13 matches for Armenia’s national teams during the international break: one win and eight defeats

Several Armenia national teams across different age groups were in action during the international break in late September and early October. The senior national team began its UEFA Nations League campaign, the U21 side completed its Euro 2027 qualifying campaign, while the U17, U19 and U20 teams played friendlies and prepared for upcoming official tournaments.

In total, Armenia’s national teams played 13 matches. The overall record was one win in regular time, one penalty shootout victory, three draws and eight defeats.

Senior national team: a strong start followed by a difficult run

Armenia’s senior national team began its 2026/27 UEFA Nations League campaign and played four matches in a short period of time.

The start was almost perfect, as Yeghishe Melikyan’s team comfortably defeated Latvia 2-0 in Yerevan.

That was followed by a difficult run marked by numerous injuries and squad losses.

At home against Montenegro, Armenia came close to earning a deserved draw but conceded a decisive late goal and lost 3-2.

An away defeat to Cyprus followed — 2-0. Two costly individual mistakes effectively determined the outcome of that match.

Armenia finished the international window on a much more positive note. In Podgorica, Melikyan’s side played out a 0-0 draw with group leaders Montenegro, producing a solid defensive performance despite personnel problems and accumulated fatigue.

Senior national team results

Armenia — Latvia — 2-0

Armenia — Montenegro — 2-3

Cyprus — Armenia — 2-0

Montenegro — Armenia — 0-0

Armenia U21: painful defeat to Italy and a first point

Armenia U21 played its final two matches of the Euro 2027 qualifying campaign.

In Yerevan, Armen Gyulbudaghyants’ team put up a serious fight against Italy. Armenia held on for a draw for a long time, while goalkeeper Hayk Ghazaryan even saved a penalty in the second half. However, the visitors eventually scored the winning goal in the closing stages to secure a 1-0 victory.

In the final round, Armenia U21 faced Montenegro away from home. After a poor first half, the team improved significantly after the break, equalised through David Hakobyan and even came close to snatching a victory late on.

The match ended 1-1, giving Armenia its first and only point of the qualifying campaign.

U21 results

Armenia U21 — Italy U21 — 0-1

Montenegro U21 — Armenia U21 — 1-1

Armenia U20’s first tournament

Another notable event was the first appearance of the newly formed Armenia U20 national team.

The team, coached by Misha Djorkaeff, travelled to a friendly tournament in Tashkent, where it faced Uzbekistan U20, Russia U19 and Saudi Arabia U20.

The opening match ended in a heavy 5-1 defeat to the hosts, but Armenia then kept two consecutive clean sheets.

Against Russia, the match finished 0-0 in regular time before Armenia won the penalty shootout 5-3.

The match against Saudi Arabia also ended goalless, but this time Armenia lost the shootout 5-3.

For a team that had effectively been assembled for the first time, the tournament can be viewed as a useful experience. Djorkaeff had previously worked with most of these players at U19 level, where the team lost all of its matches in the previous stage. Against that background, two matches without conceding can already be considered a sign of progress.

U20 results

Armenia U20 — Uzbekistan U20 — 1-5

Armenia U20 — Russia U19 — 0-0 (5-3 on penalties)

Armenia U20 — Saudi Arabia U20 — 0-0 (3-5 on penalties)

Armenia U19 unable to beat Estonia

Armenia U19, coached by Razmik Grigoryan, played two friendly matches against Estonia.

The games were part of the team’s preparations for November’s official matches against Cyprus and Albania, which will take place in Cyprus. The first meeting ended in a 1-1 draw, while Estonia won the second match 3-1.

It is also worth noting that the current U19 squad differs significantly from the team that played in the spring. A number of players have already moved up to the U21 side, while one of the team’s key players, Daniel Hambardzumov, was absent due to injury.

In March, this age group had produced strong results, drawing with Kosovo and Turkey and also thrashing Gibraltar 9-0.

The team’s main objective now will be to prepare for the official matches in November.

U19 results

Armenia U19 — Estonia U19 — 1-1

Armenia U19 — Estonia U19 — 1-3

Armenia U17 lose twice to Lebanon

Armenia U17 also continued preparations for its upcoming official matches. Mher Mirumyan’s team played two friendlies against Lebanon and lost both of them — 2-0 and 2-1.

The biggest tests are still ahead. From November 11 to 17, Yerevan will host a UEFA European U17 Championship qualifying tournament, where Armenia will face Italy, France and Luxembourg.

U17 results

Armenia U17 — Lebanon U17 — 0-2

Armenia U17 — Lebanon U17 — 1-2

Overall results of the international break

In total, five Armenia national teams played 13 matches.

If penalty shootouts are counted as separate outcomes, the record is as follows:

1 win in regular time

1 penalty shootout victory

3 draws

8 defeats

Senior national team:
Armenia — Latvia 2-0
Armenia — Montenegro 2-3
Cyprus — Armenia 2-0
Montenegro — Armenia 0-0

U19 national team:
Armenia U19 — Estonia U19 1-1
Armenia U19 — Estonia U19 1-3

U20 national team:
Armenia U20 — Uzbekistan U20 1-5
Armenia U20 — Russia U19 0-0 (5-3 on penalties)
Armenia U20 — Saudi Arabia U20 0-0 (3-5 on penalties)

U21 national team:
Armenia U21 — Italy U21 0-1
Montenegro U21 — Armenia U21 1-1

U17 national team:
Armenia U17 — Lebanon U17 0-2
Armenia U17 — Lebanon U17 1-2

At the same time, the results differed not only in scorelines but also in significance. The senior national team picked up its first points of the new Nations League campaign, the U21 side completed an extremely difficult qualifying cycle, the U20 team assembled as a separate squad for the first time, while the U17 and U19 teams primarily used the international break as preparation for their official matches in November.