The Somaliland national football team is the football team that represents Somaliland, a self-declared republic internationally recognised as a de facto state. Although Somaliland is a de facto state, it has not yet received international de jure recognition. Somaliland is not a member of FIFA or the Confederation of African Football (CAF). Instead, it is an associate member of the Confederation of Independent Football Associations (ConIFA), an association established in 2014 of teams from dependencies, unrecognised states, minorities, stateless peoples, and regions that are not affiliated with FIFA.
The Somaliland national team's first known match was on 6 November 2002 against Ethiopia, ending in a 1âÂÂ2 loss; however, their first "proper" international match was a 2âÂÂ2 draw against Sealand, played on 17 May 2014 in London, England.
The Somaliland Football Association runs a national league consisting of 12 semi-professional clubs, sponsored or backed by both public and private organisations. The Association also holds a biannual inter-regional football tournament, in which all 13 regions participate in group stages held across the country, with the final four group winners contesting the semi-finals in the capital, Hargeisa.
Following ConIFA's annual conference, the Somaliland national team was invited to compete at the 2016 ConIFA World Football Cup (hosted by Abkhazia), which became their first appearance at an international tournament.
Somaliland was drawn into Group D alongside Panjab and Sápmi. Somaliland lost their opening game against Sápmi with a score of 5âÂÂ0, and lost again to Panjab 5âÂÂ0, resulting in Somaliland finishing at the bottom of Group D.
In Placement Round 1, Somaliland won 3âÂÂ2 against the Chagos Islands to advance to Placement Round 2. In their Placement Round 2 match against Székely Land, Somaliland lost 3âÂÂ10, placing tenth out of twelve teams.
Somaliland FIFA application is currently pending recognition is gaining momentum If recognised as a separate country, Somaliland could join the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and CECAFA. FIFA membership in 2025 is pending international recognition, with plans to host Confederation of African Football matches at Hargeisa stadium capital of Somaliland republic stadiums need renovation with multiple redevelopments to meet CAF regulations and FIFA regulations, such as advertising barriers, back power generation, lighting intensity, and stadium safety with no stand on goal views at Hargeisa stadium, Somaliland would need to meet FIFA regulations on goal posts, power, lighting and advertising barriers Hargeisa stadium is the largest stadium in Hargeisa and would be their main stadium. Somaliland FIFA country code is SMD for score lines.
Hargeysa National Stadium is the home of the national team and has a capacity of 30,000.
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