Chile Tickets

Just like with many countries in South America, football is without a doubt the most popular sport in Chile.

Supporters of La Roja show great passion for their team and you can be there too with the help of SeatPick.

History of the Chile National Football Team

The Football Federation of Chile was founded in 1895, making it the second-oldest professional football federation across South America.

The Chile national football team played its first (official) international fixture in 1910. It came against Argentina, who won the match 3-1 in Beunos Aires.

Chile participated in a major tournament for the first time in 1916, at the South American Championship which is today known as Copa America. La Roja also played in the first edition of the FIFA World Cup.

115 years after its first official match, Chile won a first major trophy in 2015. Following this, the country achieved its highest-ever FIFA ranking of 3rd.

Chile at the FIFA World Cup

Chile was one 13 teams to take part in the inaugural FIFA World Cup back in 1930. The South Americans defeated both Mexico and France, but lost to Argentina and subsequently crashed out at the group stage.

The Chileans didn't feature again at the tournament until 1950. La Roja beat the United States in their third and final group game, following losses to England and Spain.

Chile's next appearance at the World Cup came in 1962, when they held the spectacle on home soil. The home support played a massive role in the host nation progressing beyond the group stage for the first time and reaching the semi-finals.

Victory over both Switzerland and Italy saw Chile advance to the quarter-finals where they would get the better of the Soviet Union, 2-1. La Roja ultimately lost to Brazil, 4-2, as Garrincha scored twice at Estadio Nacional in Santiago, though the hosts subsequently won the third-place match against Yugoslavia.

Chile then failed to win any of their nine group games at the 1966, 1974 and 1982 events, before completely missing out on the following three editions of the World Cup. In 1998, Chile returned to the world stage and reached the knockouts despite not winning any of their three group matches against Italy, Austria and Cameroon. The Chileans lost in the Round of 16 to eventual runners-up Brazil.

Another 12 years went by as Chile didn't make another World Cup appearance until 2010. They were beaten by eventual champions Spain in the group stage, but wins over Switzerland and Honduras propelled Chile to the Round of 16. They were once again outmanoeuvred by a superior Brazil team, 3-0, in Johannesburg.

In 2014, Chile reached the knockouts of back-to-back World Cup events for the first time. Having conquered Australia and Spain in the group stage, Chile advanced as runners-up to the Netherlands and faced none other than Brazil in the last-16. Not for the first time the men in yellow emerged triumphant, this time via a penalty shootout.

Chile didn't qualify for the 2018 nor the 2022 edition of the FIFA World Cup.

Chile at Other Major Tournaments

Chile participated in the inaugural Copa America tournament, in 1916, then known as the South American Championship.

It wasn't until 1955 that La Roja reached the final for the first time, though they ultimately lost to Argentina. The following year, having made the final once more, Chile tasted defeat again, this time at the hands of Uruguay.

The Chileans claimed another two runners-up medals, in 1979 and 1987, before eventually winning the Copa America for themselves in 2015 and again the very next year.

Held on home soil, the 2015 event was the 37th edition of the competition in which Chile took part and it was a first-ever major title for La Roja. They then defended their crown at Copa America Centenario, beating Argentina in successive finals.

In 1984, the Chile national team made it to the quarter-finals at the Olympic Games.

Best Chile Football Players

Alexis Sanchez has made more than 150 appearances for his country and he is the top scorer in Chile national soccer team history. The winger made his debut in 2006, aged just 17 at the time. He was later at the forefront as La Roja won back-to-back Copa America titles in 2016.

At club level, Alexis plied his trade at some of Europe's most successful and well-known clubs namely FC Barcelona, Arsenal and Manchester United.

Also playing an influential role in Chile's success of 2015-16 was Eduardo Vargas. The striker netted a tournament-high six goals at Copa America Centenario, having scored four for his country at the previous edition just 12 months prior. Vargas played for Napoli among others.

Just like Alexis, Gary Medel has earned upward of 150 caps for Chile. He has also sported the shirts of Sevilla and Inter Milan.

Arturo Vidal made almost 400 appearances combined for three European heavyweights in Juventus, Bayern Munich and Barcelona. The midfielder initially lured attention whilst at Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen, and to date he has represented his national team more than 140 times.

Claudio Bravo has captained Chile on no fewer than 120 occasions, leading his country at two World Cup tournaments (2010 & 2014) as well as in the successful Copa America campaigns of 2015 and 2016. The goalkeeper impressed during spells with Real Sociedad and Barcelona in LaLiga before signing for English Premier League side Manchester City in 2016.