On June 6, 2025, Sweden’s men’s national team kept a clean sheet in a 2–0 away win over Hungary in an international friendly.
After that, they went 18 straight matches conceding at least one goal before the nightmare streak ended with a 1–0 win over Romania in Bucharest, thanks to a goal from Viktor Gyökeres, in the Nations League.
It was probably in a good position, too, says goalkeeper Viktor Johansson.
The Stoke goalkeeper has played in all four of Sweden’s Nations League matches, in which the team has taken ten of a possible twelve points.
A goal ahead - then it’s always extra nice to keep a clean sheet. It was incredibly fun, says Johansson.
After the final whistle, he hugged his centre-backs.
“They’ve been absolutely fantastic. They head everything away, block everything. They make it very easy for me. I think they deserved this,” says Johansson.
It was national team coach Graham Potter’s first clean sheet in his 14 matches in charge.
The Englishman took over in the final stages of last autumn’s failed World Cup qualifying campaign, after Dane Jon Dahl Tomasson was fired. Sweden qualified for this summer’s World Cup through a successful playoff in March, where their campaign in North America ended with a 0–3 defeat to France in the round of 16.
We have to fight a lot today and we knew it wouldn’t be an easy match. You’ve been nagging about that clean sheet, so now we got it. It’s great not to get asked about it, says left-back Gabriel Gudmundsson.
Sweden’s men’s national team went 18 straight matches without keeping a clean sheet before the streak ended with a 1–0 away win over Romania in the Nations League.
Here are all the matches:
2025
Algeria 4–3 (home), international friendly
Slovenia 2–2 (away), World Cup qualifiers
Kosovo 0–2 (away), World Cup qualifiers
Switzerland 0–2 (home), World Cup qualifiers
Kosovo 0–1 (home), World Cup qualifiers
Switzerland 1–4 (away), World Cup qualifiers
Slovenia 1–1 (home), World Cup qualifiers
2026
Ukraine 3–1 (away), World Cup playoff
Poland 3–2 (home), World Cup playoff
Norway 1–3 (away), international friendly
Greece 2–2 (home), international friendly
Tunisia 5–1, World Cup group stage
Netherlands 1–5, World Cup group stage
Japan 1–1, World Cup group stage
France 0–3, World Cup round of 16
Romania 2–1 (home), Nations League
Poland 3–1 (home), Nations League
Bosnia-Herzegovina 1–1 (away), Nations League
