Seychelles national football team

Seychelles v Ethiopia at Stade Linité, 5 September 2015

In 1979, Seychelles played their first tournament, the 1979 Indian Ocean Games. They lost their first game 3-0 to Réunion, and won their second game 9-0 to Maldives. In the semi-final, they knocked out Mauritius 4-2 on penalties (1-1 after 90 min.), but in the final they lost 2-1 against to Réunion.

Seychelles have never qualified for the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations or the World Cup. But recently, the national team made some improvements in the FIFA World Ranking.[3] The team first attempted to qualify for the African Cup of Nations in 1986, losing to Mauritius.

Under Montenegrin coach Vojo Gardašević, the Seychelles team made their debut in the World Cup qualifiers in April 2000. Philip Zialor got the equaliser for Seychelles in a 1–1 draw against Namibia at Stade Linité. In the return leg match, Seychelles lost 3–0.

In their attempt to qualify for the 2006 World Cup, Seychelles lost 0–4 at home to Zambia but played a 1–1 draw in the away match. Robert Suzette was the scorer of Seychelles’ goal in Lusaka. Seychelles’ biggest competitive win came against Zimbabwe in the qualifiers of the 2004 African Cup of Nations. Goals by strikers Alpha Baldé and Philip Zialor gave Seychelles a 2–1 win at Stade Linité against Zimbabwe captained by professional striker Peter Ndlovu. German coach Michael Nees was at the helm of the team at that time. Under Frenchman Dominique Bathenay, Seychelles also beat Eritrea 1–0 at Stade Linité by a goal by veteran Roddy Victor in the same qualifiers.

In 2011, Seychelles hosted the 2011 Indian Ocean Island Games and won the tournament for the first time, beating Mauritius in the final on penalties.[4][5]

The rest of the 2010s saw little success for The Pirates with the high point achieved during 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification where they managed a 2–0 win over Lesotho and a 1–1 draw with Ethiopia to finish third in their four team group.

In 2006, a new technical centre in Mahé was opened, with help from the FIFA Goal programme.[6] The project had a total cost of approximately 750,000 USD. James Michel, president of the Seychelles, was present at the inauguration. The technical centre houses the SFF headquarters, an auditorium, 20 bedrooms, two massage rooms, changing rooms and a restaurant. The centre is located next to the turf pitches that were also installed by the Goal programme in 2003.[7][8]

• Seychelles at FIFA.com
• Seychelles at CAF.com
• Seychelles national football team picture