Moldova
National Team Information
General Info
UEFA
Selectionata (The Selection)
- Serghei Cleșcenco – 11 goals
- Ion Nicolaescu, Serghei Rogaciov – 9 goals (tie)
- Sergiu Dadu, Iurie Miterev, Igor Bugaiov – 8 goals (tie)
- Alexandru Epureanu – Longtime Istanbul Basaksehir center back Alexandru Epureanu has won Moldovan Footballer of the Year a record five times. Epureanu is also the first Moldovan player to reach 100 appearances for the national team.
- Serghei Cleșcenco – The all-time top scorer for the Moldova National team is Serghei Clescenco. He scored 11 goals in 69 appearances and also found success on a club level in Israel. He holds the record for most goals in a single season by a foreigner in the Israeli Premier League.
- Alexandru Gațcan – Alexandru Gatcan is a four-time Moldovan Footballer of the Year winner. The midfielder participated in the Champions League with FC Rostov and made over 300 appearances in the Russian Premier League.
- Serghei Covalciuc – One of the best Moldovan players of the mid-2000s, Serghei Covalciuc was a versatile player. The former Spartak Moscow man could play in no fewer than five different positions. He’s the only player to win Moldovan footballer of the year in three consecutive years.
- Serghei Rogaciov – Serghei Rogaciov is the top scorer in the history of the Moldovan SuperLiga, the top-flight Moldova soccer league. He scored 123 goals in the SuperLiga and also added nine goals for the national team.
Moldova soccer betting, at least on the national team, has been limited to friendlies, qualifying campaigns and the UEFA Nations League. They haven’t yet qualified for a major tournament before. The Selectionata still have a ways to go before they make their first World Cup or European Championship. However, they did play well in the 2022 UEFA Nations League.
In the “D” League, Moldova compiled a 4-1-1 record, which nearly earned them promotion. They lost out to Latvia on goal difference, though. Incredibly, this was the first time that Moldova managed a positive goal difference in a single campaign of any competition. Forward Ion Nicolaescu scored four of Moldova’s ten goals in the competition.
Moldova’s soccer results in World Cup Qualifying have been abysmal throughout their history. They’ve won just five of their 68 total matches, as of the end of Qatar 2022 qualifying. Their worst performance was in the 1998 World Cup qualifying when they lost all eight of their matches. Moldova scored just twice in those matches and conceded 21 goals.
Moldova National Football Team History
Beginnings
The Moldova Football Federation was created in 1990. Before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Moldova played their first match, in July 1991. They lost 4-2 to Georgia and played their first official match vs. the USA in 1994. Moldova played to a 1-1 draw and their first qualifying campaign was for Euro 1996.
It remains their joint-best Euro qualifying campaign, with three wins and seven losses. Two of their best all-time wins came during that period. They defeated Georgia 1-0 in Tbilisi and beat Wales 3-2. However, the Selectionata lost all eight of their matches in 1998 World Cup qualifying. To this day, they’ve never managed to qualify for a major tournament.
So, saying that Moldova soccer betting is popular would be a big overstatement. That doesn’t mean they’ve had their share of positive results. They managed to beat Hungary 3-0 in 2007 and Montenegro 5-2 in 2013. The latter win was part of Moldova’s best World Cup qualifying campaign, in which they won three matches. Still, they’ve never finished better than fifth in their group and failed to win a match in the 2022 World Cup qualifying.
Moldova came in second place in UEFA Nations League Group D in 2022, level on points with Latvia. The Selectionata missed out on promotion on goal difference and should be candidates to be promoted in the next cycle. Qualifying for a major tournament will remain a challenge for the foreseeable future.
Moldova Soccer Leagues & Clubs:
Moldovan SuperLiga:
The most popular domestic league for Moldova soccer betting is the Moldovan SuperLiga. It is the top division in Moldova and was created back in 1992. There are currently only eight teams in the SuperLiga and the bottom club is relegated at the end of each season. Teams play each other four times each season, for a total of 28 matches each. As of 2022, Sheriff Tiraspol are the most successful club in the history of the league with 20 titles.
Moldovan SuperLiga Clubs 2022-23
| Team |
|---|
| CSF Bălți |
| FC Dinamo-Auto Tiraspol |
| Dacia Buiucani |
| FC Milsami Orhei |
| FC Petrocub Hîncești |
| FC Sfîntul Gheorghe |
| FC Sheriff Tiraspol |
| FC Zimbru Chișinău |
Moldovan Liga 1:
The second division Moldovan soccer league is called the Moldovan Liga 1. It has 12 teams and follows a double round-robin format. The top team is promoted to the Moldovan SuperLiga at the end of the season and two teams are relegated to the third division. The season runs from August to May.
Moldovan Liga 1 Clubs 2022-23
| Team |
|---|
| Fălești |
| Florești |
| Iskra |
| Olimp |
| Real Succes |
| Sheriff-2 |
| Spartanii |
| Sporting |
| Sucleia |
| FCM Ungheni |
| Văsieni |
| Victoria |
Moldova Cups & Tournaments
Moldova’s soccer teams compete in the Moldovan Cup annually. It is limited to non-reserve teams from the first three divisions and is a single-elimination tournament. Added extra time and penalties are played if necessary. The winner of the Moldovan Cup enters the UEFA Conference League qualifying rounds. As of 2022, Sheriff Tiraspol have won a record 11 Moldovan Cups.
The Moldovan Super Cup pits the winner of the SuperLiga vs. the winner of the Moldovan Cup. In seasons where both competitions are won by one team, the game isn’t held. The game wasn’t held in 2022 as Sheriff Tiraspol won the league and cup double in the 2021-22 season.
Moldova Soccer Betting Information
Betting on Moldovan soccer
Betting on Moldovan soccer is just about as exotic as it gets. The league is one of the least followed in Europe and it’s likely even hardcore soccer fans have only heard of FC Sheriff Tiraspol. Sheriff rose to international prominence during the group stage of the 2021 Champions League. They scored an incredible upset win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2021 in one of the most shocking results the UCL has ever seen. Sheriff were +2000 underdogs and managed to win 2-1. Sheriff’s maiden UCL campaign was the first time a Moldovan team ever reached the group stage.
Sheriff have been the dominant club in Moldovan soccer since independence. They’ve won 20 of the last 21 league titles, including every single one since 2011. CS Petrocub Hincesti have been competitive with Sheriff over the last few seasons. However, no other team has come close in the league standings recently. Betting tips note that spread betting on Sheriff could be an interesting play. They managed an incredible +109 goal differential in the 2020-21 season.
The league recently went from a ten-team format to an eight-team format so a little more parity is to be expected. While there has been a relatively high number of goals per game in the last couple of seasons, both teams don’t score in the majority of games. Despite an average of over three goals per match in 2021-22, both teams scored just 39 percent of the time. This reflects the fact that there’s a long way to go until there’s parity in the SuperLiga. That could present betting opportunities for brave punters.
Moldova National Team Betting Tips & Odds
Moldova’s record in qualifying tournaments is quite abysmal on the whole.
The Moldova national team has never had a period of sustained success in their history. They’ve had their moments but are still looking for a first major tournament breakthrough. Moldova’s record in qualifying tournaments is quite abysmal on the whole. As of the end of Qatar 2022 qualifiers, their all-time World Cup Qualifying record is 5-13-50. That’s good for a win percentage of 7.35 percent.
Moldova’s record in European Championship Qualifiers is better but still not good by any stretch of the imagination. There, they’ve compiled a 12-9-47 record and have only won once in the last two qualifying cycles. The best they’ve fared lately is in the UEFA Nations League, where they have a respectable 7-5-8 record.
In the coming years, Moldova should be a decent bet in the Nations League. They have a solid shot to advance to the Nations League C in 2024. By all accounts, Ion Nicolaescu should become Moldova’s all-time leading goal scorer. The 24-year-old only has to score four more goals to get there.
Conclusion
Betting on Moldovan soccer is not for the weak, especially when Sheriff Tiraspol isn’t involved. Bettors may have a decent time finding inefficiencies in lines if they’re willing to put the time in to understand the SuperLiga. Sheriff have undoubtedly raised the profile of the league but it’s still quite unknown.
Be aware of what you’re getting into when you bet on the Moldovan National team. They don’t win often in qualifying matches but props, totals and spreads could be good options.
