The Denmark national football team were amateur until 1971, with the DBU (Dansk Boldspil-Union) happy to just arrange friendly matches between 1920 and 1948. Before that, the Danes were extremely successful at Olympic football tournaments, with a gold medal in 1906 and silver in 1908 and 1912. Being amateur severely restricted the national team, as most Danes moved abroad and the league suffered.

De Rød-Hvide’s record win was a mammoth 17-1 win over France in the 1908 London Olympics, whilst they lost 8-0 to Germany in 1937. It took until 1986 before Denmark national football team finally qualified for a World Cup as the “Danish Dynamite” became known for their attacking football and gifted individuals, such as Michael Laudrup and Preben Elkjaer. However, their crowning moment happened in 1992.

Yugoslavia had pipped Denmark into qualifying for the European Championships in Sweden and the dejected Danes were on the beach, trying to enjoy their summer. Suddenly, war broke out in Yugoslavia and UEFA excluded them from the tournament, replacing them with Denmark. With nothing to lose, Richard Møller Nielsen’s men managed to go all the way, beating world champions Germany 2-0 in the final.

World cup history

1986

1986

Mexico

Mexico replaced Colombia as hosts, which saw the birth of the Mexican wave. Diego Maradona eliminated England with the Hand of God and one of the greatest goals of all time. He captained Argentina to victory in the final, beating West Germany 3-2. The ‘Danish Dynamite’ breezed through Group E by beating Scotland 1-0, West Germany 2-0 and hammering Uruguay 6-1. They took the lead against Spain in the second round but Emilio Butragueño scored four as the Spaniards ran out 5-1 winners.

1998

France

Now expanded to 32 teams, Croatia, Jamaica, Japan and South Africa were new qualifiers in France. The hosts were in Denmark’s group, along with South Africa and Saudi Arabia, and the Danes went on to beat Nigeria in round two. Unfortunately, a narrow 3-2 defeat to Brazil ended their run in the quarter finals. The victorious hosts only conceded twice all tournament and became the first team to win via a Golden Goal. The final was about two men: Zinedine Zidane’s two goals and the mystery behind Ronaldo’s initial omission from the team. The hosts comfortably won 3-0.

2002

Japan and South Korea

The first Asian World Cup, jointly held in Japan and South Korea, saw Brazil win for a record fifth time. There was much controversy over the refereeing in several Korean matches, as they finished 4^th. Ronaldo was the top scorer with 8 goals, whilst Senegal shocked France 1-0 in the first match. The Denmark national football team finished top of that group with 7 points thanks to Jon Dahl Tomasson’s four goals. However, they crashed out in the next round after losing 3-0 to England.

2010

South Africa

The World Cup came to a new continent, with South Africa hosting and introducing vuvuzelas to a worldwide audience. Ghana reached the quarter finals, whilst the consequences of Frank Lampard’s disallowed goal has brought goal-line technology to football. European champions Spain defeated the Netherlands in the final, thanks to Andres Iniesta’s extra time winner. The Dutch topped Denmark’s group, as they disappointingly finished third with a sole victory over Cameroon. Spain’s group stage defeat to Switzerland meant that New Zealand ended the tournament as the only undefeated team.

2018

Russia

The Denmark national football team are in Group E alongside Romania, Poland, Montenegro, Armenia, and Kazakhstan.

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