Sardinia national football team

The first official documented appearance of a Sardinian national team dates back to 1990. The England national football team was in Sardinia for a training camp in order to prepare the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy, where, among other things, it would have played two of the three matches of the group stage in Cagliari (against Egypt and Ireland).[2] Therefore, it had been set up a XI formed by the best Sardinian players caught between Serie C and Amateurs to face the Lions in their first friendly match. The first players to wear the jersey of the Sardinian national team, under the orders of Mariano Dessì, dean of the Sardinian coaches of that time, were Nioi as goalkeeper, Spano, Moro, Bortolini and Tomasso in defense, the future sporting director of Cagliari Calcio Francesco Marroccu, Martinez, Tolu and Ennas in the midfield, Corda and Gianfranco Zola, the only professional and at that time militant in fresh Scudetto's winners S.S.C. Napoli. In the second half, Toffolon, Laconi, Carta, Nieddu, Di Laura, Mura, Napoli, Fara, and Angioni also entered. The game ended 10–2 for England: curiously, Sardinia went ahead, but only thanks to a voluntary own goal by Steve McMahon in the first minute before the island players still touched the ball. This gesture metaphorically symbolized what would have been any violent actions of the Hooligans, the most frenzied fringe of English fans, at the time feared throughout Europe. After this demonstration, given the imbalance of power, the game was dominated by England who scored with McMahon himself, a hat-trick by Neil Webb and one by Peter Beardsley, a double by Steve Bull and a goal by David Platt. However, for Tomasso there was the glory of scoring the first goal in the history of the Natzionale.[3][4]

Seven years were needed before watching again a Sardinian selection in a football field. In July 1997, at the Stadio Quadrivio in Nuoro, thanks to the Sardinian leader of the Sardinian separatist party Sardinia Nation Francesco Cesaraccio, a friendly match was organized between the national teams of the sister Islands, Sardinia and the Corsica national football team. Compared to previous calls-up against England, the roster contained several professional players and essentially the best of Sardinian football at the time. The manager was Gustavo Giagnoni who called Gianfranco Pinna and Giuseppe Nioi as keepers. In defense Gian Battista Scugugia, Vittorio Pusceddu, Gianluca Festa and Salvatore Matrecano. In midfield Pier Giovanni Rutzittu, Marco Sanna, Pietro Garau, Massimiliano Pani, Alessandro Manca, Igor Marziano and two sons of emigrants: the Sardinian-German Sergio Allievi and the Sardinian-Dutch Daniel Agus. In attack Gianfranco Zola, Tomaso Tatti, Roberto Manca, Roberto Cau, Emanuele Matzuzzi and another emigrant, the Sardinian-Belgian Antonio Lai. The goalkeeper Nioi and Zola were the only ones called in both appointments, thus becoming record holders in the caps ranking. The game itself had been balanced and Sardinia won by 1–0 with a goal at the twentieth minute of the second half by the future Chelsea F.C.'s striker Gianfranco Zola.[5]

History showed that the project of a National team of Sardinia remained occasional and it came back under the shadow. Only 11 years later it returned to talking about Nazionale Sarda. In 2008, in fact, in Gonnosfanadiga was founded the Lega Federale Calcio Sardegna (on the path of the Lega Federale Calcio Padania) by the tuscan Giampiero Sogus, son of a Sardinian migrant, with the involvement, as vice president of the Gonnosfanadiga's mayor Sisinnio Zanda at that time, as counselor the hotelier Marco Sardu and as secretary the lawyer Franco Loi. The League is immediately associated at the NF-Board, in that era the main board of the Non-FIFA international football, who organized the VIVA World Cup. While remaining officially affiliated with this confederation until its dissolution in 2008, no Sardinian national team will ever be formed, not even for friendly matches, except for an amateur tournament in Tuscany in which Sogus himself entered a team named "Sardinia" but with Tuscan players without island origins.[6]

In 2012, thanks to the cultural initiatives by Project Republic of Sardinia, another separatist party, the Sardinian National Sports Federation (Federatzione Isport Natzionale Sardu) was created with the aim of creating Sardinian national selections, not only limited to football. The first experiences has been indeed related to the creation of the Sardinian futsal team, which played in 2012 and 2013 first at Fordongianus and then in Nuoro for some friendlies against the homologous selection of Catalonia.[7]

Simultaneously, in 2013, due to the unfortunate occurrence of the Cyclone Cleopatra in Sardinia, which caused 19 victims, the Sardinian society returned to propose the establishment of a football selection, even if only for a charity match able to raise funds for the victims and for the reconstruction of the inhabited centers hit by the natural disaster. Vittorio Sanna, journalist from Assemini (one of the towns crashed by the disaster) but above all radio commentator of the Cagliari Calcio matches for the private radio station Radiolina, proposed himself for this organization and got in touch with the various professional Sardinian football players at the time. At the beginning the organization moved for a friendly match against Serie A's team Cagliari Calcio but the president Massimo Cellino did not give consent. Subsequently, an attempt was made to organize another friendly match against Corsica and the date was set for May of the following year, but eventually the plan had been abandoned.[8][9]

Only 5 years later, the Sanna's projects and the FINS plans coincided and on 13 October 2018 the Federation announced the affiliation to the CONIFA, the maximum international organization for football not affiliated to FIFA, which groups all the "National teams without a State" and organizes, among other competitions, the CONIFA World Football Cup, a trophy that replaced the VIVA World Cup. Simultaneously with the entry into CONIFA, FINS announced its participation in the 2019 European Championships in Artsakh.[10] The following week the new technical commissioner was announced, the Sardinian Bernardo Mereu, historical Sardinian coach who led island formations in the various professional and interregional championships.[11]

The first game of the FINS era, the third in total of the history of the Natzionale, was held on 19 March 2019 at the Stadio Franco Frogheri in Nuoro against the Istrangios de Sardigna, a selection formed by the best foreign militants in the Sardinian amateur formations, and won by the Sardinians 7–1. Francesco Virdis from Savona F.B.C. scored a hat-trick, Daniele Molino from Sanremese, Samuele Spano, Toni Gianni and Daniele Bianchi one goal each. For the occasion, over 50 players were called: the professional clubs, however, given the current sporting season, did not give the "go-ahead" for participation. The squad was therefore composed only by amateur players with the exception of two Arzachena Costa Smeralda's players, Robert Acquafresca (FC Sion) and Paolo Dametto (FeralpiSalò) with the latter two sitting on the bench, though.[12]

However, on 6 May 2019, FINS announced the withdrawal from participation in the 2019 CONIFA European Football Cup in Artsakh, accusing the absence of organizational and logistical guarantees to allow the Natzionale, composed by professional players, to face such a demanding trip, deciding to divert the commitment to the organization of the friendly match against Corsica. Despite the abandonment of the event, the federation has guaranteed the permanence in CONIFA.[13]

On 25 January 2020, the FINS, the Sardinian Federation, announced the new coach Vittorio Pusceddu (former defender who played, among all the other teams in his career, for Cagliari Calcio, S.S.C. Napoli, A.C.F. Fiorentina and Torino F.C.) who took the place of Bernardo Mereu after one year of management.[14]

From the FINS era, the main color used is light green, according to the federation "a historical reminder and a wish that Sardinia will return, also in the football field, to a period of cultural and economic prosperity, playing and opening up in first person to the world".[15]

The emblem of the Natzionale is a rounded shield with different elements taken from the Sardinian culture. In the upper part, on a green background there is the lettering, in Sardinian language, "Natzionale Sarda de Bòcia". In the main part there are the classic Quattro mori' although with the Saint George's cross in green version instead of red. At the center of the cross then, set in a green pentagon extrapolated from the iconic standard of the soccer ball, a stylized eradicated tree, symbol of the Judicate of Arborea , the last entity representing the independent Sardinia and symbol that still characterizes the coats of arms in the most different variants of more than 80 municipalities of the island.[15]

In the first match against England in 1990 the Sardinian XI played with a white jersey with blue details and a polo-style collar, while the shorts were red.[16] In the second experience in 1997 the formation used a total red suit with a large flag of the four Moors in the chest. In 2018, with the rebuilding of the National team, the new official jerseys, produced by the made in Sardinia technical sponsor Eye Sportswear, were presented. For the home jersey was chosen a white uniform embellished with green details, colours derived by the Judicate of Arborea and a pattern inspired by the typical embroidery of Sardinian craftsmanship in the central part of the shirt. Meanwhile, for the away jersey, it was decided to a completely red uniform with white lapels, in honor of the flag of the four Moors.[17]

List of players called for the friendly match on 2 June 2019 at Stadio Bruno Nespoli in Olbia against Corsica.

• Manager: Bernardo Mereu

Caps, goals and numbers as per 2 June 2019.[18]

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Marco Ruzittu	(1991-06-15) 15 June 1991	2	0	Arzachena
	1GK	Simone Aresti	(1986-03-15) 15 March 1986	1	0	Cagliari
	1GK	Mauro Vigorito	(1990-05-22) 22 May 1990	0	0	Lecce
	2DF	Simone Pinna	(1997-10-17) 17 October 1997	1	0	Olbia
	2DF	Mattia Pitzalis	(2000-04-04) 4 April 2000	0	0	Olbia
	2DF	Marco Cabeccia	(1987-05-25) 25 May 1987	2	1	Latte Dolce
	2DF	Francesco Pisano	(1986-04-29) 29 April 1986	0	0	Olbia
	2DF	Giampaolo Sirigu	(1994-03-03) 3 March 1994	2	0	Delta Porto Tolle
	2DF	Emerson Ramos Borges	(1980-08-16) 16 August 1980	1	0	Potenza
	2DF	Giuseppe Ghiani	(1999-06-17) 17 June 1999	0	0	Montegiorgio
	2DF	Andrea Congiu	(1993-12-19) 19 December 1993	1	0	Lanusei
	3MF	Daniele Giorico	(1992-01-01) 1 January 1992	1	0	Virtus Verona
	3MF	Giuseppe Nuvoli	(1987-11-16) 16 November 1987	1	0	Arzachena
	3MF	Pietro Ladu	(1995-06-02) 2 June 1995	1	0	Lanusei
	3MF	Daniele Bianchi	(1988-07-21) 21 July 1988	2	1	Latte Dolce
	3MF	Claudio Pani	(1986-03-11) 11 March 1986	2	0	Sliema Wanderers
	3MF	Alessandro Deiola	(1995-08-01) 1 August 1995	1	0	Cagliari
	3MF	Francesco Bianco	(2000-11-23) 23 November 2000	0	0	Torres
	4FW	Daniele Ragatzu	(1991-09-21) 21 September 1991	0	0	Olbia
	4FW	Robert Acquafresca	(1987-09-11) 11 September 1987	0	0	Sion
	4FW	Francesco Virdis	(1985-01-16) 16 January 1985	2	3	Savona
	4FW	Matteo Mancosu	(1984-12-22) 22 December 1984	1	0	Virtus Entella
	4FW	Andrea Cocco	(1986-04-08) 8 April 1986	1	0	Padova
	4FW	Samuele Spano	(1994-07-07) 7 July 1994	2	1	Budoni
	4FW	Daniele Molino	(1987-01-15) 15 January 1987	2	1	Sanremese

The following players were involved in the other (first) match held in 2019, and are still available for selection.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Alessandro Lai	(2000-01-01) 1 January 2000	1	0	Latte Dolce	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
DF	Alessio Fadda	(1995-10-04) 4 October 1995	1	0	Atletico Uri	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
DF	Marco Russu	(1995-10-15) 15 October 1995	1	0	Nuorese	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
DF	Simone Varrucciu	(1992-09-11) 11 September 1992	1	0	Budoni	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
DF	Antonio Usai	(1993-07-21) 21 July 1993	1	0	Tortolì	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
DF	Paolo Dametto	(1993-06-28) 28 June 1993	0	0	Feralpisalò	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
MF	Toni Gianni	(1995-03-08) 8 March 1995	1	1	Latte Dolce	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
MF	Alessandro Masala	(1996-11-17) 17 November 1996	1	0	Latte Dolce	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
MF	Stefano Mereu	(1987-04-08) 8 April 1987	1	0	Atletico Uri	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
MF	Andrea Porcheddu	(1999-08-19) 19 August 1999	1	0	Arzachena	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
FW	Alessandro Cadau	(1984-10-01) 1 October 1984	1	0	Muravera	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
FW	Emanuele Fini	(2000-04-30) 30 April 2000	1	0	Latte Dolce	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
FW	Paolo Palmas	(1993-08-04) 4 August 1993	1	0	Latte Dolce	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019
FW	Nicolò Sanna	(1999-09-05) 5 September 1999	1	0	Latina	v. Istrangios de Sardigna, 19 March 2019