Riga is the capital, primate, and the largest city of Latvia, as well as the most populous city in the Baltic States. Home to 609,489 inhabitants, the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga metropolitan area, which stretches beyond the city limits, is estimated at 860,142. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Baltic Sea. Riga's territory covers 307.17 km2 (118.60 sq mi) and lies 1–10 m (3–33 ft) above sea level on a flat and sandy plain.
Skonto FC was a Latvian professional football club, active from 1991 until 2016. The club played at the Skonto Stadium in Riga. Skonto won the Virsliga in the first 14 seasons of the league's resumption, and often provided the core of the Latvia national football team. With those 14 national championships in a row, they set a European record, men and women's football combined, until the women of Faroese club KÍ Klaksvík won their 14th championship in a row in 2013.
Latvia has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 23 times since making its debut at the contest in 2000, where the group Brainstorm finished third with the song "My Star". Latvia won the contest in 2002, with Marie N and the song "I Wanna", defeating Malta by 12 points. Latvia is the second former Soviet country to win the contest. The 2003 contest was held in the Latvian capital Riga. The country achieved its third top 10 result in 2005, when Walters and Kazha finished fifth with "The War Is Not Over".
Arena Riga is an indoor arena in Riga, Latvia. It is primarily used for ice hockey, basketball and concerts. Arena Riga holds a maximum of 14,500 and was opened on 15 February 2006.
Daugava National Stadium is a multifunctional stadium in Riga, Latvia, which was first opened in 1927. It holds football and athletics competitions. Since 1992 the Daugava Stadium has been designated as a sports facility of national importance. It is owned by the Government of Latvia.
FC Daugava was a Latvian football club, based at the Daugava Stadium, in the city of Daugavpils. They lastly played in the Latvian Second League in 2015. They were one of two clubs with the name Daugava and should not be confused with FK Daugava Rīga.
Raivis Hščanovičs is a Latvian footballer, currently playing for FS METTA/Latvijas Universitāte in the Latvian Higher League and the founder of the charity foundation RH3 fonds.
Football is the number one sport based on participation, but the third sport in Latvia after ice hockey and basketball based on popularity. Many other sports are also more popular than football in Latvia, but in recent years it has gained more popularity. The Latvian Football Federation is the sport's national governing body. There is a league system, with the Higher League and First League serving as the top leagues in Latvia. The Latvian Second League is composed mostly of amateur teams.
Dinamo Riga is a professional ice hockey team based in Riga, Latvia. It most recently was a member of the Latvian Hockey Higher League. The club is affiliated with HK Zemgale/LBTU.
Kaspars Dubra is a Latvian professional footballer who plays as a defender for A Lyga club Panevėžys. He can play as a centre-back or a defensive midfielder.
Kirovs Lipmans is a Latvian business person and former ice hockey executive. He served as president of the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation from 1994 to 1995, and from 1998 to 2016; was a member of the Latvian Olympic Committee executive, and sat on International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) committees. He oversaw the increase of artificial ice hockey rinks in Latvia from three to seventeen, and the Latvia men's national team qualify for the top tier of the World Championships then play in four consecutive Olympic hockey tournaments. Lipmans oversaw the construction of Arena Riga for the hosting the 2006 IIHF World Championship, and Latvia was awarded co-hosting duties for the 2021 IIHF World Championship at the end of his presidency.
Alans Siņeļņikovs is a Latvian footballer.
Pāvels Šteinbors is a Latvian professional footballer who plays for Latvian club RFS and the Latvia national team.
Valērijs Šabala is a Latvian professional footballer who plays as a forward for II liga club Chojniczanka Chojnice.
Vladislavs Gabovs is a former Latvian football right-back who played for Salaspils and the Latvia national football team.
Renārs Rode is a retired Latvian professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He has also been capped by the Latvia national football team.
Latvia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Heartbeat" written by Aminata Savadogo. The song was performed by Justs. Songwriter Aminata Savadogo represented Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Love Injected" where she placed sixth in the grand final of the competition. The Latvian broadcaster Latvijas Televīzija (LTV) organised the national final Supernova 2016 in order to select the Latvian entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden. Twenty songs were selected to compete in the national final, which consisted of four shows: two heats, one semi-final and a final. In the heats and the semi-final, four entries were selected to advance from each show: two entries selected based on a public televote and two entries selected by a four-member jury panel. Four songs ultimately qualified to compete in the final on 28 February 2016 where a public vote exclusively selected "Heartbeat" performed by Justs as the winner.
Eurovision Choir of the Year 2017 was the first Eurovision Choir competition for choral singers, which was organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and Interkultur. It was held on 22 July 2017, at the Arena Riga, in the Latvian capital, Riga. The event was produced by Latvian host broadcaster Latvijas Televīzija (LTV) and the Riga Tourism Development Bureau.
The 2021 IIHF World Championship took place from 21 May to 6 June 2021. It was originally to be co-hosted by Minsk, Belarus and Riga, Latvia, as the IIHF announced on 19 May 2017 in Cologne, Germany. Their joint bid won by a very tight margin against the Finnish bid with the cities of Tampere and Helsinki. On 18 January 2021 the IIHF decided to remove Belarus as a co-host due to the rising political unrest and COVID-19 concerns there. On 2 February, the IIHF voted to confirm Latvia as the sole host for the 2021 IIHF World Championship.
Ice hockey in Latvia is the most popular sport in the country. The first hockey match on Latvian soil took place on February 15, 1909, with two teams facing Union and Strēlnieka Dārzs. However, it took another 20 years to supplant the popular sport of Bandy.
