Gambia
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)The Scorpions
AssociationGambia Football Federation (GFF)
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationWAFU (West Africa)
Head coachTom Saintfiet
CaptainOmar Colley
Most capsOmar Colley (46)
Top scorerAssan Ceesay (13)
Home stadiumIndependence Stadium
FIFA codeGAM
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 126 Steady (21 December 2023)[1]
Highest65 (June 2009)
Lowest179 (March 2017)
First international
 British Gambia 2–1 Sierra Leone
(Gambia; 9 February 1953)
Biggest win
 Gambia 6–0 Lesotho 
(Bakau, Gambia; 13 October 2002)
Biggest defeat
 Guinea 8–0 Gambia 
(Guinea; 14 May 1972)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances2 (first in 2021)
Best resultQuarter-finals (2021)

The Gambia national football team (recognized at The Gambia by FIFA)[2] represents The Gambia in men's international football and is controlled by the Gambia Football Federation. Until 1965, the team and the country were known as British Gambia. The team has never qualified for the World Cup. In 2021, Gambia qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations finals for the first time in history. The team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

History

Under the name British Gambia, the team played their first ever game on 9 February 1953 against Sierra Leone, winning 2–1 at home in a friendly.[3] In April 1963, the team entered the L'Amitié tournament in Senegal, a competition mainly for French-speaking nations. They were drawn in a group with France's amateur team, the Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) and Gabon. Their first match was lost 5–1 to the French amateurs on 11 April. The Gambia drew 2–2 with the Upper Volta on 13 April, and had the same result the very next day versus Gabon. The Gambia did not advance to the next round.

After the tournament in Senegal, the Gambia did not play another match until 16 November 1968, when they travelled to Sierra Leone to play its team in a friendly and lost 2–1. They played again in Sierra Leone in The Gambia's next match on 24 April 1971, and the hosts won 3–1. On 2 May 1971, The Gambia travelled to Guinea for a friendly and lost 4–2. On 14 May 1972, The Gambia returned to Guinea for their first African Games qualifier and lost 8–0 and were knocked out.

In 1975, the Gambia entered its first qualification campaign for the 1976 Summer Olympics in Canada. They were drawn in a qualifier against Guinea, and lost the first leg 1–0 at home on 27 April 1975. The second leg was lost 6–0 in Guinea on 1 June as Guinea advanced 7–0 on aggregate.

In August of that same year, the Gambia entered their first qualification for the African Cup of Nations, with the aim of reaching the 1976 finals in Ethiopia. They were drawn in a two-legged qualifier against Morocco and lost the first leg 3–0 away on 10 August. They lost by the same score in their home leg on 24 August and Morocco advanced 6–0 on aggregate.

After the qualification campaign for the 1976 finals, The Gambia played their first match against a full European side, losing a home friendly 4–1 to Denmark on 30 January 1977.[4]

On 12 October 2002, the team got their biggest ever victory in international competition, a 6–0 victory against Lesotho. [5]

In May 2014, the Gambia was banned from all CAF competitions for two years after deliberately falsifying players' ages.[6]

The nation's fortunes improved in qualification for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. Although they failed to qualify, they took it to the final round of games, including drawing twice with African giants Algeria.

On 13 November, in their first Group D match of 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification, Gambia defeated Angola 1–3 in Luanda. This was the Scorpions' first away win in an AFCON or FIFA World Cup qualifier ever, at their 40th attempt. An impressive campaign saw them qualify for their first ever major tournament that year. As the lowest-ranked team in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, the Gambia defied the odds by defeating favourites Tunisia in the group stage, finishing unbeaten in 2nd place in the group. A further win against Guinea in the Round of 16 saw them reach the quarter-finals at their first attempt, eventually going out to tournament hosts Cameroon.

Home stadium

Football fans watching Gambia v Guinea

Independence Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Bakau, Gambia. It is currently used mostly for football matches, although it is also used for music concerts, political events, trade fairs and national celebrations. The stadium holds 30,000 people.[7]

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2023

24 March 2023 AFCON qualification Mali  2–0  Gambia Bamako, Mali
19:00 UTC±0
Report Stadium: Stade du 26 Mars
Referee: Jean Ouattara (Burkina Faso)
28 March 2023 AFCON qualification Gambia  1–0  Mali Casablanca, Morocco
16:00 UTC±0
Report Stadium: Stade Mohamed V
Referee: Kouassi Attisso Attiogbe (Togo)
14 June 2023 AFCON qualification South Sudan  2–3  Gambia Ismailia, Egypt
15:00 UTC+2
Report
Stadium: Suez Canal Stadium
Referee: Dahane Beida (Mauritania)
10 September 2023 AFCON qualification Gambia  2–2  Congo Marrakesh, Morocco
20:00 UTC+1
Report
Stadium: Stade de Marrakech
Referee: Mohamed Maarouf Eid Mansour (Egypt)
16 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Burundi  3–2  Gambia Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
16:00 UTC+3
Report
Stadium: Benjamin Mkapa (National Stadium)
Referee: Djindo Louis Houngnandande (Benin)

2024

15 January 2023 AFCON GS Senegal  v  Gambia Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast
14:00 UTC±0 Stadium: Charles Konan Banny Stadium
19 January 2023 AFCON GS Guinea  v  Gambia Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast
Stadium: Charles Konan Banny Stadium
23 January 2023 AFCON GS Gambia  v  Cameroon Bouaké, Ivory Coast
Stadium: Stade de la Paix

Coaching staff

In July 2018, former Togo and Zimbabwe coach Tom Saintfiet, was appointed as head coach. Saintfiet took over from former international Sang Ndong who is now technical director of the Gambia Football Federation (GFF) following the end of his contract in January.[8]

Head coach Belgium Tom Saintfiet
Team Manager The Gambia Ousman Drammeh
Assistant coach The Gambia Alagie Sarr
Physical Coach Italy Daniele Caleca
Goalkeeper coach The Gambia Alhagie Marong
Goalkeeper coach The Gambia Adama Colley
Team Doctor The Gambia Pa Landing
Physiotherapist Belgium Tom Mertens
Physiotherapist Belgium Joppe Vermeulen
Equipment Manager The Gambia Mustapha Kassama
Technical Assistant The Gambia Ismail Barrow
Coach-analyst The Gambia Omar Sidibeh
International Scout Italy Alessandro Soli

Coaching history

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.[9]

Caps and goals correct as of 20 November 2023, after the match against Ivory Coast.[10]

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Modou Jobe (1988-10-27) 27 October 1988 31 0 South Africa Black Leopards
1GK Baboucarr Gaye (1998-02-24) 24 February 1998 18 0 Bulgaria Lokomotiv Sofia
1GK Lamin Sarr (2001-03-11) 11 March 2001 0 0 Sweden Eskilsminne IF
2DF Omar Colley (1992-10-24) 24 October 1992 46 1 Turkey Beşiktaş
2DF Bubacarr Sanneh (1994-11-14) 14 November 1994 39 1 Bosnia and Herzegovina FK Zvijezda 09
2DF Dawda Ngum (1990-09-02) 2 September 1990 21 0 Sweden Ariana
2DF Ibou Touray (1994-12-24) 24 December 1994 20 0 England Stockport County
2DF Noah Sonko Sundberg (1996-06-06) 6 June 1996 17 0 Bulgaria Levski Sofia
2DF James Gomez (2001-11-14) 14 November 2001 16 1 Czech Republic Sparta Prague
2DF Muhammed Sanneh (2000-02-19) 19 February 2000 9 0 Czech Republic Baník Ostrava
2DF Saidy Janko (1995-10-22) 22 October 1995 8 0 Switzerland Young Boys
2DF Jacob Mendy (1996-12-27) 27 December 1996 1 0 Wales Wrexham
3MF Sulayman Marreh (1996-01-15) 15 January 1996 35 1 Israel Hapoel Haifa
3MF Hamza Barry (1994-05-03) 3 May 1994 24 1 Denmark Vejle
3MF Yusupha Bobb (1996-06-22) 22 June 1996 19 0 Morocco KAC Marrakech
3MF Ebou Adams (1996-01-15) 15 January 1996 15 0 Wales Cardiff City
3MF Ebrima Darboe (2001-06-06) 6 June 2001 13 0 Austria LASK
3MF Alasana Manneh (1998-04-08) 8 April 1998 10 0 Denmark Odense
4FW Assan Ceesay (1994-03-17) 17 March 1994 39 13 Saudi Arabia Damac
4FW Musa Barrow (1998-11-14) 14 November 1998 35 6 Saudi Arabia Al Taawoun
4FW Ablie Jallow (1998-11-14) 14 November 1998 30 7 France Metz
4FW Ebrima Colley (2000-02-01) 1 February 2000 22 1 Switzerland Young Boys
4FW Muhammed Badamosi (1998-12-27) 27 December 1998 20 2 Serbia Čukarički
4FW Abdoulie Sanyang (1999-05-08) 8 May 1999 13 0 France Grenoble
4FW Ali Sowe (1994-06-14) 14 June 1994 9 0 Turkey MKE Ankaragücü
4FW Alieu Fadera (2001-11-03) 3 November 2001 4 0 Belgium K.R.C. Genk
4FW Yankuba Minteh (2004-07-22) 22 July 2004 2 1 Netherlands Feyenoord

Recent call ups

The following players have also been called up to the Gambia squad within the last twelve months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Sheikh Sibi (1998-02-21) 21 February 1998 3 0 Italy Virtus Verona 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK Ebrima Jarju (1998-03-16) 16 March 1998 0 0 Estonia Paide 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Sulayman Bojang (1997-09-03) 3 September 1997 6 0 Norway Skeid 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Ismaila Jome (1994-11-04) 4 November 1994 2 0 United States Oakland Roots 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Baboucarr Njie (1995-06-05) 5 June 1995 0 0 United States San Antonio 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Alagie Saine (2003-01-20) 20 January 2003 0 0 United States Horsens 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Momodou Colley (1995-01-30) 30 January 1995 0 0 Luxembourg Union Titus Pétange v.  Mali, 28 March 2023
MF Bubacarr Jobe (1994-11-21) 21 November 1994 10 3 Sweden Norrby 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Sainey Njie (2001-08-30) 30 August 2001 5 0 Serbia Radnik Surdulica 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Jesper Ceesay (2003-05-04) 4 May 2003 0 0 Sweden Norrköping 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Saikou Touray (2000-06-06) 6 June 2000 0 0 France Grenoble 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Saidou Khan (1995-12-05) 5 December 1995 0 0 England Swindon Town 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Mahmudu Bajo (2004-08-15) 15 August 2004 0 0 Slovakia Podbrezová 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Ismail Ceesay (2004-08-15) 15 August 2004 0 0 Slovakia Železiarne Podbrezová v.  Ivory Coast, 20 November 2023
MF Mustapha Colley (1996-12-27) 27 December 1996 0 0 Wales Wrexham v.  Ivory Coast, 20 November 2023
MF Ousman Bojang (2001-08-30) 30 August 2001 3 0 Serbia Radnik Surdulica v.  Congo, 10 September 2023
MF Ebrima Barrow (2001-10-20) 20 October 2001 0 0 Sweden IFK Norrköping v.  Congo, 10 September 2023
MF Musa Touray (1995-12-05) 5 December 1995 0 0 England Swindon Town v.  Congo, 10 September 2023
MF Bakary Kinteh (1999-08-05) 5 August 1999 0 0 Latvia RFS v.  Mali, 28 March 2023
FW Lamin Jallow (1994-07-22) 22 July 1994 19 1 Algeria CR Belouizdad 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Dembo Darboe (1998-08-17) 17 August 1998 5 0 Kazakhstan Astana 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Musa Juwara (2001-12-26) 26 December 2001 1 0 Denmark Vejle 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Adama Bojang (2004-05-28) 28 May 2004 0 0 France Reims 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Pa Adama Jallow (1999-05-08) 8 May 1999 12 0 France Grenoble v.  Ivory Coast, 20 November 2023
FW Ibrahim Jammeh (1994-01-03) 3 January 1994 6 0 Qatar Al-Markhiya v.  Mali, 28 March 2023

WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.
INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
PRE Preliminary squad.
RET Player has retired from international football.
SUS Suspended from the national team.

Records

As of 20 November 2023[11]
Players in bold are still active with Gambia.

Most appearances

Omar Colley is Gambia's most capped player with 46 appearances.
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Omar Colley 46 1 2012–present
2 Pa Modou Jagne 43 2 2006–2022
3 Assan Ceesay 39 13 2013–present
Bubacarr Sanneh 39 1 2012–present
5 Ebrima Sohna 38 3 2007–present
6 Musa Barrow 35 6 2018–present
Sulayman Marreh 35 1 2011–present
8 Abdou Jammeh 33 2 2006–2015
9 Modou Jobe 31 0 2007–present
10 Ablie Jallow 30 7 2015–present

Top goalscorer

Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Assan Ceesay 13 39 0.33 2013–present
2 Ablie Jallow 7 30 0.23 2015–present
3 Momoudou Ceesay 6 16 0.38 2010–2015
Musa Barrow 6 35 0.17 2018–present
5 Omar Samba 5 11 0.45 1995–2002
Jatto Ceesay 5 17 0.29 1994–2007
Mustapha Jarju 5 26 0.19 2006–2013
8 Samuel Kargbo 3 9 0.33 1994–1996
Njogu Demba-Nyrén 3 15 0.2 2006–2011
Edrissa Sonko 3 16 0.19 1996–2008
Aziz Corr Nyang 3 17 0.18 2002–2011
Bubacarr Jobe 3 17 0.18 2018–present
Mamadou Danso 3 20 0.15 2011–2019
Ebrima Ebou Sillah 3 24 0.13 1996–2008
Ebrima Sohna 3 38 0.08 2007–present

Competitive record

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
Uruguay 1930 Part of  United Kingdom Part of  United Kingdom
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962
England 1966
Mexico 1970 did not enter did not enter
West Germany 1974
Argentina 1978
Spain 1982 did not qualify 2 0 1 1 2 1
Mexico 1986 2 1 0 1 3 6
Italy 1990 did not enter did not enter
United States 1994 Withdrew Withdrew
France 1998 did not qualify 2 1 0 1 2 5
South Korea Japan 2002 2 0 0 2 0 3
Germany 2006 2 1 0 1 2 3
South Africa 2010 6 2 3 1 6 3
Brazil 2014 6 1 1 4 4 11
Russia 2018 2 0 1 1 2 3
Qatar 2022 2 0 0 2 1 3
Canada Mexico United States 2026 to be determined 2 0 0 2 2 5
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 to be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total–0/25––––––2866162443

Africa Cup of Nations

Africa Cup of Nations record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
Sudan 1957 to Ghana 1963 Part of United Kingdom
Tunisia 1965Not affiliated to CAF
Ethiopia 1968 to Egypt 1974 did not enter
Ethiopia 1976 did not qualify
Ghana 1978 did not enter
Nigeria 1980 to Morocco 1988 did not qualify
Algeria 1990 Withdrew
Senegal 1992 did not qualify
Tunisia 1994 did not enter
South Africa 1996 Withdrew during qualifying
Burkina Faso 1998 Banned for withdrawing in 1996
Ghana Nigeria 2000 Withdrew
Mali 2002 to South Africa 2013 did not qualify
Equatorial Guinea 2015 Banned
Gabon 2017did not qualify
Egypt 2019
Cameroon 2021Quarter-finals6th531143
Ivory Coast 2023Qualified
Morocco 2025to be determined
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027
TotalQuarter-finals1/33531143

Honours

References

  1. ↑ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 21 December 2023. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  2. ↑ "The Gambia". FIFA. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  3. ↑ "World Football Elo Ratings: Gambia". World Football Elo Rankings. Archived from the original on 18 November 2018. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  4. ↑ "Gambia – List of International Matches". Rsssf.com. Archived from the original on 9 March 2023. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
  5. ↑ "Gambia v Lesotho, 13 October 2002". 11v11.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  6. ↑ "The Gambia disqualified from all Caf competitions". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 6 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "Gambia National Stadium". Archived from the original on 23 September 2013. Retrieved 27 August 2013.
  8. ↑ "Tom Saintfiet named new Gambia coach". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 18 July 2018. Archived from the original on 22 July 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  9. ↑ "Final Squad" (PDF). CAF Online.
  10. ↑ https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400017610
  11. ↑ "Gambia". National Football Teams.
    Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gambia national football team.
    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.