Tofaga FC

Tofaga FC is a Tuvalu football club from Vaitupu, playing in the Tuvalu A-Division.

Tofaga FC

Full name	Tofaga Football Club
Ground	Tuvalu Sports Ground, Funafuti, Tuvalu
Capacity	1,500
League	Tuvalu A-Division
2021	1st[1]
Home colours

The team's home ground is the Tuvalu Sports Ground,^[2] on Funafuti, which is the only football field in Tuvalu. Tofaga plays on an amateur level, as do all the teams in Tuvalu. They also have a reserve squad and a women's team.

History

The team was originally name Vatokami and was founded in the 1970s. In the 1990s, Paulson Panapa and Tapugao Falefou were the team’s well-known players. In 1997 the team won its first prize, the Benson and Hedges Cup.^[3] The team won the Independence Cup (held to recognise the independence of Tuvalu) in 1998.^[3]

In 2005, the team changed its name to Tofaga.^[4]

Toakai Puapua was coach from 2006 to 2008. He was also the football coach of Tuvalu during the 2007 South Pacific Games.^[5]

Tofaga won the NBT Cup and the Independence Cup in 2006. After that, the club regularly won cups; the NBT Cup in 2007, 2008 and 2011, and three prizes in 2010 (Tuvalu Games, Independence Cup and Christmas Cup). Tofaga won the Independence Cup 5 times, and the team has also won the NBT Cup 9 times, and was the runner-up 4 times.^[3]

Tofaga’s only win of the Tuvalu A-Division competition was in 2021,^[3] although its players, including Alopua Petoa^[6] and James Lepaio,^[7] were topscorers in the Tuvalu A-Division competition, in 2011, 2012, 2019 & 2021, and Alopua Petoa is the topscorer with the Tuvalu national football team with 11 goals in his international career.^[8][9][10]

Tofaga was the runner-up in the 2023 Tuvalu A-Division competition.^[11] Tofaga won the NBT Cup in 2023, beating Vaoloa 2-1.^[11] The team included Etimoni Timuani (defender), James Lepaio (midfielder) and Alopua Petoa (striker).^[12]

Honours

Tofaga A, winners of the Tuvalu Games competition 2012

The players celebrating being champions of the 2010 Christmas Cup

League

• Tuvalu A-Division
  • Winners (1): 2021^[1]

The Tofaga reserve team has been the B-Team Champions 5 times: 2006, 2009, 2011, 2013 & 2021.^[1]

Cup

• Tuvalu Games
  • Winners (3): 2010, 2012, 2013^[3]
  • Runners-up (2): 2009, 2011^[3]
• Independence Cup
  • Winners (5): 1998, 2006, 2010, 2012, 2013^[3]
  • Runners-up (2): 2008, 2009^[3]
• NBT Cup
  • Winners (9): 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023^[3]
  • Runners-up (4): 2009, 2013, 2018, 2020^[3]
• Christmas Cup
  • Winners (2): 2010, 2019^[3]
  • Runners-up (2): 2012, 2013^[3]

See also

• Tofaga Women