Aruba national football team facts for kids
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Association | Arubaanse Voetbal Bond (AVB) | ||
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Confederation | CONCACAF (North America) | ||
Sub-confederation | CFU (Caribbean) | ||
Head coach | Marvic Bermúdez | ||
Captain | Fernando Lewis | ||
Most caps | Eric Abdul (32) | ||
Top scorer | Rovien Ostiana (8) | ||
Home stadium | Trinidad Stadium | ||
FIFA code | ARU | ||
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FIFA ranking | |||
Current | 187 ![]() |
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Highest | 112 (November 2015) | ||
Lowest | 205 (April 2021) | ||
Elo ranking | |||
Current | 198 ![]() |
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Highest | 50 (1924) | ||
Lowest | 203 (April 2020) | ||
First international | |||
![]() ![]() (Aruba; 6 April 1924) As FIFA member ![]() ![]() (Netherlands Antilles; 31 March 1989) |
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Biggest win | |||
![]() ![]() (Surinam; 6 June 1946) ![]() ![]() (Oranjestad, Aruba; 1 June 2014) |
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Biggest defeat | |||
![]() ![]() (Arima, Trinidad and Tobago; 23 April 1989) |
The Aruba national football team is the official football team for the island of Aruba. It is also known as Arubaans voetbalelftal in Dutch and Seleccion Arubano di futbol in Papiamento.
The team was started in 1932. It is part of the CFU, CONCACAF, and FIFA. Aruba joined FIFA in 1988. The team is managed by the Arubaanse Voetbal Bond.
Aruba has never played in the FIFA World Cup or the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Contents
History of Aruba Football
Between 1924 and 1933, Aruba mostly played against Curaçao. These early matches were not officially recognized. In the 1950s, these games helped choose the best players for the Netherlands Antilles team. Famous Aruban players like Jani Brokke even played in the 1952 Olympic Games for the Netherlands Antilles.
The Curaçao Football Association (C.V.B.) and the Netherlands Antilles team won gold at the 1950 Central American and Caribbean Games. They also took part in the 1953 CCCF Championship.
In the 1950s, the Aruba Football Federation (A.V.B.) set up friendly matches and small tournaments. For example, Aruba played against the famous Brazilian club Botafogo in 1952. They also played against teams from Surinam, British Guiana, and a professional club from Venezuela in 1953.
Aruba played in its first big tournament at the 1955 CCCF Championship, finishing in 5th place. In 1958, the A.V.B. joined with the Curaçao Football Association. They formed the Netherlands Antillean Football Union. Aruba's players were part of the Netherlands Antilles national football team until Aruba became separate in 1986.
After becoming independent from the Netherlands Antilles, the Aruba Football Federation joined CONCACAF and FIFA in 1988. Aruba entered the qualifiers for the 1989 Caribbean Cup. In their first match, they lost 11–0 to Trinidad and Tobago. This was their biggest loss ever.
Aruba played its first World Cup qualifying match against the Dominican Republic for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Since then, Aruba has tried to qualify for every World Cup. However, they have not yet made it past the first qualifying round.
Aruba has also not yet qualified for the Caribbean Cup. But they showed improvement in the 2014 Caribbean Cup preliminary round. They won two games against Turks and Caicos (1–0) and British Virgin Islands (7–0). The 7–0 win was their biggest victory in history. These wins helped Aruba reach their best-ever FIFA World Ranking of 120th in June 2014. After these victories, Aruba lost to French Guiana and was eliminated.
In the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Aruba played against Barbados. They lost both games, but FIFA later ruled that Barbados used a player who wasn't allowed to play. This changed Aruba's second game to a 3–0 win, letting them move to the next round. However, they then lost to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Aruba also did not move forward in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
In March 2025, Aruba played friendly matches in Southeast Asia. They faced Cambodia, which was their first Asian opponent since playing Guam in 2014.
Recent Matches
Here are some of Aruba's recent football match results.
Win Draw Loss Fixture
Matches in 2024
- June 8, 2024: Aruba lost 0–2 to Curaçao in a World Cup qualifier.
- June 11, 2024: Aruba drew 2–2 with Saint Lucia in a World Cup qualifier.
- September 6, 2024: Aruba lost 2–0 to Sint Maarten in the CONCACAF Nations League.
- September 9, 2024: Aruba lost 0–1 to Puerto Rico in the CONCACAF Nations League.
- October 11, 2024: Aruba lost 1–3 to Haiti in the CONCACAF Nations League.
- October 14, 2024: Aruba lost 3–5 to Haiti in the CONCACAF Nations League.
- November 15, 2024: Aruba lost 1–5 to Puerto Rico in the CONCACAF Nations League.
- November 18, 2024: Aruba lost 0–1 to Sint Maarten in the CONCACAF Nations League.
Matches in 2025
- March 22, 2025: Aruba lost 1–3 to Visakha FC (Cambodia) in a friendly match.
- March 25, 2025: Aruba won 2–1 against Cambodia in a friendly match.
- June 4, 2025: Aruba drew 1–1 with Barbados in a World Cup qualifier.
- June 7, 2025: Aruba lost 0–5 to Haiti in a World Cup qualifier.
Coaching History
René Notten (1995)
Ángel Botta (1996)
Marco Rasmijn (2000)
Marcelo Muñoz (2004)
Azing Griever (2004–2006)
Marcelo Muñoz (2008–2010)
Epi Albertus (2010–2012)
Giovanni Franken (2013–2015)
Rini Coolen (2015)
Martin Koopman (2015–2020)
Marvic Bermúdez (2020)
Stanley Menzo (2021–2022)
Marvic Bermúdez (2022–)
Players
Current Squad
These players were chosen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – CONCACAF second round matches in June 2025.
Numbers for games played (caps) and goals are correct as of June 4, 2025, after the match against Barbados.
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
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1 | GK | Matthew Lentink | 18 August 1993 | 21 | 0 | ![]() |
18 | GK | Jahmani Eisden | 9 July 2005 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
20 | GK | Josthan Maduro | 30 August 2006 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
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2 | DF | Nickenson Paul | 24 August 1997 | 35 | 0 | ![]() |
3 | DF | Diederick Luydens | 18 February 1999 | 12 | 2 | ![]() |
4 | DF | Bradley Martis | 13 July 1998 | 2 | 0 | ![]() |
5 | DF | Kymani Nedd | 10 June 2004 | 14 | 0 | ![]() |
12 | DF | Edhyon Hersilia | 11 April 2006 | 2 | 0 | ![]() |
17 | DF | Jaybrien Romano | 13 December 2004 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
DF | Jillroy Ruiz | 18 October 1996 | 2 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Jonathan Richard | 21 June 1991 | 8 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Shivay Wadhwani | 3 July 2005 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
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6 | MF | Rovien Ostiana | 14 February 2002 | 15 | 8 | ![]() |
7 | MF | Dimaggio Senchi | 3 May 1995 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
8 | MF | Walter Bennett | 18 March 1997 | 25 | 2 | ![]() |
20 | MF | Isaï Marselia | 17 June 2001 | 10 | 1 | ![]() |
MF | Steven Rua | 12 May 1990 | 18 | 0 | ![]() |
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9 | FW | Terence Groothusen | 16 September 1996 | 22 | 6 | ![]() |
11 | FW | Javier Jiménez | 27 May 2000 | 15 | 2 | ![]() |
14 | FW | Alljereau Mercera | 3 May 2002 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
19 | FW | Nathan La Cruz | 9 May 2006 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
22 | FW | Benjamin Maria | 19 September 2001 | 11 | 3 | ![]() |
FW | Jayden Kruydenhof | 18 December 2006 | 8 | 1 | ![]() |
Player Records
Players in bold are still playing for Aruba.
Most Games Played
Rank | Player | Caps | Goals | Career |
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1 | Nickenson Paul | 33 | 0 | 2014–present |
2 | Eric Abdul | 32 | 0 | 2011–2023 |
3 | Theric Ruiz | 28 | 1 | 2004–2016 |
4 | Erik Santos de Gouveia | 27 | 3 | 2011–2021 |
5 | Leroy Oehlers | 24 | 0 | 2013–2019 |
6 | Walter Bennett | 23 | 1 | 2018–present |
Francois Croes | 23 | 0 | 2008–2021 | |
8 | Ronald Gómez | 22 | 6 | 2002–2021 |
9 | Raymond Baten | 21 | 3 | 2011–2019 |
Matthew Lentink | 21 | 0 | 2014–present |
Top Goalscorers
Rank | Player | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
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1 | Rovien Ostiana | 7 | 13 | 0.54 | 2023–present |
2 | Terence Groothusen | 6 | 20 | 0.3 | 2019–present |
Ronald Gómez | 6 | 22 | 0.27 | 2002–2021 | |
4 | Glenroy Lake | 5 | 6 | 0.83 | 1995–2002 |
5 | Wander Gross | 4 | 5 | 0.8 | 2000–2001 |
Joshua John | 4 | 9 | 0.44 | 2018–present | |
Dwaynalex Raven | 4 | 10 | 0.4 | 2012–2015 | |
Rensy Barradas | 4 | 11 | 0.36 | 2011–2015 | |
Maurice Escalona | 4 | 12 | 0.33 | 2004–2014 | |
10 | Lesley Felomina | 3 | 4 | 0.75 | 2000–2001 |
Benjamin Maria | 3 | 10 | 0.3 | 2022–present | |
Jean-Luc Bergen | 3 | 10 | 0.3 | 2011–2015 | |
Annuar Kock | 3 | 17 | 0.18 | 2011–2019 | |
Raymond Baten | 3 | 21 | 0.14 | 2011–2019 | |
Erik Santos de Gouveia | 3 | 27 | 0.11 | 2011–2021 |
Tournament Records
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup is the biggest football tournament in the world. Teams from all over the globe try to qualify. Aruba has tried to qualify many times but has not yet made it to the main tournament.
FIFA World Cup | Qualification | ||||||||||||||
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Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | |
1930 to 1986 | Part of ![]() |
Part of ![]() |
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1990 and 1994 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
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Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | ||||||||
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4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 11 | |||||||||
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | |||||||||
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |||||||||
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2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6 | |||||||||
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4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 5 | |||||||||
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4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 19 | |||||||||
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4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 10 | |||||||||
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To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
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Total | 0/9 | 24 | 5 | 3 | 16 | 29 | 71 |
CONCACAF Gold Cup
The CONCACAF Gold Cup is the main football competition for teams in North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Aruba has not yet qualified for this tournament.
CONCACAF Championship & Gold Cup record | Qualification record | |||||||||||||||
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Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Squad | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
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1985 | ||||||||||||||||
1989 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||
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Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||||||||||
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Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 | |||||||||
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2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 7 | ||||||||||
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3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||||
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3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 14 | ||||||||||
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||||
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Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||||||||||
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Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||
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Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |||||||||
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Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||
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Did not qualify | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 7 | |||||||||
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3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | ||||||||||
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | ||||||||||
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4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 6 | ||||||||||
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6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 18 | ||||||||||
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4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 5 | ||||||||||
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6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 17 | ||||||||||
Total | 0/19 | 40 | 6 | 5 | 29 | 43 | 102 |
CONCACAF Nations League
The CONCACAF Nations League is a competition for national teams in North, Central America, and the Caribbean. Teams play in different leagues based on their ranking.
CONCACAF Nations League history | |
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First Match | Guyana ![]() ![]() (6 September 2019; Willemstad, Curaçao) |
Biggest Win | ![]() ![]() (6 June 2022; Willemstad, Curaçao) Aruba ![]() ![]() (16 November 2023; Christiansted, U.S. Virgin Islands) |
Biggest Defeat | Jamaica ![]() ![]() (15 October 2019; Willemstad, Curaçao) |
Best Result | — |
Worst Result | — |
CFU Caribbean Cup
The CFU Caribbean Cup was a football tournament for teams in the Caribbean region. Aruba has participated in the qualifiers but has not reached the main tournament.
ABCS Tournament
The ABCS Tournament is a friendly football competition. It includes teams from Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, and Suriname. Aruba has won this tournament once.
- *Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
Head-to-Head Records
This table shows how Aruba has played against other national teams in official international matches. Teams in italics are historical teams or not FIFA members.
As of June 7, 2025
Against | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | GF | GA | GD | Confederation |
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5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 11 | −7 | CONCACAF |
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7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 17 | −9 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | –3 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | +7 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | AFC |
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1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | –7 | CONCACAF |
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3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 | +7 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | CONCACAF |
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28 | 1 | 9 | 16 | 22 | 53 | −31 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | CONCACAF |
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4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 10 | −5 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 | CONCACAF |
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3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 7 | −4 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | AFC |
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1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CONCACAF |
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4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 12 | −10 | CONCACAF |
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4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 14 | –9 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | CONCACAF |
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3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | −14 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | −2 | CONCACAF |
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8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 20 | −11 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CONCACAF |
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4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 10 | –3 | CONCACAF |
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3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 7 | −5 | CONCACAF |
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4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 11 | −1 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | −3 | CONCACAF |
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13 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 46 | −40 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | −11 | CONCACAF |
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1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | CONCACAF |
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | −5 | CONMEBOL |
Total | 110 | 17 | 24 | 74 | 129 | 272 | −143 | FIFA |
Honours
Friendly Tournaments
- ABCS Tournament (1): 2012
See also
In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Aruba para niños