Eritrea national football team

The Eritrea national football team (Tigrinya: ጋንታ ኩዕሶ እግሪ አርትራ) represents Eritrea in men's international football and it is controlled by the Eritrean National Football Federation (ENFF). It is nicknamed the Red Sea Boys. It has never qualified for the finals of the FIFA World Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations. Local side Red Sea FC are the main supplier for the national team, The team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Eritrea

Nickname(s)	Red Sea Boys [1][2]
Association	Eritrean National Football Federation
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation	CECAFA (East & Central Africa)
Head coach	Alemseged Efrem
Captain	Henok Goitom
Most caps	Yonas Bihon Binyam Fesehaye Yidnekachew Shimangus (13)
Top scorer	Berhane Aregai Yidnekachew Shimangus (5)
Home stadium	Cicero Stadium
FIFA code	ERI
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	205 (10 December 2020)[3]
Highest	121[4] (August 2007)
Lowest	207 (April–May 2018, September 2019)
First international
Sudan 1–1 Eritrea (Khartoum, Sudan; 26 June 1992)
Biggest win
Kenya 1–4 Eritrea  (Kampala, Uganda; 17 December 2019)  Djibouti 0–3 Eritrea  (Kampala, Uganda; 13 December 2019)
Biggest defeat
Ghana 5–0 Eritrea  (Accra, Ghana; 28 February 1999)

History

An Eritrean team was invited to a friendly tournament in Sudan in 1992, the year before Eritrea achieved independence.[5] Eritrea participated in the 1994 CECAFA Cup, organised by the Council for East and Central Africa Football Association,[5] even though the ENFF was not founded until 1996.[6] The first full international was in the 1999 CECAFA Cup,[5][7] the year after the ENFF joined the CAF[8] and FIFA.[6] They participated in the qualifying rounds of the 2000 African Cup of Nations and the 2002 World Cup, and subsequent editions until 2008.[5] They have also appeared intermittently in the CECAFA Cup.[5][9]

In the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, Eritrea managed a scoreless home draw versus Cameroon and a 1–0 home win over Mozambique. They finished second in their three team group, and advanced to a playoff round where they faced Senegal and Zimbabwe, but ultimately lost all four matches in that final stage.

In the first round of the qualifiers for the 2002 World Cup, they were drawn against Nigeria, and were defeated 4–0 in the away leg,[10] after a goalless draw at home.[11] The coach was Yilmaz Yuceturk.[10]

In the first round of the 2006 World Cup qualifiers, Sudan was Eritrea's first round opponent. Eritrea lost the first leg 3–0,[12] before another goalless draw in Asmara.[13] The coach was Eritrean Tekie Abraha.[12][13]

In group 6 of the qualifiers for the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, under the guidance of Romanian Dorian Marin, Eritrea finished second behind Angola, failing to qualify for the final tournament. They beat Kenya twice and drew at home to Angola.

In the first round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, Eritrea faced Rwanda. The first leg in Asmara ended in a 1–1 draw (and saw Eritrea's first ever goal in a World Cup qualification match), but Rwanda took the second leg by a score of 3–1.

Recent years have seen a high number of refugees leaving Eritrea,[14][15] and some athletes travelling to competitions abroad have taken the opportunity to abscond.[16] In December 2012, 17 Eritrean footballers and the team's doctor vanished after the CECAFA championship tournament in Uganda and all applied for asylum in the country.[17][18][19] Four players of Red Sea FC defected after a CAF Champions League 2006 match in Nairobi, Kenya,[20] and up to 12 members of the national side after the 2007 CECAFA Cup in Tanzania.[14][21] Another 6 players sought asylum in Angola in March 2007 after a group 6 qualifying game for the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations.[22][23] Three more players from the national team sought asylum in Sudan.[24]

Eritrea withdrew from the 2008 CECAFA Cup,[25] and from the common qualifying tournament shared by the 2010 World Cup and the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations.[26] Given the number of players seeking asylum, the Eritrean government began requiring athletes to pay a 100,000 nakfa surety before traveling abroad.[20]

Eritrea returned to the 2009 CECAFA Cup in Nairobi. A young squad was assembled with just 12 days' training.[25] In Group B, they gained a surprise draw with Zimbabwe,[27] lost narrowly to Rwanda,[28] and beat Somalia 3–1.[29] They were easily beaten 4–0 in the quarter-finals by Tanzania.[25] Twelve squad members failed to report for the return flight, and sought the assistance of the Refugee Consortium of Kenya.[14][15] They were believed to be in hiding in Eastleigh, an eastern suburb of Nairobi home to many immigrants.[30] Nicholas Musonye, the secretary-general of CECAFA, feared that the government might react by refusing to let the team travel abroad in future.[15] The twelve players were later granted interim asylum by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Kenya.[31] Eleven of these players have since travelled to Adelaide in Australia[32] with two of them, Samuel Ghebrehiwet and Ambes Sium, signing for Gold Coast United in the A-League in August 2011.[33]

In the first round of the qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup, ten players from the Eritrean football team have refused to return home after playing a World Cup qualifying match in Botswana and have been granted asylum there, officials say.[34]

Competition records

World Cup record FIFA World Cup record Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA 1930 to 1938 Part of  Italy 1950 to 1990 Part of  Ethiopia 1994 to 1998 Not affiliated with FIFA 2002 Did not qualify 2006 2010 Did not enter 2014 Did not qualify 2018 2022 2026 To be determined Total – 0/21 – – – – – –

Africa Cup of Nations record Africa Cup of Nations record Appearances : 0 Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA 1957 to 1992 Part of  Ethiopia 1994 to 1998 Not affiliated with CAF 2000 Did not qualify 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 Withdrew 2012 Did not enter 2013 2015 Withdrew 2017 Did not enter 2019 2021 2023 To be determined 2025 Total – 0/31 – – – – – –

CECAFA Cup record

CECAFA Cup
Appearances: 12
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1973 to 1992	Part of  Ethiopia
1994	Fourth Place	4th	5	2	1	2	3	2
1995	Did not enter
1996
1999	Group Stage	11th	2	0	0	2	2	6
2000		8th	4	0	1	3	4	15
2001		11th	3	0	0	3	3	17
2002	Did not enter
2003
2004
2005	Group Stage	10th	4	0	0	4	2	18
2006		11th	3	0	0	3	0	10
2007	Quarter-Finals	8th	4	2	0	2	8	8
2008	Group Stage	10th	4	0	1	3	2	13
2009		12th	3	0	0	3	0	13
2010	Did not enter
2011	Group Stage	11th	3	0	0	3	2	10
2012	Did not enter
2013
2015	Group Stage	11th	3	0	0	3	0	9
2017	Did not enter
2019	Runners-Up	2nd	6	3	1	2	8	6
Total	0 Titles	11/39	44	7	4	33	34	127

Players

Current squad

The following players were selected for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Namibia on 10 September 2019.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	GK	Kibrom Solomun	10 September 2000	8	0	Denden
13	GK	Abdulahi Abdurahman	1 January 1986	3	0	Red Sea
2	DF	Eyob Girmay	12 November 1996	8	0	Denden
3	DF	Filmon Tumzghi	24 March 1993	8	0	Denden
4	DF	Robel Tekle Michael	24 July 2000	8	0	Red Sea
5	DF	Herman Fessehaye	10 November 2000	2	0	Red Sea
17	DF	Ablelom Teklezgi	1 September 1996	8	0	Red Sea
6	MF	Abel Okray	20 November 1996	2	0	Denden
7	MF	Yons Solomon	21 June 1994	7	0	Al Khartoum
8	MF	Samiyuma Alexander	16 May 1991	3	0
11	MF	Senai Hagos	2 December 1992	0	0	Åsane
14	MF	Christoffer Forsell	19 February 1994	0	0	Free agent
23	MF	Sammy Simon	17 May 1998	1	0	Free agent
16	MF	Mohammed Saeid	24 December 1990	1	0	IK Sirius
18	MF	Robel Asfaha	31 January 1987	0	0	Sundbybergs IK
19	MF	Alexander Andue	5 June 1998	0	0	IFK Stocksund
9	FW	Henok Goitom (C)	22 September 1984	4	1	AIK
10	FW	Ali Sulieman	1 January 2000	8	3	Red Sea
12	FW	Ezana Kahsay	16 November 1994	0	0	Virginia Beach City
15	FW	Ermias Tekie Simon	29 September 1986	0	0	Hallonbergens IF

Recent call ups

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

List of coaches

• Tekie Abraha (1991–1996), (2000–2003)[35]
• Mushir Osman (1998–1999)
• Yılmaz Yücetürk (2000–2002)[36]
• Dorian Marin (2006–2007)
• René Feller (2007–2008)
• Negash Teklit (2009–2013)
• Alemseged Efrem (2015–present)[37]

References

1. https://www.eastafro.com/2012/11/26/eritrea-red-sea-boys-hold-zanzibar-heroes/
2. http://www.tesfanews.net/team-eritrea-the-red-sea-boys-are-back/amp/
3. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 10 December 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
4. "FIFA World Ranking". FIFA.com. FIFA. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
5. Courtney, Barrie (31 January 2008). "Eritrea International Matches". RSSSF. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
6. "Eritrea on FIFA.com". FIFA.com. FIFA. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
7. "Eritrea Matches From 01.01.1872 To 30.11.2010". FIFA. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
8. "Eritrean National Football Federation (ENFF)". Cafonline.com. CAF. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
9. Stokkermans, Karel (11 December 2009). "East and Central African Championship (CECAFA)". RSSSF. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
10. "First stage: Nigeria – Eritrea 4:0 (2:0)". 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan Preliminaries. FIFA. Archived from the original on 12 December 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
11. "First stage: Eritrea – Nigeria 0:0". 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan Preliminaries. FIFA. Archived from the original on 12 October 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
12. "Play-off: Sudan – Eritrea 3:0 (0:0)". 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany Preliminaries. FIFA. Archived from the original on 21 July 2010. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
13. "Play-off: Eritrea – Sudan 0:0". 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany Preliminaries. FIFA. Archived from the original on 21 July 2010. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
14. Wyatt, Ben (15 December 2009). "Kenyan police search for missing footballers". London: CNN. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
15. Odula, Tom (15 December 2009). "12 Eritrea soccer players defect during tournament in Kenya; UN will hear case". Canadian Press. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
16. Pflanz, Mike (15 December 2009). "Eritrean football team missing after match in Kenya". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
17. Oryada, Andrew Jackson (5 December 2012). "Eritrean players seek asylum in Uganda". BBC. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
18. Nakiyimba, Gloria (6 December 2012). "Eritrea's football team seek asylum in Uganda, citing persecution". RFI English. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
19. Oryada, Andrew Jackson (4 December 2012). "Eritrea players missing in Uganda after regional championship". BBC. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
20. "Eritrea players go missing in Kenya". AFP. 14 December 2009. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
21. "Official: Players say death awaits them in Eritrea". sportsillustrated.cnn.com. 16 December 2009. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
22. "Eritrean footballers join row of asylum seekers". afrol.com. 27 March 2007. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
23. "Angola considers asylum claims". BBC. 28 March 2007. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
24. "Three Eritrean Players Seek Asylum in Sudan". Sudan Vision. 25 November 2009. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 18 December 2009.
25. Wandera, Gilbert (9 December 2009). "Tanzania hit Eritrea to make semi-final". The Standard. Nairobi. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
26. "Eritrea withdraw from qualifiers". FIFA. 25 March 2008. Archived from the original on 1 April 2008. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
27. Pilipili, Oscar (12 December 2009). "Zimbabwe held 0–0 by Eritrea". The Standard. Nairobi. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
28. Toskin, Robin (4 December 2009). "Eritrean goalkeeper's effort not good enough". The Standard. Nairobi. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
29. "Eritrea crush Somalia as Rwanda pip Zims". The Standard. Nairobi. 6 December 2009. Archived from the original on 7 October 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
30. Xinhua (16 December 2009). "Kenya Searches for 12 "Missing" Eritrean Players". CRI. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
31. Ombati, Cyrus (18 December 2009). "12 Eritrean footballers granted asylum". The Standard. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2009.
32. "Assenna.com – Politics, Culture, Religion". assenna.com. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
33. Sportal Australia (26 August 2011). "Gold Coast Sign Refugee Pair". Australian FourFourTwo. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2011.
34. "Eritrean football players seek asylum in Botswana". BBC News. 15 October 2015. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
35. "BBC SPORT | Football | African | Seychelles plan their assault". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
36. "HAFAKAN RUHU / Eritre futbolu, ne alaka? – PINAR ÖĞÜNÇ". Radikal (in Turkish). Retrieved 13 July 2017.
37. FIFA.com. "Eritrea - Association Information - FIFA.com". FIFA.com. Retrieved 13 July 2017.

External links

• Eritrea Oficial
  • Eritrea on FIFA.com
    • Fixtures and results
    • Ranking history