Venezuela national football team

 Venezuela
Nickname(s) La Vinotinto (The Burgundy)
Los Llaneros (The Plainsmen)
Association Federación Venezolana de Fútbol (FVF)
Confederation CONMEBOL (South America)
Head coach Rafael Dudamel
Captain Tomás Rincón
Most caps Juan Arango (128)
Top scorer Juan Arango (23)
Home stadium Estadio José Antonio Anzoátegui
Polideportivo Cachamay
Estadio Pueblo Nuevo
FIFA code VEN
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 74 Steady (5 May 2016)
Highest 29 (August 2014)
Lowest 129 (November 1998)
Elo ranking
Current 42 (June 2015)
Highest 19 (July 17, 2011)
Lowest 127 (1993, 1995, 1999)
First international
 Panama 2–1 Venezuela Venezuela
(Panama City, Panama; February 12, 1938)
Biggest win
Venezuela Venezuela 7–0 Puerto Rico 
(Caracas, Venezuela; January 16, 1959)
Biggest defeat
 Argentina 11–0 Venezuela Venezuela
(Rosario, Argentina; August 10, 1975)
Copa América
Appearances 15 (First in 1967)
Best result Fourth place, 2011

The Venezuela national football team is controlled by the Federación Venezolana de Fútbol. It is nicknamed La Vinotinto (The Burgundy), because of the traditional burgundy color of their shirts.

When playing at home in official games they usually rotate between three stadiums: the Polideportivo Cachamay, in Puerto Ordaz; the Estadio José Antonio Anzoátegui, in Puerto La Cruz; and Estadio Pueblo Nuevo, in San Cristóbal. In friendly matches they tend to rotate between the rest of the stadiums in the country.

The Unofficial Football World Championships, and the related Nasazzi's baton title, was briefly held by Venezuela in 2006.

Unlike other South American nations, and akin to some Caribbean nations, baseball is extremely popular in Venezuela, which diverts athletic talent away from football, contributing to its historic lack of success in CONMEBOL competitions. As of 2014, they are the only CONMEBOL side to have not qualified for the FIFA World Cup. Often Venezuela would go through entire qualification tournaments without recording a single win, although this has changed in the last two qualifying rounds. Until 2011, their best finish in the Copa América was fifth in their first entry, in 1967. It is only recently with the spread of the World Cup's popularity in nations where football was not the primary sport (Japan, the United States, Australia, etc.) that the national team found incentives to increase player development and fan support.

History

Backstory

Venezuela did not participate in World Cup qualifying until the 1966 qualifiers in which they were drawn with Uruguay and Peru, but failed to register a point in four games. In the 1970 qualifiers they managed to register a point, and after withdrawing from the 1974 series, repeated that in the 1978 qualifiers. The 1982 qualifiers saw them register their first win, over Bolivia. They wouldn't register another World Cup qualifying win until the 1994 series when they defeated Ecuador. A highlight of the 1998 qualifiers was goalkeeper Rafael Dudamel scoring against Argentina in a 5–2 defeat.

Despite poor results during the 1960s and 1970s, outstanding players like Luis Mendoza and Rafael Santana achieved recognition.

The team failed to qualify for both the 2002, and 2006 World Cups. The latter failure resulted in the resignation of manager Richard Páez.

César Farías era

With new coach César Farías, Venezuela improved their performances. At the beginning of 2010, during qualifying, the national team won its first game in World Cup qualifying against Ecuador in Quito, where the Ecuadorians had previously held a long unbeaten record. Something similar happened to Bolivia in La Paz, where Venezuela won for the first time at Bolivian altitude. Also, they received their first point against Brazil in qualifying. Despite not qualifying for the 2010, Venezuela achieved their best result in qualifying. They finished this round with 22 points in 18 matches, surpassing Peru and Bolivia for eighth place in the region.

On June 6, 2008, Venezuela achieved their first-ever triumph over Brazil, defeating the Seleção 2–0 in a friendly match in Boston, USA.

The team obtained excellent results in the 2011 Copa América when they finished 4th, their highest finish in the tournament so far. With a team composed mostly of players who play in European leagues, they began 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification with a historic result (1-0) against Argentina in Puerto La Cruz - beating the Argentines for the first time.

Noel Sanvicente era

On 4 September 2014, Noel Sanvicente was made coach of the Venezuelan national football team.[1] On 5 September 2014, the team lost its first match with Sanvicente under the helm 3-1 against South Korea in Bucheon.[2]

Copa America history

Venezuela first participated in the Copa América in 1967, and finished 5th after defeating Bolivia 3–0 with a side containing Mendoza and Santana. The 1975 tournament saw Venezuela drawn in a group with Brazil and Argentina, and finished bottom with an 11–0 defeat to Argentina. In the 1979 edition, which would be the international swansong for Mendoza and Santana, they drew 0–0 with Colombia and 1–1 with Chile. A highlight of the 1989 tournament was midfielder Carlos Maldonado's 4 goals. In the 1993 series, Venezuela drew with Uruguay and the United States.

The team's overall Copa América record has been pretty poor (goal difference 33–145 before 2011 Copa), but the "Auge Vinotinto" (Vinotinto Rise) period in the early 2000s (decade) brought increased attention to the sport in the country, which in turn brought increased support from both government and private institutions. Said support contributed greatly to the "Vinotinto's" rise in quality. In 2007, during the Copa América held in Venezuela, the team progressed to the quarterfinals for the first time in its history after finishing first in a group containing Peru, Bolivia and Uruguay. Venezuela's 2–0 victory over Perú during the competition was its first Copa América victory since 1967.

2011 Copa América

At the 2011 Copa América championship, Venezuela reached the semifinals round for the first time by defeating Chile in the quarterfinal, 2–1. Despite their commanding presence against Paraguay in their semifinal, Venezuela were unable to convert their chances into goals. They would eventually lose 5–3 to Paraguay in a penalty shootout after remaining scoreless in normal and extra time. Venezuela and Peru played for 3rd Place of Copa America 2011 at Estadio Ciudad de La Plata. Venezuela would suffer their biggest loss of the tournament, losing 4–1 to Peru and falling into 4th place overall, but it was their best ever finish at the competition.

Group B:

Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Brazil 312064+25
 Venezuela 312043+15
 Paraguay 30305503
 Ecuador 301225−31

Results:

Historical kits

(1926)
(1967)
(1970)
(1977)
(1979)
(1981)
(1982)
(1986)
(1989)
(1990)
(1993)
(1994)
(1995)
(1996)
(1997)
(1998)
(1999)
(1999)
(2001)
(2004)
(2005)
(2007)
(2010)
(2011)
(2011– 2013)

Current status

Recent and forthcoming matches

Matches from the past 12 months as well as any future scheduled matches.

      Win       Draw       Loss

2018 FIFA World Cup Qualification Standings

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Uruguay 6 4 1 1 12 4 +8 13 Qualification to 2018 FIFA World Cup — MD11 MD15 3–0 3–0 MD13 MD8 1–0 MD18 MD9
2  Ecuador 6 4 1 1 12 7 +5 13 2–1 — MD18 MD9 MD14 MD7 2–2 MD16 2–0 MD12
3  Argentina 6 3 2 1 6 4 +2 11 MD7 0–2 — MD13 MD12 1–1 MD10 MD17 2–0 MD16
4  Chile 6 3 1 2 12 10 +2 10 MD12 MD17 1–2 — 1–1 2–0 MD15 MD10 MD8 MD14
5  Colombia 6 3 1 2 9 8 +1 10 Advance to inter-confederation play-offs MD10 3–1 0–1 MD11 — MD16 MD17 2–0 MD13 MD7
6  Brazil 6 2 3 1 11 8 +3 9 2–2 MD15 MD11 MD18 MD8 — MD14 3–0 MD9 3–1
7  Paraguay 6 2 3 1 7 6 +1 9 MD16 MD13 0–0 MD7 MD9 2–2 — MD11 2–1 MD18
8  Peru 6 1 1 4 6 12 −6 4 MD14 MD8 MD9 3–4 MD18 MD12 1–0 — MD15 2–2
9  Bolivia 6 1 0 5 7 13 −6 3 0–2 MD10 MD14 MD16 2–3 MD17 MD12 MD7 — 4–2
10  Venezuela 6 0 1 5 7 17 −10 1 MD17 1–3 MD8 1–4 MD15 MD10 0–1 MD13 MD11 —
Updated to match(es) played on 29 March 2016. Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

Players

Current squad

The following 40 players were preselected for Copa América Centenario
Caps and goals are correct as of March 29, 2016, after the game against Chile.

0#0 Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Dani Hernández (1985-10-21) October 21, 1985 20 0 Spain Tenerife
1GK José Contreras (1994-10-20) October 20, 1994 2 0 Venezuela Deportivo Táchira
1GK Wuilker Faríñez (1998-02-15) February 15, 1998 0 0 Venezuela Caracas
1GK Eduardo Herrera (1993-06-06) June 6, 1993 0 0 Venezuela Deportivo Lara
2DF Oswaldo Vizcarrondo (1984-05-31) May 31, 1984 71 8 France Nantes
2DF Roberto Rosales (1988-11-20) November 20, 1988 63 0 Spain Málaga
2DF Alexander González (1992-09-13) September 13, 1992 30 1 Spain Huesca
2DF Andrés Túñez (1987-03-15) March 15, 1987 16 0 Thailand Buriram United
2DF José Manuel Velázquez (1990-09-08) September 8, 1990 15 1 Portugal Arouca
2DF Rolf Feltscher (1990-06-10) June 10, 1990 5 0 Germany Duisburg
2DF Wilker Ángel (1993-03-18) March 18, 1993 4 2 Venezuela Deportivo Táchira
2DF Mikel Villanueva (1993-04-14) April 14, 1993 2 1 Spain Atlético Malagueño
2DF Rubert Quijada (1989-02-10) February 10, 1989 2 0 Venezuela Caracas
2DF Daniel Benitez (1987-09-23) September 23, 1987 1 0 Venezuela La Guaira
2DF Víctor García (1994-06-11) June 11, 1994 1 0 Portugal Porto B
2DF Jefre Vargas (1995-01-12) January 12, 1995 1 0 Venezuela Caracas
2DF Jhon Chancellor (1992-01-02) January 2, 1992 0 0 Venezuela Mineros de Guayana
3MF Tomás Rincón (Captain) (1988-01-13) January 13, 1988 69 0 Italy Genoa
3MF César González (1982-10-01) October 1, 1982 62 5 Brazil Coritiba
3MF Luis Manuel Seijas (1986-06-23) June 23, 1986 62 2 Colombia Santa Fe
3MF Alejandro Guerra (1985-07-09) July 9, 1985 52 4 Colombia Atlético Nacional
3MF Ronald Vargas (1986-12-02) December 2, 1986 22 3 Greece AEK Athens
3MF Rómulo Otero (1992-11-09) November 9, 1992 11 4 Chile Huachipato
3MF Arquímedes Figuera (1989-10-06) October 6, 1989 8 1 Venezuela La Guaira
3MF Jhon Murillo (1995-06-04) June 4, 1995 3 1 Portugal Tondela
3MF Juan Pablo Añor (1994-01-24) January 24, 1994 3 0 Spain Málaga
3MF Carlos Cermeño (1995-08-08) August 8, 1995 1 0 Venezuela Deportivo Táchira
3MF Arles Flores (1991-04-12) April 12, 1991 1 0 Venezuela Zamora
3MF Yeferson Soteldo (1997-06-30) June 30, 1997 1 0 Venezuela Zamora
3MF Yangel Herrera (1998-01-07) January 7, 1998 0 0 Venezuela Atlético Venezuela
3MF Jacobo Koufatti (1993-06-30) June 30, 1993 0 0 Ecuador Deportivo Cuenca
3MF Carlos Suárez (1992-04-26) April 26, 1992 0 0 Venezuela Carabobo
4FW Salomón Rondón (1989-09-16) September 16, 1989 47 14 England West Bromwich Albion
4FW Josef Martínez (1993-05-19) May 19, 1993 24 4 Italy Torino
4FW Yonathan Del Valle (1990-05-28) May 28, 1990 10 0 Turkey Kasımpaşa
4FW Christian Santos (1988-03-24) March 24, 1988 4 1 Netherlands NEC
4FW Gelmin Rivas (1989-03-23) March 23, 1989 3 0 Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad
4FW Jeffrén Suárez (1988-01-20) January 20, 1988 3 0 Belgium Eupen
4FW Adalberto Peñaranda (1997-05-31) May 31, 1997 2 0 Spain Granada
4FW Andrés Ponce (1996-11-11) November 11, 1996 1 0 Italy Sampdoria Primavera

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team in the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Alain Baroja (1989-10-23) October 23, 1989 13 0 Greece AEK Athens v.  Chile, March 29, 2016
GK Luis Rojas (1988-04-30) April 30, 1988 0 0 Venezuela La Guaira v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
DF Francisco Carabalí (1991-03-24) March 24, 1991 5 0 Venezuela Mineros de Guayana v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
DF Oscar González (1992-02-25) February 25, 1992 0 0 Venezuela La Guaira v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
DF Diego Melean (1992-02-13) February 13, 1992 0 0 Venezuela Zulia v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
DF Edwin Peraza (1993-03-11) March 11, 1993 0 0 Venezuela Zamora v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
DF Gabriel Cichero (1984-04-25) April 25, 1984 64 4 Switzerland Sion v.  Ecuador, November 17, 2015
DF Fernando Amorebieta (Retired) (1985-03-29) March 29, 1985 15 1 England Fullham v.  Brazil, October 13, 2015
DF Grenddy Perozo (1986-02-28) February 28, 1986 45 2 Portugal Atlético CP v.  Panama, September 8, 2015
DF Ángel Faría (1983-04-28) April 28, 1983 2 0 Venezuela Zamora v.  Chile, March 29, 2016
MF Rafael Acosta (1989-02-13) February 13, 1989 12 0 Venezuela Mineros de Guayana v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
MF Ángelo Peña (1989-12-25) December 25, 1989 12 0 Venezuela Mineros de Guayana v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
MF Luis González (1990-12-22) December 22, 1990 2 0 Venezuela Mineros de Guayana v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
MF Javier García (1987-04-22) April 22, 1987 1 0 Venezuela La Guaira v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
MF Johan Moreno (1991-06-10) June 10, 1991 1 0 Venezuela Zamora v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
MF Franklin Lucena (1981-02-20) February 20, 1981 62 2 Colombia Once Caldas v.  Ecuador, November 17, 2015
MF Juan Arango (Retired) (1980-05-16) May 16, 1980 127 23 United States New York Cosmos v.  Panama, September 8, 2015
MF Franco Signorelli (1991-01-01) January 1, 1991 3 0 Italy Ternana v.  Panama, September 8, 2015
FW Mario Rondón (1986-03-26) March 26, 1986 13 3 China Shijiazhuang Ever Bright Copa América Centenario preliminary squad
FW Richard Blanco (1982-01-21) January 21, 1982 14 2 Venezuela Mineros de Guayana v.  Chile, March 29, 2016
FW Jesús Lugo (1991-09-14) September 14, 1991 3 0 Venezuela Aragua v.  Costa Rica, February 2, 2016
FW Juan Falcón (1989-02-24) February 24, 1989 6 0 Saudi Arabia Al-Fateh v.  Ecuador, November 17, 2015
FW Manuel Arteaga (1994-06-17) June 17, 1994 3 0 Croatia Hajduk Split v.  Bolivia, November 12, 2015
FW Nicolás Fedor (1985-08-19) August 19, 1985 53 11 Spain Rayo Vallecano v.  Panama, September 8, 2015

Records

Most caps

Midfielder Juan Arango had played the most matches for Venezuela: 128 between 1999 and 2015.

Blue highlights denotes active players.

Position Name Period caps Goals
1 Juan Arango 1999–2015 128 23
2 José Manuel Rey 1997–2011 115 11
3 Jorge Alberto Rojas 1999–2009 91 3
4 Miguel Mea Vitali 1999–2012 85 1
5 Gabriel Urdaneta 1996–2005 77 9
Luis Vallenilla 1996–2007 77 1
7 Oswaldo Vizcarrondo 2004– 71 8
8 Tomás Rincón 2008– 69 0
9 Ruberth Morán 1996–2007 65 14
Giancarlo Maldonado 2003–2011 65 22
As of March 29, 2016[3]

Top scorers

Blue highlights denotes active players.

Position Name Period Goals Caps Goals/Caps Ratio
1 Juan Arango 1999–2015 23 128 0.18
2 Giancarlo Maldonado 2003–2011 22 65 0.33
3 Ruberth Morán 1996–2007 14 65 0.22
José Salomón Rondón 2008– 14 47 0.30
5 Daniel Arismendi 2006–2011 11 31 0.35
José Manuel Rey 1997–2011 11 115 0.10
Nicolás Fedor 2006– 11 53 0.21
8 Gabriel Urdaneta 1996–2005 9 77 0.12
9 Oswaldo Vizcarrondo 2004– 8 710.11
10 Juan García Rivas 1993–2009 7 49 0.14
Ricardo Páez 2000–2007 7 64 0.11
As of March 29, 2016[4]

Competitive record

World Cup record

Year Round Position GP W D L GS GA
1930 to 1954Did not enter
1958Withdrew
1962Did not enter
1966 to 1970Did not qualify
1974Withdrew
1978 to 2014Did not qualify

Head to head

Copa América record

  • 1916 to 1963 – Did not enter
  • 1967 – 5th
  • 1975 – Round 1 (overall 10th place)
  • 1979 – Round 1 (overall 10th place)
  • 1983 – Round 1 (overall 10th place)
  • 1987 – Round 1 (overall 10th place)
  • 1989 – Round 1 (overall 10th place)
  • 1991 – Round 1 (overall 10th place)
  • 1993 – Round 1 (overall 11th place)
  • 1995 – Round 1 (overall 12th place)
  • 1997 – Round 1 (overall 12th place)
  • 1999 – Round 1 (overall 12th place)
  • 2001 – Round 1 (overall 12th place)
  • 2004 – Round 1 (overall 11th place)
  • 2007 – Quarter-finals (overall 6th place)
  • 2011 – 4th Place
  • 2015 – Round 1 (overall 9th place)

Pan American Games record

References

External links

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