The Slovenia national football team represents Slovenia in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Slovenia, the governing body for football in Slovenia. It competes as a member of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), which encompasses the countries of Europe. Slovenia joined UEFA and the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) in 1992, a year after the country gained independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Slovenia's first official match—a 1–1 draw against Estonia—took place on 3 June 1992. Their first victory came in their third match, a 2–0 home win against the same opponents. They entered their first major international competition in 1994: the qualifying rounds for the 1996 UEFA European Football Championship. The team won their first competitive match on 29 March 1995 when they defeated Estonia 3–0 in the 1996 European Championship qualifiers. Slovenia made its first appearance in the qualifying rounds of the FIFA World Cup during the 1998 edition.[1]
The team's largest victory came on 8 February 1999 when they defeated Oman by seven goals to nil in the Oman International Tournament. Their worst loss is a 5–0 against France in 2002. Boštjan Cesar holds the appearance record for Slovenia, having been capped 101 times between 2003 and 2018. The goalscoring record is held by Zlatko Zahovič, who scored 35 times in 80 matches. As of July 2024, Slovenia are ranked 52nd in the FIFA World Rankings. Its highest-ever ranking of 15th was achieved in October and November 2010.
See main article: Slovenia national football team results (2020–present).