talaslahti	(2000-09-21) 21 September 2000 (age 24)	2	0	Le Havre
GK	Milla-Maj Majasaari	(1999-10-15) 15 October 1999 (age 25)	1	0	Crystal Palace	v.   Italy, 16 July 2024
DF	Elli Pikkujämsä	(1999-10-24) 24 October 1999 (age 25)	23	1	Racing Louisville	v.   Italy, 9 April 2024
DF	Tiia Peltonen	(1995-06-08) 8 June 1995 (age 29)	7	0	Fortuna Hjørring	v.   Italy, 9 April 2024
DF	Tuuli Viinikka	(2004-10-27) 27 October 2004 (age 20)		0	KuPS	v.   Slovakia, 5 December 2023
DF	Helmi Raijas				Växjö	v.   Italy, 16 July 2024
DF	Sanni Ojanen		1	0	Vittsjö GIK	v.   Montenegro,29 October 2024
DF	Sofia Määttä				Glasgow City	v.   Montenegro,29 October 2024
MF	Emma Peuhkurinen	(1999-11-30) 30 November 1999 (age 25)	5	0	LSK Kvinner	v.   Italy, 9 April 2024
MF	Aada Nurmi	(2003-03-12) 12 March 2003 (age 21)		0	KuPS	v.   Slovakia, 5 December 2023
FW	Lotta Lindström	(2004-09-10) 10 September 2004 (age 20)	2	0	London City Lionesses	v.   Italy, 16 July 2024
FW	Jutta Rantala	(1999-11-11) 11 November 1999 (age 25)	17	5	Leicester City	v.   Italy, 16 July 2024

Records

See also: Category:Finland women's international footballers

*Active players in bold, statistics correct as of 9 July 2022

Most capped players

Anna Westerlund currently holds the record for the most appearances for the Finland women's national football team.

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Years
1	Anna Westerlund	145	4	2008–
2	Linda Sällström	132	57	2007–
3	Laura Österberg Kalmari	130	41	1996–2011
4	Tuija Hyyrynen	121	3	2007–
5	Sanna Valkonen	120	7	1995–2009
6	Anne Mäkinen	118	16	1991–2009
	Jessica Julin		4	1997–2009
8	Tinja-Riikka Korpela (GK)	109	0	2007–
9	Anna-Kaisa Rantanen	105	8	1996–2011
10	Sanna Talonen	103	36	2004–2014
11	Katri Mattsson	100	2	1999–2015

Source: ^[9]

Top goalscorers

Linda Sällström currently holds the record for the most goals for the Finland women's national football team.

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Years	Avg
1	Linda Sällström	57	132	2007–	0,425
2	Laura Österberg Kalmari	41	130	1996–2011	0,315
3	Sanna Talonen	36	103	2004–2014	0,35
4	Emmi Alanen	21	97	2010–	0,216
5	Annica Sjölund	17	69	2006–2014	0,246
6	Anne Mäkinen	16	118	1991–2009	0,136
7	Heidi Kackur	12	48	1999–2005	0,25
	Adelina Engman	12	85	2012–	0,141
9	Maija Saari	11	94	2007–2016	0,117
10	Ria Öling	9	62	2015–	0,145
11	Anu Toikka	8	29	1979–1992	0,276
	Susanna Heikari	8	44	1994–2002	0,182
	Anna-Kaisa Rantanen	8	105	1996–2011	0,076

Source: ^[9]

Competitive record

FIFA Women's World Cup

FIFA Women's World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Result	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA	GD		Round	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA	GD
1991	Did not qualify									UEFA Euro 1991
1995										UEFA Euro 1995
1999										Play-offs	8	3	1	4	8	9	−1
2003										Group 2	6	1	0	5	4	24	−20
2007										Group 3	8	5	1	2	16	5	+11
2011										Group 7	8	6	1	1	25	6	+19
2015										Group 7	10	7	0	3	27	9	+18
2019										Group 7	8	3	1	4	9	13	−4
2023										Group A	8	3	1	4	14	12	−10
2027	To be determined									To be determined
Total	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-		Round	56	28	5	23	103	78	+13

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

Olympic Games

Summer Olympics record
Year	Result	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA
1996	Did not qualify
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024	Unable to qualify
2028	To be determined
2032
Total	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

UEFA Women's Championship

UEFA Women's Championship record										Qualifying record
Year	Result	P	W	D*	L	GF	GA	GD		Round	P	W	D*	L	GF	GA	GD	P/R	Rnk
1984	Did not qualify									Group 1	6	2	0	4	5	17	−12	–
1987										Group 1	6	1	2	3	2	6	−4
1989										Group 1	6	1	2	3	9	11	−2
1991										Group 3	6	1	2	3	3	6	−3
1993										Group 2	4	0	2	2	3	12	−9
1995										Group 1	6	2	3	1	8	7	+1
1997										Play-offs	8	1	1	6	2	24	−22
2001										Play-offs	8	2	0	6	8	21	−13
2005	Semi-finals	4	1	1	2	5	8	−3		Play-offs	10	4	4	2	16	7	+9	–
2009	Quarter-finals	4	2	0	2	5	5	0		Qualified as host
2013	Group stage	3	0	2	1	1	6	−5		Group 5	8	6	1	1	22	4	+18	–
2017	Did not qualify									Group 2	8	4	1	3	17	12	+5
2022	Group stage	3	0	0	3	1	8	−7		Group E	8	7	1	0	24	2	+22
2025	Qualified									Play-offs	10	4	3	3	12	12	0	[a]	13th
2029	To be determined									To be determined
Total	5/14	14	3	3	8	12	27	−15		Total	94	35	22	37	131	141	−10	13th

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

UEFA Women's Nations League

UEFA Women's Nations League record
Season	Division	Group	Pos	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	P/R	Rnk
2023–24	B	2	1st	6	5	1	0	18	2		18th
2025	B	3	To be determined
Total				6	5	1	0	18	2	18th

	Promoted at end of season
	No movement at end of season
	Relegated at end of season
*	Participated in promotion/relegation play-offs

Pinatar Cup

Pinatar Cup record
Year	Result	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
2024	Champions	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1
Total		2	1	1	0	2	1	+1

Cyprus Women's Cup

Cyprus Women's Cup record
Year	Result	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
2012	7th place	4	1	1	2	6	7	−1
2013	7th place	4	1	1	2	5	6	−1
2014	12th place	4	0	1	3	1	8	−7
2015	9th place	4	1	1	2	3	7	−4
2016	8th place	4	0	1	3	3	8	−5
2018	11th place	4	1	1	2	4	7	−3
2019	9th place	4	1	1	2	3	6	−3
2020	Runners-up	3	1	1	1	7	6	+1
2023	Champions	3	3	0	0	16	1	+15
Total		34	9	8	17	48	56	−8

Algarve Cup

Algarve Cup record
Year	Result	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
1994	6th place	3	0	0	3	0	9	−9
1995	6th place	4	1	0	3	3	6	−3
1996	8th place	4	0	0	4	1	15	−14
1997	6th place	4	1	0	3	3	8	−5
1998	8th place	4	0	0	4	2	6	−4
1999	8th place	4	0	1	3	1	7	−6
2000	7th place	4	1	0	3	5	8	−3
2001	7th place	4	1	0	3	4	15	−11
2002	7th place	4	1	0	3	4	8	−5
2003	6th place	4	0	2	2	0	6	−6
2004	9th place	4	1	0	3	6	10	−4
2005	10th place	4	0	0	4	3	10	−7
2006	7th place	4	1	1	2	5	12	−7
2007	6th place	4	1	0	3	2	6	−4
2008	8th place	4	0	0	4	1	10	−9
2009	7th place	4	1	0	3	1	5	−4
2010	8th place	4	0	1	3	2	11	−9
2011	10th place	4	0	0	4	2	13	−11
Total

Nordic Football Championship

Women's Nordic Football Championship record
Year	Result	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
1974	Third place	2	0	0	2	0	6	−6
1975	Third place	2	0	0	2	0	13	−13
1976	Third place	2	0	0	2	1	5	−4
1977	Third place	2	0	0	2	0	5	−5
1978	Third place	3	1	1	1	1	4	−3
1979	Third place	3	1	1	1	2	5	−3
1980	Fourth place	3	0	2	1	1	8	−7
1981	Runners-up	3	1	1	1	3	4	−1
1982	Fourth place	3	0	1	2	1	6	−5
Total	9/9	23	3	6	14	9	56	−47

See also

• Europe portal
• Finland portal
• Sports portal
• Association football portal
• Women's association football portal

• Sports in Finland
• Football in Finland
• Football Association of Finland (SPL)
• Finland women's national under-20 football team
• Finland women's national under-17 football team
• Finland national football team

Notes

1. From Euro 2025 onwards a new qualifying format was introduced, linked to the Women's Nations League where teams are divided into leagues with promotion/relegation between the leagues at the end of each cycle.

References

1. "Helmarit nimetty MM-karsinta-avaukseen Serbiaa vastaan" (in Finnish). Football Association of Finland. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
2. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 13 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
3. UEFA.com. "Season 2005 Matches | UEFA Women's EURO". UEFA.com. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
4. "Women's Euro 2009 in Finland". Embassy of Finland. 2009. Archived from the original on 29 December 2016. Retrieved 28 December 2016.
5. "Finland". FIFA. Archived from the original on 19 February 2015. Retrieved 28 December 2016.
6. "Naisten jalkapallomaajoukkueen taival on puolivuosisatainen – jo alussa mentiin sisulla ja yhteispelillä". Hämeen Sanomat. 25 October 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
7. "Helmarit - Joukkue" (in Finnish). Finnish Football Federation. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
8. "Helmarit nimetty EM-jatkokarsintojen ratkaisuotteluihin Skotlantia vastaan" (in Finnish). Football Federation. 18 November 2024.
9. "Finland – Women International Player Records". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF).Published 8 October 2019, retrieved and Updated data 15 June 2021. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.

External links

• Official website
• FIFA profile