Euro 2025: Iceland team guide – tactical coaching and Champions League experience give an edge

New York Times

11 hours ago

Iceland's women's national team has been a regular at the European Championship since 2009. Their best finish was a successful quarter-final run in 2013.
In its most recent showing at Euro 2022 in England, Iceland failed to make it out of the group after drawing all three games. Despite also not qualifying for the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, they still rank 14th in the world as of June. The Stelpurnar okkar (Our Girls) are entering the Euros in Group A with Norway, Finland and Switzerland.
Thorsteinn Halldórsson has been in charge of the Iceland national team since 2021. The team extended the 57-year-old's contract through 2026, with clauses involving the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil.
Halldórsson is experienced in domestic Icelandic men's and women's soccer leagues, having coached a variety of local clubs since 1994 before taking the national team job. He won the Icelandic Championship three times with Breidablik women's team and took the side to the last 16 of the Champions League in 2019.
In Euro 2025 qualifying, his Iceland side defeated Germany (3-0) and Poland (3-0), and he is a tactical coach with an emphasis on mental resilience and structure. Before he started coaching, he made more than 150 appearances as a defender in Iceland's top flight.
Halldórsson typically lines up in a 4-3-3 that suits Iceland's direct, pragmatic style. Long balls through the middle allow their midfield trio to converge, win possession and reset the attack. In the final third, they rely on wide players to deliver cutbacks or crosses aimed at late-arriving runners just inside the box.
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Their long throw-ins are a weapon, disruptive, hard to defend, and often unexpected. It's a safety-first setup: even in transition, they wait for support before committing forward. It's simple but can be effective with a squad that includes Champions League-level talent. They've struggled to score recently, including five scoreless matches in the last eight.
Iceland's captain, Glódís Viggósdóttir, earned her first career trophy two years ago, winning the 2022-23 Frauen Bundesliga with Bayern Munich. The centre-back has since won two more league titles with the German club. She also made history as the first Icelandic player to be nominated for the Ballon d'Or Féminin.
Forward Sveindís Jane Jónsdóttir, who signed with NWSL's Angel City FC last month through 2027, is another key player. The 23-year-old was previously with Wolfsburg in Germany, where she scored 22 goals and recorded 16 assists in 93 competitions over four seasons. Wolfsburg were Champions League finalists in 2023, falling to Barcelona 3-2.
Another player to watch out for is Dagný Brynjarsdóttir, who is an experienced midfielder with more than 100 caps. Ever-present and gutsy, she helped Iceland into the Euro 2013 quarter-finals while nursing a broken foot.
Iceland's defense is compact, physical, and aerially dominant, both in open play and set pieces. However, they have only kept three clean sheets in their last 10 matches. At the same time, their counterattack, fueled by midfield grit, is capable of winning turnovers and scoring quick opportunities, as they showed against Germany in the qualifiers.
Iceland relies heavily on playing direct. When opponents control the midfield, press high and cut off those vertical routes, Iceland struggles to progress the ball or retain meaningful possession. They can be pinned back, forced into deeper positions and cut off from creative outlets.
If anything, over-reliance on Brynjarsdóttir for durability could be a concern late in the tournament. She's crucial for leadership and box-to-box play, but she's 32 years old with a heavy cap load. If she fades or is marked out, Iceland's spine weakens significantly.
No major injuries have been reported recently and the squad that featured in the May/June 2025 Nations League is expected to arrive in Switzerland at full strength.
Iceland beat Poland (3‑0) and Germany (3‑0) in Euro 2025 qualifying, but drew 1‑1 in key away matches. They battled through a 0‑0 draw with Switzerland and Norway in the Nations League and lost 3-1 twice in two friendlies with the U.S. last October. Their friendly against France was a close one, but they did not close the gap and lost 3-2.
Iceland are in Group A with Switzerland, Finland, and Norway. They are the highest-rated team, but will face hosts Switzerland and their Scandinavian neighbors Norway, who have more standout pieces. Finland may be their best chance. A win over Finland seems likely, a draw with Norway is realistic, and aiming for an upset over Switzerland is possible.
If everything goes according to plan, they could easily reach the quarter-finals. Unlike the team in 2022 (0 points, 3 draws), they have a stronger squad. They just need composure in tight finishes.
This marks Iceland's fifth consecutive appearance at the Euros, a testament to their consistency in continental play. In qualifying, they made history as the first team to defeat Germany by a three-goal margin in a competitive match since Brazil's 2008 Olympic semifinal triumph. Despite their progress, Iceland has never qualified for a Women's World Cup.