List of men's national association football teams
Wikimedia list article From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Remove ads
This is a list of the men's national association football (soccer) teams in the world. There are more nations with football teams than for any other sport.[1] Teams represent 191 of the 193 UN member states, as well as several dependent territories, sub-national entities, and states who are not members of the United Nations. This list divides teams into two main groups:
- Teams which are either members of FIFA (International Federation of Association Football) the world's football governing body (211 teams), or have membership in a FIFA-affiliated continental confederation without being members of FIFA (12 teams).
- Teams who are not members of FIFA or any continental federation, but which represent sovereign states. This group includes United Nations members and observer states, as well as states who are not members of the UN (11 teams).
This list excludes other teams that generally play Non-FIFA football. Excluded teams include those who represent ethnic groups, sub-national entities, separatist movements, and micro-nations.
Remove ads
Members of FIFA affiliated confederations

Confederation of African Football (CAF)
This section lists the current 211 men's national football teams affiliated to FIFA, through their national football associations, and the 12 men's national football teams who have membership in one of FIFA's affiliated continental confederations, but are not members of FIFA. These are displayed in the main list in italics.
FIFA members are eligible to enter the FIFA World Cup and matches between them are recognized as official international matches. Based on their match results over the previous four-year period, the FIFA World Rankings, published monthly by FIFA, compare how good the national teams are on a point-based system.
Some national teams who are members of a confederation but not FIFA members compete in confederation-level and subregional tournaments. However, These teams are not allowed to participate in the World Cup.
The six confederations are:
- Asia – Asian Football Confederation (AFC)[note 1]
- Africa – Confederation of African Football (CAF)[note 1]
- North, Central America and the Caribbean – Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF)
- South America – Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL)
- Oceania – Oceania Football Confederation (OFC)
- Europe – Union of European Football Associations (UEFA)
FIFA runs the World Cup as a tournament for national teams to find the world champion. Each confederation also runs its own championship to find the best team from among its members:
- AFC – AFC Asian Cup
- CAF – Africa Cup of Nations
- CONCACAF – CONCACAF Gold Cup
- CONMEBOL – Copa América
- OFC – OFC Nations Cup
- UEFA – UEFA European Championship
Although it is not a confederation, the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA) coordinates football activities between Arabic-speaking countries. All 22 national governing bodies that form UAFA are also members of both FIFA and either the AFC or CAF. National teams from UAFA member countries are noted in the list below.
The Confederation of Independent Football Associations (ConIFA) is an organization for teams representing unrecognised states, subnational regions, and stateless minorities, as well as teams from recognised states that have not managed to gain entry into FIFA. While none of its current members are also members of FIFA, a few hold associate membership in one of the confederations affiliated with it. These teams are also noted in the list below.[2]
AFC (Asia)
The AFC is subdivided into five sub-federations:
- West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) – represents nations at the western extremity of the continent, except Iran and Israel.
- East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) – represents nations in East Asia, plus Guam and Northern Mariana Islands.
- Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) – represents nations in Central Asia, except Kazakhstan, plus Iran and Afghanistan.
- South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) – represents nations in South Asia, except Afghanistan.
- ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) – represents nations in Southeast Asia, plus Australia.
- 1: National governing body was formerly a member of OFC (1966–2006)
- 2: National governing body is a member of UAFA
- 3: Official name used by FIFA and AFC for People's Republic of China
- 4: Official name used by FIFA and AFC for Republic of China (Taiwan); national governing body was a member of OFC from 1975 to 1989
- 5: Official name used by FIFA and AFC for Islamic Republic of Iran
- 6: Official name used by FIFA for Democratic People's Republic of Korea; official name used by AFC is DPR Korea
- 7: Official name used by FIFA and AFC for Republic of Korea
- 8: Official name used by FIFA and AFC for Kyrgyzstan
- 9: National governing body is an associate member of AFC but not a FIFA member
- 10: National governing body was formerly a member of OFC (2005–2009)
- 11: Official name used by FIFA and AFC for national team representing the Palestinian Territories
CAF (Africa)
CAF is divided into five regional federations:
- Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) – represents nations generally regarded as forming the regions of East Africa and some nations of Central Africa.
- Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) – represents nations generally regarded as forming Southern Africa, as well as island states off the coast of Southern Africa.
- West African Football Union (WAFU/UFOA) – represents nations in West Africa.
- Central African Football Federation – represents some of the nations that form Central Africa.
- 1: National governing body is a member of UAFA
- 2: Official name used by FIFA for Democratic Republic of the Congo; official name used by CAF is RD Congo
- 3: National governing body is an associate member of CAF, but not a FIFA member
- 4: National governing body is a member of ConIFA
CONCACAF (North America, Central America, and the Caribbean)
The CONCACAF federation is divided into three regional federations that have responsibility for part of the region's geographical area:
- Caribbean Football Union (CFU) – represents all nations in the Caribbean, plus Bermuda and three nations in South America.[note 2]
- North American Football Union (NAFU) – represents the teams of Canada, Mexico and the USA.
- Union Centroamericana de Fútbol (UNCAF) – represents the seven nations of Central America.
- 1: National governing body is a full member of CONCACAF but not a FIFA member
CONMEBOL (South America)
OFC (Oceania)
- 1: National governing body is an associate member of the OFC, but not a FIFA member
- 2: National governing body is a member of ConIFA
- 3: National governing body was formerly a member of AFC (1964–1966)
UEFA (Europe)
Remove ads
National teams not affiliated to FIFA confederations
The national football teams included in this section are not members of FIFA, or of any of its affiliated continental confederations. These teams are not eligible to enter the FIFA World Cup or any continental confederation championships. FIFA's statutes do not allow member teams to compete against these sides without FIFA's prior permission.[3] Several national associations for teams included in this section are members of ConIFA; these are indicated in the lists below.
This section lists:
- 5 teams representing sovereign states who are members or observers of the United Nations.
- 7 teams representing states which are not members of the United Nations.
Unaffiliated United Nations states
There are seven United Nations member and observer states which are not members of FIFA or any of its affiliated continental confederations. Five of them, however, have fielded national association-organised teams in unofficial friendly matches, regional tournaments (such as the Pacific Games or Micronesian Games), or in global tournaments that are not regulated by FIFA. These teams are listed below.
1: Senior national football teams representing the United Kingdom have only played unofficial friendly matches (usually under the name "Great Britain", though there have also been "Rest of the United Kingdom" representative teams). Otherwise, the UK is represented in FIFA and UEFA organized football by the teams of its constituent countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales (these teams are listed in the UEFA subsection above). Teams representing the entire kingdom have also competed in the Summer Olympics, such as the Great Britain Olympic football team.
2: Official name used by the Pacific Games Council for Micronesia.[4]
3: National governing body is a member of ConIFA.
4: Listed as associate member of the OFC in 2002 and again in 2006. It is unclear whether Palau is still associated with the confederation.[5]
Two other UN member states (the Marshall Islands and Nauru) have never fielded a national association-organised football team, though there are reports that amateur football teams claiming to represent the Nauru national soccer team have participated in local friendly matches on at least two occasions.[6][7]
Others
Membership criteria of FIFA and affiliated confederations
Historically, the majority of FIFA and confederation members have been sovereign states with wide diplomatic recognition. Exceptions to this rule include the British Home Nations (due to their small role in the development of football), the Republic of China (which does not enjoy wide recognition but is still accepted as a representative of the Taiwan area), and certain dependent territories, autonomous areas, and protectorates, which have been allowed to hold membership in FIFA and/or one of its affiliated confederations based on their political autonomy, separate status, and/or distance from their parent state. At present, FIFA members include 23 subnational and dependent territories, as well as two states with limited international recognition.
The FIFA-affiliated football teams that belong to non-UN members are:
|
|
|
Ten other overseas, dependent, and autonomous territories with close ties to a sovereign state do not have membership in FIFA, but are members of one of its affiliated confederations.
Remove ads
Former national football teams
These national teams no longer exist due to the dissolution of the nation or territory that they represented. Only national teams that were once members of FIFA are listed below.
New names
In addition to the above, other nations have been renamed:
Belgian Congo →
Congo-Léopoldville in 1960 →
Congo-Kinshasa in 1963 →
Zaire in 1971 →
DR Congo in 1997
British Gambia →
Gambia in 1965
British Guiana →
Guyana in 1966
Burma →
Myanmar in 1989
Cambodia →
Khmer Republic in 1970 →
Kampuchea in 1975 →
Cambodia in 1979
Ceylon →
Sri Lanka in 1972
Curaçao →
Netherlands Antilles in 1958 until 2010
Czechoslovakia →
Representation of Czechs and Slovaks in 1993
Dahomey →
Benin in 1975
Dutch East Indies →
Indonesia in 1945
FR Yugoslavia →
Serbia and Montenegro in 2003
FYR Macedonia →
North Macedonia in 2019
French Somaliland →
Djibouti in 1977
French Togoland →
Togo in 1960
Gold Coast →
Ghana in 1957
Irish Free State →
Ireland in 1936 →
Republic of Ireland in 1954
Ivory Coast →
Côte d'Ivoire in 1983
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes →
Yugoslavia in 1929
Madagascar →
Malagasy Republic in 1958 →
Madagascar in 1975
Middle Congo →
Congo-Brazzaville in 1960 →
Congo in 1992
New Hebrides →
Vanuatu in 1980
Northern Rhodesia →
Zambia in 1964
Nyasaland →
Malawi in 1966
Portuguese Guinea →
Guinea-Bissau in 1975
Russian Empire →
Soviet Union in 1923
Southern Rhodesia →
Rhodesia in 1964 →
Zimbabwe in 1980
Surinam →
Dutch Guiana in 1954
Swaziland →
Eswatini in 2018
United Arab Republic →
Egypt in 1971
Upper Volta →
Burkina Faso in 1984
Western Samoa →
Samoa in 1996
- Notes
Remove ads
Related pages
Notes
References
Sources
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Remove ads