Ecuador national football team

Ecuador
Nickname(s)	La Tri (The Tri); La Tricolor (The Tricolors)
Association	Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF)
Confederation	CONMEBOL (South America)
Head coach	Félix Sánchez Bas
Captain	Enner Valencia
Most caps	Iván Hurtado (168)
Top scorer	Enner Valencia (40)
Home stadium	Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado
FIFA code	ECU
FIFA ranking
Current	31 (4 April 2024)
Highest	10 (June 2013)
Lowest	71 (November 2017)
First international
	Bolivia 1–1 Ecuador ; (Bogotá, Colombia; 8 August 1938)
Biggest win
	Ecuador 6–0 Peru ; (Quito, Ecuador; 22 June 1975)
Biggest defeat
	Argentina 12–0 Ecuador ; (Montevideo, Uruguay; 22 January 1942)
World Cup
Appearances	4 (first in 2002)
Best result	Round of 16 (2006)
Copa América
Appearances	29 (first in 1939)
Best result	Fourth place (1959, 1993)
CONCACAF Gold Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 2002)
Best result	Group stage (2002)

The Ecuador national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Ecuador) represents Ecuador in men's international football and is controlled by the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF). They joined FIFA in 1926 and CONMEBOL a year later.

Discarding an invitation to participate in the inaugural FIFA World Cup held in Uruguay, Ecuador did not make their tournament debut until 2002. After finishing above Brazil and Uruguay in the standings, the qualifying campaign marked the emergence of several players, such as Agustín Delgado, Álex Aguinaga, Iván Hurtado, Ulises de la Cruz and Iván Kaviedes, who would set the stage for Ecuador's achievements in the next decade.^[3] Having reached the Round of 16 in a memorable 2006 World Cup campaign,^[4] they were expected to deliver at the 2007 Copa América but were eliminated in the group stage.^[5] Along with Venezuela, they have not won the continental tournament. La Tri's best performance was fourth in 1959 and 1993, both times on home soil.

Ecuador plays the majority of their home matches at the Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa in Quito.

^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 27 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
^ "Hace 18 años Ecuador clasificó a su primer mundial de fútbol". El Universo (in Spanish). 7 November 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
^ "Ecuador Breathes the Thick Air of Victory". The New York Times. 15 June 2006. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
^ Raúl Chávez (6 July 2007). "Falta de puntería silencia a seleccionados ecuatorianos". Archived from the original on 27 December 2007. Retrieved 27 April 2020.