Gibraltar national football team

The Gibraltar national football team represents Gibraltar in international football competitions, and is controlled by the Gibraltar Football Association. Gibraltar applied for full UEFA membership and was accepted by the UEFA Congress in May 2013 and can therefore compete in the UEFA European Championship beginning with the 2016 tournament for which the team competed in UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group D. On 13 May 2016 Gibraltar became a member of FIFA at the governing body's 66th Congress which was held in Mexico City.[3] Gibraltar is the smallest UEFA member in terms of both area and population.[4][5]

Gibraltar
Nickname(s)Team 54[1]
Los Llanis
AssociationGibraltar Football Association
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachJulio César Ribas
CaptainRoy Chipolina
Most capsLiam Walker (50)
Top scorerLee Casciaro (3)
Home stadiumVictoria Stadium
FIFA codeGIB
First colours
Second colours
Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current 195 (10 December 2020)[2]
Highest190 (October 2018)
Lowest206 (April 2017 – March 2018)
First international
 Gibraltar 0–0 Slovakia 
(Faro, Portugal; 19 November 2013)
Biggest win
 Gibraltar 1–0 Malta 
(Faro, Portugal; 4 June 2014)
 Gibraltar 1–0 Latvia 
(Gibraltar; 25 March 2018)
 Armenia 0–1 Gibraltar 
(Yerevan, Armenia; 13 October 2018)
 Gibraltar 2–1 Liechtenstein 
(Gibraltar; 16 October 2018)
 Gibraltar 1–0 San Marino 
(Gibraltar; 5 September 2020)
 Liechtenstein 0–1 Gibraltar 
(Vaduz, Liechtenstein; 10 October 2020)
Biggest defeat
 Belgium 9–0 Gibraltar 
(Liège, Belgium; 31 August 2017)

Despite not being an island, Gibraltar set up its first official side for the football competition at the 1993 Island Games[6] and has been a regular in the tournament, winning the 2007 edition.[7]

History

Pre-UEFA

Gibraltar's first unofficial national match took place against Jersey in the 1993 Island Games in the Isle of Wight, although the team had previously played friendlies versus professional and amateur clubs. The result was a 2–1 loss for the Gibraltarians. Gibraltar's largest unofficial win was 19–0 versus Sark, in St. Martin, Guernsey, whilst their largest unofficial loss was 5–0 versus Greenland – an autonomous region of Denmark – which also took part on the Isle of Wight, in Freshwater.

Foundation

The history of the Gibraltarian national football side can be traced back to April 1923, when it travelled to Spain to play club side Sevilla in a friendly; two games were played and Gibraltar lost both.[6] The side also managed a draw with Real Madrid in 1949.[8][9]

Island Games

Before joining UEFA, Gibraltar competed in numerous football competitions, most regularly in the Island Games.

The first competition the team entered was the 1993 Island Games, despite Gibraltar not being an island. Gibraltar lost all of its matches, scoring only one goal and finishing in last place.

They had much more success in the 1995 Island Games, which they hosted. Despite losing their opening game against Greenland, Gibraltar bounced back to record their first competitive win, against the Isle of Man. Another victory over Anglesey saw Gibraltar finish second in the group, ahead of Anglesey only on goal difference, and qualify for the semi finals. There, they beat Jersey 1–0, before losing the final to the Isle of Wight by the same scoreline.

In the 1997 Island Games, two wins and two losses in the group stage, followed by a defeat to Shetland in a playoff, saw Gibraltar finish 6th out of 9 teams. Another poor performance in 1999 saw them finish 11th.

Island Games results improved slightly in 2001, as they came 5th, and in 2003 Gibraltar recorded their biggest win ever, defeating Sark 19–0. Other good results against Greenland and Orkney saw them finish 6th out of 12. Despite these minor successes, Gibraltar did not enter the 2005 tournament.

A football team represented Gibraltar at the 2015 edition of the games even after Gibraltar was accepted by UEFA. However, the squad was a development team composed of under-19s and over-aged players with no first team senior squad members taking part.[10] The team was coached by John Moreno.

Year Round Position GP W D L GS GA
19891991Did not enter
19937th Place Match8400419
1995Runners-Up2540153
19975th Place Match65203138
199911th Place Match114103911
20015th Place Match5430172
20035th Place Match65302295
2005Did not enter
2007Champions1431092
20099th Place Match94211123
20115th Place Match53201147
2013Did not enter
2015[nb 1]9th Place Match10411236
2017Did not enter
2019Replaced by 2019 Inter Games Football Tournament
Total10/151 Title422131810256
*Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won. Red border colour indicates tournament was held on home soil.

FIFI "Wild Cup"

In early summer 2006 Gibraltar participated in the 2006 FIFI Wild Cup where it was ranked 3rd. The tournament was an alternative World Cup for non-FIFA members, which was only held once. In Gibraltar's opening match, they drew 1–1 with the hosts, the 'Republic of St. Pauli', before beating Tibet 5–0 in their second group game to qualify for the semi-finals. There they lost 2–0 to eventual champions Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus - following Gibraltar's games against Cyprus in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification games in 2017, Gibraltar achieved a rare feat of playing both Cypriot national teams. In the third place playoff, Gibraltar had a rematch against St. Pauli. This time Gibraltar were able to defeat the hosts, to finish in third place out of the six teams.[11]

Year Round Position GP W D L GS GA
20063rd Place Playoff3421184
Total1/10 Titles421184

2008 Four Nations

In 2008 Gibraltar accepted an invitation to participate in The Four Nations Tournament, the most prominent senior football tournament that Gibraltar had ever participated in. The 2008 Four Nations Tournament, won by England C, was played in North Wales, and was contested between Wales Semi-Pro, England C, Scotland B and guest nation Gibraltar after Northern Ireland decided not to take part. Though Gibraltar eventually finished bottom of the group, they pushed tournament winners England C close.[12]

Year Round Position GP W D L GS GA
2008Group43003411
Total1/10 Titles3003411

Record of matches

Opponent P W D L GF GA
 Åland Islands 100112
England C 210132
 Faroe Islands 210144
 Frøya 3300171
 Greenland 420277
 Guernsey 101000
Isle of Man 220031
 Isle of Wight 420263
 Jersey 7115815
 Madeira 100102
 Menorca 110021
 Monaco 211062
 Northern Cyprus 100102
 Orkney 220091
 Rhodes 220060
 Sark 1100190
Scotland Semi-Pro 100124
 Shetland 410356
 Tibet 110050
Wales Semi-Pro 100126
 Ynys Môn 410336

Honours

FIFA membership

After becoming a member of UEFA (see below), the GFA aimed to become a full FIFA member in time to participate in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification.[13] On 26 September 2014, it was announced that Gibraltar's application for FIFA membership was denied, with president Sepp Blatter stating that Gibraltar is ineligible because it is not an independent country. This was despite FIFA at the time including 22 members that are not independent countries, including five in UEFA (Faroe Islands and the four Home Nations of the United Kingdom). The Gibraltar Football Association then announced that it planned to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the same process by which Gibraltar successfully gained UEFA membership in 2013.[14] The CAS heard Gibraltar's case on 21 May 2015, at which time no time frame for a verdict was announced and further legal arguments would still be heard. It was expected that no decision would be reached before the FIFA congress coming the following week.[15] A ruling was announced on 2 May 2016, nearly a year after the CAS heard Gibraltar's case. As part of the ruling, FIFA was ordered to transmit Gibraltar's application for membership to the FIFA congress which was set to take place the following week in Mexico City. Additionally, FIFA was ordered to take "all necessary steps to admit the Gibraltar Football Association as a full member of FIFA without delay." If the vote held at the congress was successful, it was believed that Gibraltar would be a last-minute addition to 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification.[16] In FIFA's official statement regarding the ruling, the organization said that the it expected to discuss the matter at the upcoming congress and discuss a course of action, including potentially altering the congress agenda to submit Gibraltar's application for membership.[17] On 13 May 2016, Gibraltar was accepted as a member of FIFA with a vote of 172 to 12 in favour. Gibraltar became FIFA's 211th member immediately after the Football Federation of Kosovo was voted member 210.[18]

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record FIFA World Cup qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 2014 Not a FIFA memberNot a FIFA member
2018 Did not qualify 100010347
2022 To be determined
2026 To be determined
Total 0/21 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0 0 10 3 47

    UEFA acceptance

    Gibraltar starting XI in UEFA debut against Slovakia

    Gibraltar first applied for UEFA membership in 1999 but was rejected because of intense opposition from Spain. Spain's opposition stemmed not only from claiming ownership of the territory but from fear that Gibraltar's acceptance would set a precedent that would inspire the separatist Basque national football team and Catalan national football teams to apply for UEFA membership as well. The issue was voted on again in 2007 but only three member nations (England, Scotland, and Wales)[9] supported Gibraltar's bid after Spain threatened to withdraw Spanish teams from all UEFA competitions. UEFA then established rules, which were introduced following pressure from Spain, restricting membership to sovereign states recognised as such by the United Nations. The Gibraltar FA then went to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in 2007 and again in 2011 after an appeal and it was ruled that Gibraltar could not be refused membership because the sovereignty rules were not established until after Gibraltar's 1999 and 2007 applications. At this time, Gibraltar was named a provisional member of UEFA and was granted permission to enter national teams in under-17 and under-19 tournaments for the first time.[19][20]

    The GFA was accepted as a full UEFA member by resolution of the UEFA Congress held in London on 24 May 2013, with only Spain and Belarus opposed.[21][22] This meant Gibraltar became the smallest UEFA member by population, behind San Marino, then Liechtenstein and the Faroe Islands. As a result of the vote, the Gibraltar national team became eligible to enter the qualification tournaments for UEFA's premier national team competition, the European Championship. The first such opportunity was the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, which would kick off in September 2014. Following the examples of Armenia–Azerbaijan and Russia–Georgia, it was confirmed that Gibraltar and Spain would be kept apart in qualifying groups.[5]

    After being accepted into UEFA, the GFA outlined adjusted eligibility criteria for the selection of players for the national squad. To be eligible, a player must be a British passport holder who was born in Gibraltar, or has Gibraltarian parents or grandparents, or has attended school for five years locally.[23] Former Manchester United, Derby County, Southampton and Stoke City defender Danny Higginbotham, whose uncle Allen Bula was the team manager, was eligible to be called up because of this criteria adjustment.[24][25] On 18 September 2013, Higginbotham announced that he agreed in "principle" to play for Gibraltar.[26][27] Recruiting of English-born players by manager Allen Bula was unpopular with some fans,[28] and in 2015 Bula's successor Jeff Wood said he would use more home-based players and develop local talent while still searching for eligible players elsewhere.[29]

    Gibraltar's first official international match was a 0–0 friendly draw against Slovakia, on 19 November 2013 at the Estadio Algarve in Portugal.[30] On 23 February 2014, Gibraltar was drawn in Group D for the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying alongside Germany, Poland, Georgia, Republic of Ireland and Scotland. Initially, Gibraltar were drawn into the same group as Spain for the tournament but the previous decision to keep the two teams apart in qualifying rounds was upheld and Gibraltar was immediately moved into another group. This was their first time participating in an official European competition.[31] In June 2014, Gibraltar recorded their first ever victory under UEFA with a 1–0 win against Malta, the goal coming from Kyle Casciaro.[32]

    Euro 2016 qualifying

    On 7 September 2014, Gibraltar played their first competitive match – a Euro 2016 qualifier against Poland. Despite coming into the game with optimism and excitement, they were still massive underdogs[33] and although the half time score was only 1–0 to Poland, it ended 7–0. On 11 October 2014, they were defeated once again by 7–0, this time by Republic of Ireland, in their second Euro 2016 qualifier. In their third match, they were beaten for the third time by Georgia 3–0.

    On 29 March 2015, Gibraltar scored their first ever goal in a full international competitive match. Lee Casciaro scored against Scotland at Hampden Park, Glasgow during the first half to level the match at 1–1. However, Scotland went on to win 6–1.[34] In July 2015, Englishman Jeff Wood was appointed manager, succeeding caretaker Dave Wilson who took over from Gibraltar's first manager Allen Bula in March 2015.[35] Gibraltar could not repeat their performance of scoring a goal in the next two matches; losing 7–0 away against Germany[36] and 4–0 against Republic of Ireland.[37] On 7 September 2015, Jake Gosling scored Gibraltar's second-ever competitive goal; netting a late consolation goal as his team was defeated 8–1 by Poland.[38] Gibraltar finished its maiden qualifying campaign last in its group with zero points.[39] With a 0–6 defeat to Scotland in the final match of qualifying, Gibraltar allowed 56 total goals throughout qualification, surpassing San Marino's previous record of 53 in a 10-match qualification process.[40]

    UEFA European Championship

    UEFA Euro RecordUEFA European Championship qualifying record
    Year Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
    19602012 Not a UEFA memberNot a UEFA member
    2016 Did not qualify 100010256
    2020 Did not qualify 8008331
    2024 To be determined       
    Total 0/17 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 18 0 0 18 5 87

    UEFA Nations League

    UEFA Nations League record
    Season Division Group Round Pos RK Pld W D L GF GA P/R
    2018–19 D 4 Group stage 3rd49th6204515
    2020–21 D 2 1st49th422031
    2022–23 C TBA To be determined
    Total Best: Group stage 2/2 49th 10 4 2 4 8 16

    2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying – UEFA Group G

    Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
    1  Netherlands 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Qualification to 2022 FIFA World Cup 7 Sep 16 Nov 4 Sep 27 Mar 11 Oct
    2  Turkey 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to second round 24 Mar 8 Oct 1 Sep 30 Mar 13 Nov
    3  Norway 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Sep 27 Mar 11 Oct 13 Nov 7 Sep
    4  Montenegro 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 13 Nov 16 Nov 30 Mar 7 Sep 27 Mar
    5  Latvia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 Oct 11 Oct 4 Sep 24 Mar 1 Sep
    6  Gibraltar 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 30 Mar 4 Sep 24 Mar 8 Oct 16 Nov
    First match(es) will be played on 24 March 2021. Source: FIFA, UEFA
    Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

    2020–21 UEFA Nations League

    Gibraltar was drawn with the Liechtenstein and San Marino in League D.

    Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion
    1  Gibraltar (P) 4 2 2 0 3 1 +2 8 Promotion to League C 1–1 1–0
    2  Liechtenstein 4 1 2 1 3 2 +1 5 0–1 0–0
    3  San Marino 4 0 2 2 0 3 3 2 0–0 0–2
    Source: UEFA
    Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
    (P) Promoted.

    Record of matches

    The following table shows Gibraltar's all-time international record, correct as of 17 November 2020. Only official matches are included.

    Opponents P W D L GF GA GD Win % First Last
     Armenia 2 1 0 1 3 6 −3 050.00 20182018
     Belgium 2 0 0 2 0 15 −15 000.00 20162017
     Bosnia and Herzegovina 2 0 0 2 0 9 −9 000.00 20172017
     Bulgaria 1 0 0 1 0 3 −3 000.00 20202020
     Croatia 1 0 0 1 0 4 −4 000.00 20152015
     Cyprus 2 0 0 2 2 5 −3 000.00 20162017
     Denmark 2 0 0 2 0 12 −12 000.00 20192019
     Estonia 5 0 1 4 1 14 −13 000.00 20142019
     Faroe Islands 1 0 0 1 1 4 −3 000.00 20142014
     Georgia 4 0 0 4 2 13 −11 000.00 20142019
     Germany 2 0 0 2 0 11 −11 000.00 20142015
     Greece 2 0 0 2 1 8 −7 000.00 20162017
     Kosovo 1 0 0 1 0 1 −1 000.00 20192019
     Latvia 2 1 0 1 1 5 −4 050.00 20162018
     Liechtenstein 5 2 2 1 4 4 +0 040.00 20162020
     Malta 2 1 0 1 1 2 −1 050.00 20142020
     North Macedonia 2 0 0 2 0 6 −6 000.00 20182018
     Poland 2 0 0 2 1 15 −14 000.00 20142015
     Portugal 1 0 0 1 0 5 −5 000.00 20162016
     Republic of Ireland 4 0 0 4 0 14 −14 000.00 20142019
     San Marino 2 1 1 0 1 0 +1 050.00 20202020
     Scotland 2 0 0 2 1 12 −11 000.00 20152015
     Slovakia 1 0 1 0 0 0 +0 000.00 20132013
      Switzerland 2 0 0 2 1 10 −9 000.00 20192019
    Total 52 6 5 41 20 178 −158 011.54 20132020

    Notable results

    Wins

    Gibraltar have won six full international matches.

    4 June 2014[41] Friendly Gibraltar 1–0  Malta Faro/Loulé, Portugal (H)
    Report Stadium: Estádio Algarve
    Attendance: 500
    Referee: João Capela (Portugal)
    25 March 2018 Friendly Gibraltar  1–0  Latvia Gibraltar
    16:00 CEST
    Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    Attendance: 1,306
    Referee: Trustin Farrugia Cann (Malta)
    13 October 2018 2018–19 Nations League D Armenia  0–1  Gibraltar Yerevan
    18:00 CEST Report
    Stadium: Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium
    Attendance: 11,000
    Referee: Fedayi San (Switzerland)
    16 October 2018 2018–19 Nations League D Gibraltar  2–1  Liechtenstein Gibraltar
    20:45 CEST Cabrera  61'
    J. Chipolina  66'
    Report Salanović  15' Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    Attendance: 2,000
    Referee: Vasilis Dimitriou (Cyprus)
    5 September 2020 (2020-09-05) 2020–21 Nations League D Gibraltar  1–0  San Marino Gibraltar
    15:00 CEST
    Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    Attendance: 0
    Referee: Aleksandrs Anufrijevs (Latvia)

    Draws

    Gibraltar have drawn five matches.

    19 November 2013 Friendly Gibraltar 0–0  Slovakia Faro/Loulé, Portugal (H)
    18:30 CET Report Stadium: Estádio Algarve
    Attendance: 350
    Referee: Hugo Miguel (Portugal)
    Man of the Match: Danny Higginbotham
    26 May 2014[42] Friendly Estonia  1–1  Gibraltar Tallinn, Estonia (A)
    19:00 CEST
    Report
    Stadium: A. Le Coq Arena
    Attendance: 4,805
    Referee: Clayton Pisani (Malta)
    23 March 2016[43] Friendly Gibraltar 0–0  Liechtenstein Gibraltar (H)
    19:00 CEST Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    Attendance: 800
    Referee: Ryan Stewart (Wales)
    17 November 2020 (2020-11-17) 2020–21 UEFA Nations League D Gibraltar  1–1  Liechtenstein Gibraltar
    20:45 Frommelt  17' (o.g.) Report N. Frick  44' Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    Referee: Trustin Farrugia Cann (Malta)

    Recent results and forthcoming fixtures

    2020

    26 March 2020 Friendly Malta  postponed  Gibraltar Ta' Qali, Malta
    19:00 Stadium: National Stadium
    29 March 2020 Friendly Gibraltar  cancelled  Liechtenstein Ta' Qali, Malta
    Stadium: National Stadium
    5 September 2020 (2020-09-05) 2020–21 UEFA Nations League D Gibraltar  1–0  San Marino Gibraltar
    15:00
    Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    Attendance: 0
    Referee: Aleksandrs Anufrijevs (Latvia)
    7 October 2020 (2020-10-07) Friendly Malta  2–0  Gibraltar Ta' Qali, Malta
    20:45
    Report Stadium: National Stadium
    Attendance: 0
    Referee: Nikola Popov (Bulgaria)
    10 October 2020 (2020-10-10) 2020–21 UEFA Nations League D Liechtenstein  0–1  Gibraltar Vaduz, Liechtenstein
    20:45 Report
    Stadium: Rheinpark Stadion
    Referee: Kirill Levnikov (Russia)
    11 November 2020 (2020-11-11) Friendly Bulgaria  3–0  Gibraltar Sofia, Bulgaria
    19:30
    Report Stadium: Vasil Levski National Stadium
    Attendance: 0
    Referee: Sebastian Colţescu (Romania)
    14 November 2020 (2020-11-14) 2020–21 UEFA Nations League D San Marino  0–0  Gibraltar Serravalle, San Marino
    20:45 Report Stadium: San Marino Stadium
    Attendance: 0
    Referee: Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine)
    17 November 2020 (2020-11-17) 2020–21 UEFA Nations League D Gibraltar  1–1  Liechtenstein Gibraltar
    20:45 Frommelt  17' (o.g.) Report N. Frick  44' Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    Referee: Trustin Farrugia Cann (Malta)

    2021

    24 March 2021 (2021-03-24) 2022 World Cup qualifying Gibraltar  v  Norway Gibraltar
    20:45 Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    27 March 2021 (2021-03-27) 2022 World Cup qualifying Montenegro  v  Gibraltar Podgorica, Montenegro
    15:00 Report Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium
    1 September 2021 (2021-09-01) 2022 World Cup qualifying Latvia  v  Gibraltar
    20:45 Report
    4 September 2021 (2021-09-04) 2022 World Cup qualifying Gibraltar  v  Turkey Gibraltar
    20:45 Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    7 September 2021 (2021-09-07) 2022 World Cup qualifying Norway  v  Gibraltar
    Report
    8 October 2021 (2021-10-08) 2022 World Cup qualifying Gibraltar  v  Montenegro Gibraltar
    20:45 Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium
    11 October 2021 (2021-10-11) 2022 World Cup qualifying Netherlands  v  Gibraltar
    20:45 Report
    13 November 2021 (2021-11-13) 2022 World Cup qualifying Turkey  v  Gibraltar
    Report
    16 November 2021 (2021-11-16) 2022 World Cup qualifying Gibraltar  v  Latvia Gibraltar
    20:45 Report Stadium: Victoria Stadium


    Gibraltar national football team all opponents from 2013

    Players

    Current squad

    The following players were called up to the squad for the friendly game against  Bulgaria on 11 November 2020, and 2020–21 UEFA Nations League D games against  San Marino and  Liechtenstein on 14 and 17 November 2020.[44]
    Caps and goals are correct as of 17 November 2020 after the game against  Liechtenstein .

    No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
    1 1GK Kyle Goldwin (1985-04-24) 24 April 1985 17 0 Lincoln Red Imps
    1GK Jamie Robba (1991-10-26) 26 October 1991 8 0 St Joseph's
    23 1GK Dayle Coleing (1996-10-23) 23 October 1996 7 0 Glentoran
    13 1GK Bradley Banda (1998-01-20) 20 January 1998 0 0 Lynx

    14 2DF Roy Chipolina (Captain) (1983-01-20) 20 January 1983 46 2 Lincoln Red Imps
    4 2DF Jack Sergeant (1995-02-27) 27 February 1995 34 0 Lincoln Red Imps
    12 2DF Jayce Olivero (1998-07-02) 2 July 1998 33 0 Europa
    15 2DF Erin Barnett (1996-09-02) 2 September 1996 22 0 St Joseph's
    6 2DF Scott Wiseman (1985-10-09) 9 October 1985 16 0 Lincoln Red Imps
    5 2DF Louie Annesley (2000-05-03) 3 May 2000 15 0 Blackburn Rovers
    16 2DF Aymen Mouelhi (1986-09-14) 14 September 1986 13 0 St Joseph's
    2 2DF Ethan Jolley (1997-03-29) 29 March 1997 8 0 Europa
    22 2DF Jay Bosio (1991-03-27) 27 March 1991 0 0 Lions Gibraltar
    17 2DF Brad Power (1992-10-29) 29 October 1992 0 0 Lynx
    2DF Antony Moulds (1988-02-04) 4 February 1988 0 0 St Joseph's

    10 3MF Liam Walker (1988-04-13) 13 April 1988 50 2 Europa
    11 3MF Kyle Casciaro (1987-12-02) 2 December 1987 26 1 Lincoln Red Imps
    18 3MF Alain Pons (1995-09-16) 16 September 1995 21 0 St Joseph's
    8 3MF Mohamed Badr (1989-11-25) 25 November 1989 9 0 Europa
    3MF Graeme Torrilla (1997-09-03) 3 September 1997 5 1 Lincoln Red Imps
    3 3MF Kian Ronan (2001-03-09) 9 March 2001 4 0 Lincoln Red Imps
    7 3MF Jaron Vinet (1997-12-12) 12 December 1997 0 0 Bruno's Magpies

    4FW Lee Casciaro (1981-09-29) 29 September 1981 37 3 Lincoln Red Imps
    19 4FW Tjay De Barr (2000-03-13) 13 March 2000 20 2 Lincoln Red Imps
    20 4FW Adam Priestley (1990-08-14) 14 August 1990 18 1 Yorkshire Amateur
    21 4FW Jamie Coombes (1996-05-27) 27 May 1996 18 0 Lincoln Red Imps
    9 4FW Reece Styche (1989-05-03) 3 May 1989 12 1 Buxton

    Recent call-ups

    The following players have been called up within the past twelve months.

    Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up

    DF Kenneth Chipolina (1994-04-08) 8 April 1994 1 0 St Joseph's v.  Liechtenstein, 10 October 2020
    DF Jean-Carlos Garcia (1992-07-05) 5 July 1992 26 0 Bruno's Magpies v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020
    DF Ethan Britto (2000-11-30) 30 November 2000 9 0 Lincoln Red Imps v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020
    DF Jared Buhagiar (1992-10-20) 20 October 1992 0 0 Lions Gibraltar v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE
    DF Ethan Santos (1998-12-22) 22 December 1998 0 0 Mons Calpe v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE

    MF Anthony Hernandez (1995-02-03) 3 February 1995 24 1 Lincoln Red Imps v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020
    MF Andrew Hernandez (1999-01-10) 10 January 1999 10 0 St Joseph's v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE
    MF Jeremy Lopez (1989-07-09) 9 July 1989 8 0 Bruno's Magpies v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE
    MF Scott Ballantine (1996-04-12) 12 April 1996 0 0 Manchester 62 v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE
    MF Nick Castle (1994-01-18) 18 January 1994 0 0 Glacis United v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE
    MF Shaun De Los Santos (1998-01-26) 26 January 1998 0 0 Manchester 62 v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE
    MF Julian Valarino (2000-06-23) 23 June 2000 0 0 Lincoln Red Imps v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE

    FW Ayoub El Hmidi (2000-09-30) 30 September 2000 0 0 Mons Calpe v.  Liechtenstein, 10 October 2020
    FW Kelvin Morgan (1997-11-14) 14 November 1997 0 0 Bruno's Magpies v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE
    FW Dylan Peacock (2001-08-24) 24 August 2001 0 0 Lions Gibraltar v.  San Marino, 5 September 2020 PRE

    INJ Withdrew from the squad due to an injury
    PRE Preliminary squad
    RET Retired from the national team
    WD Withdrew for other reasons

    Players record

    The Gibraltar national football team at the Victoria Stadium in March 2014
    Liam Walker is the most capped player for Gibraltar.
    The Gibraltarian top scorer Lee Casciaro

    Most capped

    As of 17 November 2020

    # Name Career Caps Goals
    1 Liam Walker 2013– 50 2
    2 Roy Chipolina 2013– 46 2
    3 Joseph Chipolina 2013– 42 2
    4 Lee Casciaro 2014– 37 3
    5 Jack Sergeant 2013– 34 0
    6 Jayce Olivero 2016– 33 0
    7 Anthony Bardon 2014–2019 29 0
    8 Kyle Casciaro 2013– 26 1
    Jean-Carlos Garcia 2014– 26 0
    10 Anthony Hernandez 2014– 24 1
    Ryan Casciaro 2013–2018 24 0

    Most goals

    As of 17 November 2020

    Players with an equal number of goals are ranked in order of average.

    # Name Career Goals Caps Average
    1 Lee Casciaro 2014– 3 37 0.081
    2 Jake Gosling 2014–2018 2 12 0.167
    Tjay De Barr 2018– 2 20 0.1
    Joseph Chipolina 2013– 2 42 0.048
    Roy Chipolina 2013– 2 46 0.043
    Liam Walker 2013– 2 50 0.04
    7 Graeme Torrilla 2020– 1 5 0.2
    George Cabrera 2014– 1 8 0.125
    Reece Styche 2014– 1 12 0.083
    Adam Priestley 2013– 1 18 0.056
    Anthony Hernandez 2014– 1 24 0.042
    Kyle Casciaro 2013– 1 26 0.038

    Captains

    As of 17 November 2020

    # Player Career Captain Caps Total Caps
    1 Roy Chipolina 2013– 45 46
    2 Joseph Chipolina 2013– 3 42
    3 Liam Walker 2013– 1 50
    Lee Casciaro 2014– 1 37
    Jayce Olivero 2016– 1 33
    Ryan Casciaro 2013–2018 1 24

    Goalkeepers

    As of 17 November 2020

    # Player Career Games Wins GA GAA
    1 Kyle Goldwin 2018– 17 4 36 2.118
    2 Jordan Perez 2013–2016 17 1 52 3.059
    3 Jamie Robba 2014– 8 1 25 3.125
    4 Deren Ibrahim 2016–2017 8 0 39 4.875
    5 Dayle Coleing 2019– 7 1 14 2
    6 Matt Cafer 2018– 2 0 4 2
    • ^1 Players in bold are still actively competing and are available for selection

    International goals

    Gibraltar has scored very few goals in competitive internationals; the list below is comprehensive.

    No. Comp.[a] Date Opponent Scorer(s) Final Score[b]
    1 ECQ 29 March 2015  Scotland Lee Casciaro 1–6
    2 7 September 2015  Poland Jake Gosling 1–8
    3 WCQ 6 September 2016  Greece Liam Walker 1–4
    4 13 November 2016  Cyprus Lee Casciaro 1–3
    5 9 June 2017  Cyprus Anthony Hernandez 1–2
    6 UNL 13 October 2018  Armenia Joseph Chipolina 1–0
    7 16 October 2018  Liechtenstein George Cabrera 2–1
    8 Joseph Chipolina
    9 16 November 2018  Armenia Tjay De Barr 2–6
    10 Adam Priestley
    11 ECQ 15 October 2019  Georgia Lee Casciaro 2–3
    12 Roy Chipolina
    13 18 November 2019   Switzerland Reece Styche 1–6
    14 UNL 5 September 2020  San Marino Graeme Torrilla 1–0
    15 10 October 2020  Liechtenstein Tjay De Barr 1–0
    16 17 November 2020  Liechtenstein Noah Frommelt (o.g) 1–1

    a ECQ = UEFA European Championship qualification match, WCQ = FIFA World Cup qualification match, UNL = UEFA Nations League.
    b The Gibraltar score is always listed first.

    Gibraltar managers

    Up to date as of 17 November 2020
    Manager Nation Gibraltar career Played Won Drawn Lost GF GA Win %
    Allen Bula 2013–2015 9 1 2 6 3 28 011.11
    David Wilson (interim) 2015 3 0 0 3 1 17 000.00
    Jeff Wood 2015–2018 17 0 1 16 4 79 000.00
    Desi Curry (interim) 2018 1 1 0 0 1 0 100.00
    Julio César Ribas 2018– 22 4 2 16 11 54 018.18

    Personnel

    Allen Bula, Gibraltar's head coach between 2010 and 2015

    Current technical staff

    As of 23 June 2019[45][46]

    Position Name
    Head Coach Julio César Ribas
    Assistant Coach Jose Carlos Gil Prieto
    Goalkeeper Coach Christian Wink
    Technical Director Desi Curry
    Match Analyst Jansen Moreno
    Team Doctor Dr Keith Gracia
    Head Physiotherapist
    Fitness Coach
    Iain Latin
    Team Physiotherapist Andrew Rodriguez
    Team Osteopath Paul Knight
    Massage Therapist Gareth Henwood

    Stadium

    Before being accepted into UEFA, the team played its home games at Victoria Stadium, the 5,000-seat national stadium of Gibraltar. There were plans to replace the stadium with a proposed 8,000-seat stadium at Europa Point, which was expected to be completed for UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying.[47][48][49] Due to the lack of suitable facilities in Gibraltar, the team played its competitive home matches at Estádio Algarve about four hours away in Portugal, from 2013 until 2018. Former national team manager Allen Bula stated that the team would play at the stadium for "a few years" until the Europa Point Stadium was complete.[50] Although the Victoria Stadium could not be used for qualifying matches, UEFA allowed its use for friendlies when Gibraltar chose to do so.[51]

    In December 2014 the GFA applied for an exemption from UEFA to allow for competitive matches to be held at the Victoria Stadium although it did not meet minimum requirements. The exemption was filed based upon UEFA regulations which allow for an exemption to be granted because of "hardship". At that time, UEFA said that all scheduled matches, such as those during Euro 2016 qualification, would take place in the already-determined locations but a determination would be made for future competitions.[52] In February 2016 the Gibraltar government announced that over the previous four years numerous improvements had been made to the Victoria Stadium including the installation of approved AstroTurf and lighting which surpassed the requirements for a Category 2 stadium but did not quite meet Category 3. These improvements allowed for UEFA Champions League and Europa League matches to be played at the stadium.[53]

    In September 2015, after plans for Europa Point were abandoned, the GFA explored other sites including Lathbury Barracks, as UEFA were unwilling at the time to fund improvements to Victoria Stadium while it was government owned.[54] In February 2016 the Government of Gibraltar announced that it expected to be presented for plans at the Lathbury site very soon.[53] However, in 2017 a deal was agreed for the Gibraltar FA to purchase Victoria Stadium with UEFA funding, and re-develop the stadium to meet UEFA standards.[55] The stadium was subsequently approved to host UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying games in March 2020

    See also

    Footnotes

    1. Development team from 2015 edition onward

    References

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