Historically, Finland has had a low status in soccer since it was introduced in the country by English sailors in the 1890s. However, Finnish football has been revived, producing international stars whose talent is remarkable.
Players such as Jari Litmanen, Antti Niemi, among others, have been signed up to play for international clubs. Such players have led to the growth of the betting scene locally. Sites like Netticasino247 have emerged and made local betting a whole new trend. The emergence of these online casinos has ultimately led to the growth of local soccer.
Finland is a country that has consistently been among the 50 best football teams in the world, with its 2007 ranking of 36 being the best ever ranking. For all football enthusiasts, we have compiled a list of 4 best Finnish players.
Jari Litmanen
He is a retired Finnish footballer. Nicknamed as ‘The King’, he may be the most famous Finnish football player of all time. He was Finland’s national team captain from 1996 to 2008. Litmanen started his football career at 16, where he played for Reipas in his debut.
During his career, he played for Lahti, Mypa, HJK, and Reipas in Finland and Barcelona, Ajax Amsterdam and Liverpool abroad. He scored 96 goals and won the Eredivisie League five times when playing for Ajax and 23 goals in the UEFA Champions League.
Teemu Pukki
Born on 20th March 1990, Teemu Pukki is a Finnish football player who plays as a striker for the Finland National team and Premier League club Norwich City.
He began his career at 16 years in KTP, where he played in the under-19 team. He left KTP for Sevilla in 2008 then returned to HJK in Finland after one game. He scored 11 goals in 2011 and was chosen to Veikkausliiga All Starts Team.
He has played for Schalke 04 in Germany, Brondy IF in Denmark, and Celtic in Scotland. He signed for Norwich City in 2008 on a free transfer and was later named the 2018-19 EFL Championship player of the season. He is reportedly worth about $63 million.
Sami Hyypia
Sami Toumas Hyypia is a former Finnish defender and football manager. He began his football career in Kumu then moved to MyPa.
In 1995, he moved to Willem II. He was the team captain and helped them qualify for UEFA Champions League. For this reason, he was named the player of the year. He moved to Liverpool in 1999 as a defender. Here he won his football honor in 2005, which was marked as his highest honor.
He played for Bayer Leverkusen in German Bundesliga from 2009 and retired as a player in 2011. In the Finland National team, his presence was prominent, and several times he was the Finnish Sports’ Journalist and Football Association Player of the Year.
He is the second-most capped player in Finland after Jari Litmanen. He returned to Bayer Leverkusen in the 2012-2013 season as its team manager and became the new manager of FC Zurich, a Swiss club, in 2015.
Lukas Hradecky
Born on 24th November 1989, he is a Finnish goalkeeper born in Slovakia. He plays for Finland National Team and Bayer Leverkusen. He began his football career at Turun Palloseura. He was named the best goalkeeper in the International Karel Stageman U_19 Youth Tournament in the Netherlands in 2008. Later he joined Esbjerg FB in 2009.
He won his first trophy, the Danish 1st Division, in his 3rd season, then helped Esbjerg, in 2013, to win the Danish Cup. He played for Brondby in 2013 on a free transfer, Eintracht Frankfurt in 2015, and Bayer Leverkusen from May 2018.
He has won several caps and appeared in 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Conclusion
Soccer has become a phenomenon in Finland. Finnish players such as Lukas Hradecky, Sami Hyypia, Teemu Pukki, and Jari Litmanen have been named among other prominent players of all time over the years. They have won various honors both for their country and clubs.