In what some pundits have labeled as a bigger upset for England than losing to the United States in the 1950 World Cup (more on that later), the Icelandic national team wrote the latest chapter in their remarkable story when they overcome an early deficit to defeat the English and advance to the European Championship quarterfinals.
While their run to qualification was impressive, downing mighty Netherlands twice and losing just twice overall, few outside of the tens of thousand loyal fans who have accompanied the team to France would have fancied Iceland to make it this far.
In considering nations with strong soccer traditions, Iceland would never have crossed anybody’s mind. This is after all a country with a population of roughly a third of Rhode Island, a country lacking a full-time professional soccer league, and a country that until recently was more accustomed to finishing in the bottom places during tournament qualifying.
So how exactly has the squad of 23 players from this tiny nation all of a sudden become one of Europe’s best this summer? Are their achievements at Euro 2016 the culmination of a sustained effort or merely the next step in their ongoing rise?
In short, the answer is a resounding “Yes.”
A BRIEF HISTORY
As a soccer nation, Iceland is still relatively young, having not played its first recognized international match until after World War II (in 1946 vs. Denmark). On top of that, the KSI (Iceland’s soccer federation) did not even enter the qualifying rounds for the World Cup or European Championship until the mid-1970s.
With little success, the national team’s growth stagnated between the 1970s and 1990s, and their highest world ranking was 37th back in 1994.
The physical constraints of a harsh climate on the island nation meant that player development was limited to spring and summer months, while other nations around Europe were able to spend more time nuturing their talent.
Beginning in 2001, and thanks largely to the influx of cash provided by UEFA profit-sharing from TV and licensing rights, the KSI was able to institute a two-pronged plan to improve the level of soccer in Iceland.
COACHING
The first major investment made by the KSI was overhauling the coaching infrastructure from top to bottom in the country. The federation began organizing rigorous UEFA coaching license courses, and as of this year, Iceland has over 600 coaches around the country with UEFA B or higher licenses.
On top of that, the federation also began regulating coaching proficiency at youth level. To coach at U-8 level, a coach in Iceland has to have completed half of the UEFA B license, while a U-10 coach has to be a UEFA B license holder.
For perspective, to be a coach at professional level in an European league, the requirement is at least a UEFA A license.
As a result of this investment, Iceland has a ratio of 1 licensed coach per 500-600 persons in the country, as opposed to other countries such as England, where the ratio is 1 per 11 thousand.
Put simply, any child that signed up to play soccer in Iceland since 2001 has had the benefit of receiving a level of coaching just shy of or equivalent to that which can be found at most professional clubs around Europe.
FACILITIES
With the harsh winters and space limitations, Iceland has never been able to boast of world-class facilities. However, the KSI recognized a need to overhaul the physical infrastructure for the sport.
Beginning in 2000, large indoor facilities have been constructed around the country, and this has allowed players to have year-round training.
Additionally, more than 100 full- and half-sized fields with undersoil heating and artificial playing surfaces have also been built. Strategically, most of these fields have been built near schools, to ensure that as many Icelandic children as possible end up with a ball at their feet on these pitches.
In partnership with local municipalities, the KSI has ensured that ownership of these facilities remains public – this has been to encourage ease of access to all as well as to develop a sense of ownership and responsibility for entire communities over the growth of the sport in the country.
BEARING FRUIT
As to be expected with efforts such as these, patience has been required. It is no accident that it has taken a decade-and-a-half for Iceland’s development plan to come to fruition, and the KSI has taken a long view since Day One.
A distinct advantage that Icelandic soccer has had in terms of talent development is how the small size of the country has made it easy for KSI to identify and focus on particularly-talented individuals. In the words of KSI national technical director Arnar Gunnarsson to Sports Illustrated last year:
“Of course, it could happen here, as everywhere else, that some talented player who is small, we’ll miss out on him, but we know of every player who is good in football because of the size of the country and how few we are.”
On top of that, while Iceland’s plan has looked relatively simple, the task for a larger nation would be exponentially more difficult simply because of sheer logistics. For example, an effort in the United States to develop a professionalized coaching pool all the way down to youth levels would cost millions, while the cost of widespread facilities in developing nations would be prohibitive without the benefit of lucrative profit-sharing such as Iceland’s with UEFA.
Patience has been absolutely necessary for the Icelanders. A win over mighty Italy in Reykjavik in 2004 and two draws against Spain in 2006 and 2007 were more of the exception than the norm, but as the generation of players who grew up in the post-2001 setup continued to mature, results have been improving.
A draw against Scandinavian rivals Norway ensured a playoff against Croatia for the final UEFA qualifying spot in the 2014 World Cup, but a 2-0 defeat in Zagreb saw them fall short. In hindsight, the experience might have provided more value in the big picture of things.
The Euro 2016 qualifying process might be downplayed by critics as just a smaller country benefiting from the tournament’s expanded format, but nevertheless, an impressive run of 6 wins versus just 2 one-goal losses saw them wrap up an automatic spot behind the Czech Republic and with a +11 goal difference that was superior to fellow qualifiers Italy, Sweden, and Portugal.
While the youth development setup is second to none, senior clubs from the Úrvalsdeild, Iceland’s top flight, still face a struggle when competing against teams from other established leagues around Europe. As with most issues facing the sport in general today, this boils down more to money than to tradition.
Rather than risk their homegrown talent stagnating, KSI does not discourage its top players from seeking other options outside of their own borders.
Indeed, all 23 members of Iceland’s Euro 2016 squad currently play in foreign leagues, including the English Premiership, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A, and French Ligue Un.
Looking at their roster, Gylfi Sigurdsson is the most recognizable name, and together with him, team captain Aron Gunnarsson along with Kolbeinn Sigthórsson, Johann Gudmundsson, and Jón Dadi Bödvarsson all form a core of players in their mid-20s who essentially grew up within the Icelandic system together.
While the future does look bright, a major test of Iceland’s recent bounty awaits current co-manager Heimir Hallgrimsson, who will assume sole responsibility over the position once Lars Lagerbäck retires following the tournament.
The defensive core of Kári Árnason, Elmar Bjarnason, Birkir Sævarsson, and Ragnar Sigurdsson have been in tremendous form at Euro 2016. They were also among the first wave of players who benefited from KSI’s initiatives back in the early 2000s, and have been playing with an assuredness and chemistry that comes from familiarity and tactical discipline. Árnason has been especially noteworthy with his commanding presence against opposing attackers.
Unfortunately, time stands for no-one, and with an average age over 30 among that foursome (with Arnason the oldest at 33), Iceland and Hallgrimsson will soon need to transition to a much younger and much greener backline heading into 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
All that will remain a problem for another day.
Beginning in 2001, when Sigurdur Ragnar Eyjolfsson was hired by the KSI to be the director of coach education, to Geir Thorsteinsson‘s elevation first to KSI general manager and then the Presidency, to the development of players like Sigurdsson and Gunnarsson, to Lagerbäck’s mentoring of Hallgrimsson, and finally to Euro 2016, looking back at Icelandic soccer now reveals several key junctures along the road that are now starting to pay off.
This is why, in spite of how earth-shattering the defeat seemed to England, Iceland’s march to the quarterfinals may not be as much of an upset as it seemed. The United States team that beat England in 1950 comprised of part-timers who were thrown together with barely any practice time before leaving for Brazil. Iceland today is a squad of players that have been together for years and have had the benefit of a sound soccer infrastructure in their country.
Win or lose against France on Sunday, Iceland has undoubtedly had the biggest impact on the tournament. From their unlikely run to their energetic fans, the spirit both on and off the field that they have brought to the tournament has been a wonderful advertisement for the sport in a tournament that has been marred by crowd violence.
If nothing else, the Icelanders have given the world one of the most unique post-match celebrations, and if the KSI’s vision continues to produce positive results, there may be more sightings of this in the years ahead as Icelandic soccer strives to prove that Euro 2016 was not a flash in the pan.
(Editor’s note: For the record, TheAOSN selected Iceland as one of the Surprise Teams for the tournament…..)