Slovakia EURO 2020 Preview - History and Expectations

Published on 24 May 2021 | Last updated on 01 Jul 2026 | Reading time: 4 minutes

After its debut in the tournament in 2016, Slovakia enters Euro 2020 to upgrade its growth as a national team. After the break-up of Czechoslovakia in 1993, Slovakia participated in only two major tournaments, qualifying for the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2016. In both cases, it reached the 1/8 finals, but failed to qualify for the last World Cup, missing out the World Cup in Russia.

But will Slovakia be able to impress football Europe in the upcoming finals this summer? Check out our preview of Slovakia at the 2020 European Championships and what we can expect from "the Falcons".

Slovakia European Championships - History and successes

As an independent country, Slovakia has only one participation in the European finals. The nation qualified for the tournament in 2016 when the championship was held in France. At Euro 2016, Slovakia started with a defeat by Wales but still managed to pass the group. The Slovaks beat Russia in the second round, and in the last round, they took a point from England. Thus, the team reached the 1/8 finals, where there was no chance, and lost 0:3 from Germany.

The Road to Euro 2020

The Slovaks failed to qualify for Euro 2020 in the traditional qualifying round, but thanks to the League of Nations and the playoffs. "The Falcons" return to Euro 2020 after two wins in the playoffs. The Republic of Ireland was the first to be defeated in the semi-finals after win 4:2 after penalties. Slovakia then beat Northern Ireland 2:1 in overtime to reserve a place at the European finals. Otherwise, in the Euro 2020 qualifiers, Slovakia finished 3rd in its group behind the teams of Croatia and Wales.

Euro 2020 fixtures

Slovakia is in Group E of Euro 2020 with the teams of Spain, Poland, and Sweden.

• June 14, 6:00 pm: Poland - Slovakia / Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg /
• June 18, 3:00 pm: Sweden - Slovakia / Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg /
• June 23, 6:00 pm: Slovakia - Spain / La Cartuja, Seville /

Slovakia squad for the European Football Championship 2020

Trainer Stefan Tarkovic has chosen the following key trio in the center of the field - Marek Hamsik, Juraj Kucka, and Stanislav Lobotka. Lobotka, the most expensive Slovak footballer in history (he was paid 21.5 million for the transfer from Celta Vigo to Napoli in 2020). He plays the role of a playmaker, right in front of the defense, which allows Hamsik and Kucka to be involved almost always in attacks. Slovakia has great players in every other line, as Martin Dubravka will be the titular goalkeeper, and in defense, there are names like Milan Škrinijar, Tomas Hubočan, and Peter Pekarik. We have to distinguish players like Vladimir Weiss, Robert Mack, and Ondrej Duda in the midfield. In an attack on Slovakia, we will most often see Michal Duris, as his alternatives are Robert Bozenik and Ivan Schrantz.

Goalkeepers: Martin Dubravka (Newcastle United), Dusan Kuciak (Lechia Gdansk), Marek Rodák (Fulham)
Defenders: Peter Pekarik (Hertha Berlin), Denis Vavro (Huesca), Milan Skriniar (Internazionale), Ľubomir Satka (Lech Poznan), Tomáš Hubočan (Omonoia), Dávid Hancko (Sparta Praha), Martin Koscelník (Liberec), Martin Valjent (Mallorca)
Midfielders: Marek Hamšík (IFK Göteborg), Juraj Kucka (Parma), Vladimir Weiss (Slovan Bratislava), Robert Mak (Ferencvaros), Ondrej Duda (Koln), Patrik Hrosovsky (Genk), Stanislav Lobotka (Napoli), Lukas Haraslin (Sassuolo), Laszlo Benes (Augsburg), Jakub Hromada (Slavia Praha), Tomas Suslov (Groningen), Ján Greguš (Minnesota)
Forwards: Michal Duris (Omonia), Robert Bozenik (Feyenoord), Ivan Schranz (Jablonec)

Source: www.goal.com

The Big Star: Marek Hamsik

He may no longer be in the spotlight after leaving Napoli in 2019, but Marek Hamsik remains a quality player and is the star of this Slovak team. The 33-year-old footballer made his debut for Slovakia in 2007 and very quickly became the country's leader. Hamsik has scored 26 goals for Slovakia, more than any other player in the nation's short history, three more than Robert Vittek, a record he equaled and surpassed in a 5-1 victory over Azerbaijan in the Euro 2020 qualifiers. Hamsik is also the most experienced player of Slovakia, representing his nation 126 times in 14 years, and continues to show class when on the field. Although he left Napoli two years ago, now he e competing for the team of IFK Goteborg.

Expectations for Slovakia at Euro 2020

Slovakia is in a very difficult group at Euro 2020, along with Spain, Poland, and Sweden. Even if there is a possibility for the first three teams to move forward, the odds for Slovakia to move to the next phase is not the highest compared to the four teams in the group. If the Slovaks manage to qualify for the 1/8 finals of Euro 2020, it will be a great success for the nation, but we think they will be eliminated in the group stage of the tournament this summer.

Odds for Slovakia 

This is another group, where the teams are very balanced. This is our personal view, but maybe the bookmakers are thinking the same way. They are giving a very low probability the boys of trainer Tarkovic to win the group and go through the 1/8 finals. Slovakia is also out of the top 10 favorites for winning the European title in 2020. Here are the current odds for the "The Falcons":

To win Euro 2020	251.00
To win Group E	15.00