Imagine growing up in a country of a population of 300,000. Compared to the United States, Iceland's population of about 300,000 is about the size of the 58th largest city of Corpus Christi, Texas. Now imagine fielding a competitive soccer team to compete against some of the best national teams in a European-wide soccer competition. Iceland, who has managed to draw against Portugal and arguably the best soccer player in the world of Christiano Ronaldo, was also able to draw against a heavy favorite of Hungary Saturday. These two results have been amazing in themselves, but a win against Austria in their last group state game could push them into the round of 16. Iceland has never competed in major European or world competition, and the closest they were was in 2014 world cup qualifying in which they were knocked out by Croatia in a play in type scenario. These results exceed all expectations any had for the team.
How has Iceland prepared to play against such elite competition? Well the entire 23 man roster plays club soccer during the club soccer season, however, only few play in elite leagues across Europe. One notable player for Sweden, Gylfi Sigurdsson, currently plays for Swansea City of Wales that competes in the English Premier League. Sigurdsson, spent time with Tottenham Hotspur, a club that has a rich history of winning in the premier league. The Oldest player on the Iceland national team is Elour Guojohnsen who is 37 years old. Guojohnsen leads the team in Caps (Career appearances) with 87, and has scored the most goals of an Icelandic national with 26.
Iceland's goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson finds himself behind the camera when he is not playing soccer. The Icelandic goalkeeper found jobs directing before he moved to Norway to take on soccer full-time. Don't worry, he was guaranteed his job would be waiting for him when he returned from Norway.
For those who love underdog stories, this Icelandic soccer team is the definition of an underdog. With such few citizens to choose from, the team has exceeded expectations for Euro 2016. What would advancing to the round of 2016 mean to soccer? Well considering Iceland has never qualified for European competition or the World Cup, it would set a name for Iceland and spark a potential bright future for Iceland soccer. Tune in on Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. central time to see if Iceland can use their magic and come out victorious against Austria and make history for their country.
