Last night Iceland secured a guaranteed advance to the EURO 2016 finals next year with a 0-0 draw against Kazakhstan in a home game on Laugardalsvöllur Stadium in Reykjavík.
Iceland will be the smallest nation ever to play at the UEFA European Championship finals. Up to this point the title had been held by Slovenia, which has 1.9 million inhabitants, followed by Latvia with 2.2 million inhabitants. Slovenia played at the EURO 2000 tournament and Latvia at the EURO 2004 tournament.
Those in attendance at Laugardalsvöllurinn Arena described the atmosphere as “magical”. The crowd sang the popular tune “Ferðalok”, which translates as “Journey’s end” and went wild with joy as the team greeted fans from the field.
After the game ended the Icelandic national team came to Ingólfstorg square in downtown Reykjavík to celebrate with the crowd. The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service described the atmosphere downtown as “Carnivalesque”. A video posted by the Icelandic Football Federation to their Facebook wall provides a glimpse into the atmosphere at Ingólfstorg square:
Vel tekið á móti leikmönnum í bænum!
Posted by KSÍ – Knattspyrnusamband Íslands on Sunday, September 6, 2015
Last night Iceland secured a guaranteed advance to the EURO 2016 finals next year with a 0-0 draw against Kazakhstan in a home game on Laugardalsvöllur Stadium in Reykjavík.
Iceland will be the smallest nation ever to play at the UEFA European Championship finals. Up to this point the title had been held by Slovenia, which has 1.9 million inhabitants, followed by Latvia with 2.2 million inhabitants. Slovenia played at the EURO 2000 tournament and Latvia at the EURO 2004 tournament.
Those in attendance at Laugardalsvöllurinn Arena described the atmosphere as “magical”. The crowd sang the popular tune “Ferðalok”, which translates as “Journey’s end” and went wild with joy as the team greeted fans from the field.
After the game ended the Icelandic national team came to Ingólfstorg square in downtown Reykjavík to celebrate with the crowd. The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service described the atmosphere downtown as “Carnivalesque”. A video posted by the Icelandic Football Federation to their Facebook wall provides a glimpse into the atmosphere at Ingólfstorg square:
Vel tekið á móti leikmönnum í bænum!
Posted by KSÍ – Knattspyrnusamband Íslands on Sunday, September 6, 2015
