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Romania national under-21 football team
National under-21 association football team representing Romania
National under-21 association football team representing Romania
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The Romania national under-21 football team, also known as Romania under-21s or Romania U21(s), is considered to be the feeder team for the Romania national football team.
This team is for Romanian players aged under 21 at the start of the calendar year in which a two-year UEFA European Under-21 Championship campaign begins, so some players can remain with the squad until the age of 23. As long as they are eligible, players can play for Romania at any level, making it possible to play for the U21s, senior side, and again for the U21s. It is also possible to play for one country at youth level and another at senior level (providing the player has not played a senior competitive game in his previous country.)
History
The U-21 team came into existence, following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions, in 1976. Romania qualified for the 1998 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, and under Victor Pițurcă reached the quarter-finals, where they were knocked out by the Netherlands. Romania had been 1–0 up, but were eventually beaten 2–1. The Romanian lineup included players like: Cosmin Contra, Bogdan Lobonț, Cătălin Munteanu, Ionel Dănciulescu and Ion Luțu.
Romania once again qualified unbeaten for the finals after topping their group in the qualifying series. The Romanians reached semi-final of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship for the first time in their history in the 2019 UEFA Under-21 Euro but eventually lost 4–2 to defending champions Germany who scored twice in the dying moments. Romania qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics for their first Olympics since 1964. Overall, Romania was a revelation at the tournament, beating both England and Croatia (4-2 and 4–1), and looked on course for a shock before Germany fought back to make the final.
Romania U21s do not have a permanent home. They play in stadia dotted all around Romania, in an attempt to encourage younger fans in all areas of the country to get behind Romania. Because of the lower demand compared to the senior national team, smaller grounds can be used.
Competitive record
UEFA U-21 Championship Record
| UEFA European Under-21 Championship Championship record | UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Qualification record | Year | Round | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | did not qualify | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 8 | ||||||||
| 1980 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 3 | |||||||||
| 1982 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 12 | |||||||||
| 1984 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 12 | |||||||||
| 1986 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 7 | |||||||||
| 1988 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | |||||||||
| 1990 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 7 | |||||||||
| 1992 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 9 | |||||||||
| France 1994 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 10 | |||||||||
| Spain 1996 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 17 | 10 | |||||||||
| Romania 1998 | Quarter-finals | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 4 | ||
| Slovakia 2000 | did not qualify | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 8 | ||||||||
| Switzerland 2002 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 5 | |||||||||
| Germany 2004 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |||||||||
| Portugal 2006 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 8 | |||||||||
| Netherlands 2007 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | |||||||||
| Sweden 2009 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 3 | |||||||||
| Denmark 2011 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 6 | |||||||||
| Israel 2013 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 6 | |||||||||
| Czech Republic 2015 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 19 | |||||||||
| Poland 2017 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 15 | 14 | |||||||||
| Italy San Marino 2019 | Semi-finals | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 4 | ||
| Hungary Slovenia 2021 | Group stage | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 22 | 7 | ||
| Romania Georgia 2023 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | Qualified as hosts | ||||||||
| Slovakia 2025 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 23 | 10 | |||
| Total | 5/25 | 16 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 17 | 23 | 170 | 94 | 32 | 54 | 291 | 191 |
Olympic Games
Football at the Summer Olympics was first played officially in 1908. The Olympiads between 1896 and 1980 was only open for amateur players. The 1984 and 1988 tournaments were open to players with no appearances in the FIFA World Cup. After the 1988 Olympics, the football event was changed into a tournament for U23 or U21 teams with a maximum of three older players. See Romania national football team for competition record from 1908 until 1988.
| Olympic Games record | Olympic Games Qualification record ** | Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D * | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spain 1992 | did not qualify | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 9 | |||||||||
| United States 1996 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 17 | 10 | ||||||||||
| Australia 2000 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 8 | ||||||||||
| Greece 2004 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | ||||||||||
| China 2008 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | ||||||||||
| United Kingdom 2012 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 6 | ||||||||||
| Brazil 2016 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 19 | ||||||||||
| Japan 2020 | Group Stage | 11th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 14 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 29 | 11 | ||
| France 2024 | did not qualify | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |||||||||
| USA 2028 | to be determined | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
:*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks. :**Includes both qualification phase and final tournament of UEFA European Under-21 Championship. :***Gold background color indicates that the tournament was won. Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.
EURO 2027
Main article: 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group A
Results and fixtures
Main article: Romania national under-21 football team results
The following is a list of matches in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled. ;Legend
2025
- Valente
- Bergen
- Baldanzi
- Jauregizar
- Fernández
- Munteanu
- Akdağ
- Obert
- Suslov
- Biliboc
- Trică
- Kuljanin
- Trică
- Burnete
- Ruoppi
- Siltanen
- G. García
- Fresneda
2026
Players
Current squad
The following players were called up for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group A matches against Finland and Spain on 14 and 18 November 2025 respectively.
Note: Names in italics denote players that have been called up to the senior team.
Caps and goals are correct as of 18 November 2025, after the match against Spain
Recent call-ups
Players born in or after 2004 are eligible for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.
The following players have also been called up in the past to the Romania under-21 squad and remain eligible to play in the qualification matches for 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship:
;Notes
- INJ = Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury
- SUS = Player is serving suspension
- WD = Player withdrew from the squad
- COV = Player withdrawn from the squad due to positive COVID-19 test
- Names in italics denote players that have been capped for the Senior team.
Coaching staff
| Role | Name |
|---|---|
| Head Coach | ROU Costin Curelea |
| Assistant coaches | ROU Lucian Sânmartean |
| ROU Răzvan Rotaru | |
| Goalkeeping coach | ROU Răzvan Stanca |
| Fitness Coach | ROU Daniel Ene |
| Video Analyst | ROU Vlăduț Lakatoș |
| Doctor | ROU Dan Costin |
| Physioterapists | ROU Florin Dragne |
| ROU Mădălin Tălpălaru | |
| Masseur | ROU Vladimir Foia |
| Kit man | ROU Ionuț Niculici |
Footnotes
References
References
- (8 November 2025). "Dueluri cu Finlanda și Spania pentru naționala de tineret! Lotul convocat de selecționerul Costin Curelea". [[Romanian Football Federation]].
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
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