Country facts:
| Flag: |
 |
| Area: |
64,589 sq km |
| Population: |
2,290,237 |
| Languages: |
Latvian (official), Lithuanian, Russian |
| Currency: |
Latvian lat (LVL) |
| Climate: |
maritime; wet, moderate winters |
Latvia
Latvia soccer information
In recent years, football has boomed in popularity in Latvia. However, football is s
till behind basketball and ice hockey in the nation's list of favourite sports.
The national football league has three divisions, each with eight teams, while each
team is obliged to have a youth structure in place for at least two age groups.
There are youth competitions for all ages between U-10 and U-18. Futsal is extremely
popular (18 teams in two leagues), whereas women's football has been slower to catch on.
Latvia has not "exported" many players. Andrejs Stolcers (Fulham) and Marians Pahars
(Southampton) are the most famous players to have earned a transfer to a European league.
In recent years, the Latvian FA has laid used artificial turf pitches in each region of the
country in an attempt to improve the grassroots.
