Poland's national football team, players, coach, FIFA world rankings, World Cup 2022

Poland's national football team, players, coach, FIFA world rankings, World Cup 2022

Helix Odhiambo
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:01 PM

You probably might be wondering if Poland's national team is good at football. Well, soccer is the most popular sport in the country and is followed by millions of people. The love of the game has inspired many Polish citizens to pursue football as a profession. Some of them have even represented Poland's national football team. Scroll down to learn more about this fantastic team.

Poland national football team: players
The Bialo-Czerwoni players during a training session ahead of their FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualification matches against San Marino and Albania in Warsaw. Photo: Mikolaj Barbanell
Source: Getty Images

Poland has produced a few footballers who have left their names in the sport. They include their captain and all-time scorer, Robert Lewandowski and Wojciech Szczęsny. Does Poland's national football team have a nickname? What have they achieved in the sport? This article will answer this and much more including the social profiles and names of the players.

Profile summary

  • Full name: Poland national football team
  • Nicknames: Bialo-Czerwoni (The White and Reds), Orły (The Eagles)
  • Founded: 1919
  • Managed by: Polish Football Association (PZPN)
  • Stadiums: PGE Narodowy, Śląski Stadium, Polsat Plus Arena Gdańsk
  • Affiliations: FIFA, UEFA
  • FIFA code: POL
  • Colours: White and red
  • Current coach: Czesław Michniewicz
  • Captain: Robert Lewandowski
  • World ranking: 28 (as of May 2022)
  • Best ranking: 5 (2017)
  • Lowest ranking: 78 (2013)
  • All-time top scorer: Robert Lewandowski (75)
  • Most appearance: Robert Lewandowski (129)
  • Instagram: @laczynaspilka
  • Website: www.laczynaspilka.pl

The history of Poland's national football team

Poland national football team World Cup
Poland's national football team players line up before their match against Yugoslavia during Germany's 1974 FIFA World Cup. Photo: Picture Alliance
Source: Getty Images

The Polish Football Federation was officially founded in 1919. The national team played its first match in 1921 against Hungary in a friendly game they lost 1-0. They won their first match in 1922, beating Sweden 2-1 in Stockholm.

Since then, football has gained popularity as the national team grew every year. However, Polish soccer suffered a setback during World War II that led to the massacre of some of its footballers. As a result, the national team was dissolved in 1939.

After the end of the war, the Bialo-Czerwoni returned to international football in June 1946. Their first match was a friendly against Norway in Oslo, in which they lost 3-1 to the hosts.

Golden generation

Like many national teams, Poland has had different generations, including the golden era of 1974 to 1986. Managed by the legendary Kazimierz Gorski, the team beat England to qualify for the 1974 World Cup. They later swept aside Argentina, Haiti, Italy and Sweden to reach the semi-final, where they lost to Germany.

Has Poland won a World Cup?

Has Poland won a World Cup?
Polish players enter the pitch ahead of their 2018 FIFA World Cup group H match against Senegal at Spartak Stadium on 19 June 2018 in Moscow, Russia. Photo: Tomasz Jastrzebowski
Source: Getty Images

The Bialo-Czerwoni have played in 8 World Cup tournaments but without success. Their best performance came in 1974 and 1982 when they finished third. Poland made its first World Cup appearance in 1938 but got knocked out by Brazil in the round of 16.

The team also booked a spot in the 2022 World Cup after beating Sweden 2-0 in their play-off tie on 29 March 2022. Goals from Robert Lewandowski and Piotr Zielinski fired them to their ninth tournament. They will be aiming to defy the odds and lift the prestigious title.

Poland's national football team and the World Cup 2022 draw

Lewandowski's side will have a tricky assignment in their chase for World Cup glory. The team will take on Argentina, Mexico and minors Saudi Arabia in Group C. Facing Lionel Messi's nation and an inspired Mexico team will indeed be a massive test for them, with only two sides proceeding to knockouts.

European Championship

Poland's national football team: trophies
Poland players celebrate a goal against Spain during their UEFA Euro 2020 Championship Group E match at Estadio La Cartuja on 19 June 2021 in Seville, Spain. Photo: David Ramos
Source: Getty Images

Poland qualified for their first European Championship in 2008. They also made it to 2012, 2016 and 2020 but have never gone past the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, the country will be counting on the current crop of the Poland national football team players as they prepare to compete in the upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers.

Poland's national football team: trophies

The Bialo-Czerwoni won a gold medal at the 1972 Olympic Games. They later took home silver in 1976 and 1992.

Poland's national football team: world rankings

The team currently ranks 28 globally with 1530.62 points as of May 2022 in FIFA rankings. In Europe, they are 16. Their highest-ever ranking was 5 with 1319 points in August 2017, while the lowest was 78 with 473 points in November 2013.

Poland's national football team: roster

Poland's national football team: roster
Players pose for a photo ahead of their UEFA EURO 2020 Group E football match against Sweden at Saint Petersburg Stadium in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on 23 June 2021. Photo: Foto Olimpik
Source: Getty Images

How many Polish footballers do you know? Here is a list of the latest squad members' names who were picked to play for the team, including their positions and respective clubs.

Goalkeepers

  • Lukasz Fabianski (West Ham)
  • Lukasz Skorupski (Bologna)
  • Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus)

Defenders

  • Jan Bednarek (Southampton)
  • Bartosz Bereszynski (Sampdoria)
  • Pawel Dawidowicz (Verona)
  • Kamil Glik (Benevento)
  • Michal Helik (Barnsley)
  • Tomasz Kedziora (Lech Poznan)
  • Kamil Piatkowski (RB Salzburg)
  • Tymoteusz Puchacz (Trabzonspor)
  • Maciej Rybus (Lok. Moscow)

Midfielders

  • Przemyslaw Frankowski (Lens)
  • Kamil Jozwiak (Charlotte FC)
  • Mat Klich (Leeds)
  • Kacper Kozlowski (Union St Gilloise)
  • Grzegorz Krychowiak (AEK Athens)
  • Karol Linetty (Torino)
  • Jakub Moder (Brighton)
  • Przemyslaw Placheta (Norwich)
  • Piotr Zielinski (Napoli)

Forwards

  • Dawid Kownacki (Lech Poznan)
  • Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
  • Arkadiusz Milik (Marseille)
  • Karol Swiderski (Charlotte FC)
  • Jakub Swierczok (Nagoya Grampus)

Who is Poland's best football player?

Poland's national football team: world rankings
Robert Lewandowski celebrates scoring for his country during the 2022 FIFA World Cup play-off match against Sweden at Silesian Stadium on 29 March 2022 in Chorzow, Poland. Photo: Foto Olimpik
Source: Getty Images

Poland's national football team is captained by Robert Lewandowski who is arguably their greatest ever player. He is also considered the best striker in the world. The 33-year-old forward also won the 2020 Best FIFA Men's Player Award for his remarkable achievements for Bayern Munich.

In addition, no Polish player scored more goals than Lewandowski (75) for the national team. He is also the most capped player with 129 matches as of May 2022.

Poland's national football team: coach

Former Legia Warsaw head coach Czesław Michniewicz is currently the manager of the Bialo-Czerwoni. The Polish Football Association appointed him in January 2022 to replace Paulo Sousa.

Poland's national football team will play Wales, Belgium and the Netherlands in their UEFA Nations League campaign from June 2022. Afterwards, they will head to Qatar for the World Cup tournament.

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Authors
Helix Odhiambo photo
Helix Odhiambo
Helix Odhiambo is an award-winning Kenyan journalist and content creator with over 6 years of experience. In 2016, he won the Goal Blaze Correspondent Award for young writers.