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Barbados national football team facts for kids

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This page is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Barbados women's national football team.
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Barbados
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s) Bajan Tridents
Association Barbados Football Association
Confederation CONCACAF (North America)
Sub-confederation CFU (Caribbean)
Head coach Orlando da Costa
Captain Hadan Holligan
Most caps Norman Forde (74)
Top scorer Llewellyn Riley (23)
Home stadium Wildey Turf
FIFA code BRB
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 162 Steady (7 February 2019)
Highest 92 (October 2009)
Lowest 181 (July 2017)
Elo ranking
Current 174 Decrease 1 (3 March 2019)
Highest 106 (16 July 2000)
Lowest 181 (November 2019)
First international
 Barbados 3–0 Trinidad and Tobago 
(Barbados; 20 April 1929)
Biggest win
 Barbados 7–1 Anguilla 
(St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda; 24 September 2006)
Biggest defeat
 British Guiana 9–0 Barbados 
(British Guiana; March 1931)
 Trinidad and Tobago 9–0 Barbados 
(Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago; 25 March 2022)
Medal record
CFU Caribbean Cup
Silver 1985 Barbados Team

The Barbados national football team, nicknamed Bajan Tridents, is the national association football team of Barbados and is controlled by the Barbados Football Association. It has never qualified for a major international tournament. It came close to qualifying for the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup as it hosted the Caribbean Cup finals that acted as Gold Cup qualifiers, but finished fourth of the four teams. In 2001, it surprised many by making the semi-final round of the 2002 World Cup Qualifiers. In the first game of this round, they pulled off a shock 2–1 win over Costa Rica, but lost their five remaining games. In 2004, Barbados gained a shock 1–1 draw at home to Northern Ireland.

History

Beginnings (1929–1980)

Barbados played their first international match on April 20, 1929, against Trinidad and Tobago, ending in a 3–0 victory. In the 1930s, they participated in several editions of the Martínez Shield where they suffered their most severe defeat against Guyana (at that time, British Guiana), in Georgetown, in 1931, 9–0.

Barbados had to wait for the qualifying tournament for the 1972 Munich Olympic Games to play its first official competition match against the amateur team of El Salvador, on July 25, 1971, in Bridgetown, a match that saw the Selecta win 0–3. Two years later, Barbados participated in the 1974 Central American and Caribbean Games, in Santo Domingo, although it did not qualify past the first round. On August 15, 1976, Barbados defeated Trinidad and Tobago 2–1 (a brace by Victor Clarke) in the 1978 World Cup qualifiers, which doubled as qualification for the 1977 CONCACAF Championship. In the second leg, the Soca Warriors claimed their revenge (1–0) in Port of Spain, taking the tie to a third tiebreaker game, played in Bridgetown, on September 14, 1976, where Trinidad and Tobago won 1–3 eliminating Barbados.

1980–2000

In the '80s, the Bajan Braves obtained 2nd place in the 1985 CFU Championship. The following year they played the 1986 Central American and Caribbean Games, where they reached the quarterfinals, before being eliminated by the hosts, Dominican Republic. At the end of the decade, Barbados hosted the first edition of the Caribbean Cup, without being able to progress beyond the group stage.

In the 90s, Barbados would return to the World Cup qualifiers, in the preliminary tournament for the 1994 World Cup, where it was again eliminated by Trinidad and Tobago (5–1). In the 1998 World Cup qualifiers, after beating Dominica with an aggregate score of 2–0, Barbados was beaten down by Jamaica (0–1 in Bridgetown and 2–0 in Kingston). In the Caribbean Cup, the Bajan Braves qualified for the 1994 competition (eliminated in the first round) but subsequently failed to qualify for the annual competition from 1995–1999.

2000s

The 21st century started well for Barbados, who eliminated Cuba on penalties (5–4), after two 1–1 draws in Havana and Bridgetown, during the qualifying rounds for the 2002 World Cup. In the second round, they achieved a historic victory at home against Costa Rica (2–1), on July 16, 2000, with goals from Llewellyn Riley and Michael Forde. However after winning that match, the Barbadians lost the remaining fixtures, wasting their chance to advance to the final hexagonal.

They would return in 2001 to the final phase of the Caribbean Cup, although without much luck after being eliminated again in the first round. In the 2006 World Cup qualifiers, the Saint Kitts and Nevis team eliminated Barbados in the first phase, with an aggregate score of 5–2. In 2005, Barbados hosted (for the second time) the XII edition of the Caribbean Cup, finishing in 4th place. They also qualified for the 2007 and 2008 tournaments, eliminated both times in the group stage. In the preliminary tournament for the 2010 World Cup, Barbados was eliminated by the United States, over two legs, with a crushing aggregate result of 9–0.

2010–present

The qualifiers heading to the 2014 World Cup were a real ordeal for the Bajan Braves who were placed into a group with Bermuda, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. They finished last in the group, with 2 goals scored and 14 conceded. After being eliminated in the preliminary phase of the Caribbean Cup in 2012 and after 17 months of inactivity, Barbados returned to play an international match, on March 2, 2014, against Jamaica, in Bridgetown, a match that concluded with victory for the Reggae Boyz, 2–0.

In the qualifying rounds for the 2018 World Cup, they would face the US Virgin Islands where they were surprised 0–1 at home, however, Barbados would overcome the deficit by a 0–4 victory on the road. Then they would face Aruba, winning 0–2 as a visitor, then beating them 1–0 at home however Barbados had fielded an ineligible player, Hadan Holligan, who was due to serve a suspension for collecting two yellow cards, therefore the second leg was awarded to Aruba 3–0, seeing them progress, eliminating Barbados.

Results and fixtures

Main page: Barbados national football team results

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

2022

2023

Coaching history

  • Barbados Daniel Reid
  • Barbados Tom Burke
  • Barbados Jordan Emmett
  • Barbados Ryan Kontoh
  • Barbados Kevin Millard (1992)
  • Barbados Keith Griffith (1994)
  • Barbados Edward Smith (1996)
  • Barbados Eyre Sealy (1998)
  • Barbados Horace Beckles (2000)
  • Barbados Sherlock Yarde (2001)
  • Barbados Keith Griffith (2002)
  • Barbados Allison John (2003)
  • Barbados Kenville Layne (2003–04)
  • Barbados Mark Doherty (2005)
  • Barbados Eyre Sealy (2007–08)
  • Barbados Keith Griffith (2008)
  • Barbados Thomas Jordan (2008–10)
  • Barbados Colin Forde (2011–14)
  • Brazil Marcos Falopa (2014–15)
  • Barbados Colin Harewood (2015–17)
  • Somalia Ahmed Mohamed Ahmed (2017–2019)
  • Trinidad and Tobago Russell Latapy (2019–2022)
  • Portugal Orlando da Costa (2022-)

Players

Current squad

  • The following players were called up for the 2022–23 CONCACAF Nations League matches.
  • Match dates: 3, 5, 9 and 13 June 2022
  • Opposition:  Antigua and Barbuda,  Cuba and  Guadeloupe (twice)
  • Caps and goals correct as of: 13 June 2022, after the match against  Guadeloupe
No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Kishmar Primus (1998-04-09) 9 April 1998 (age 25) 26 0 Barbados Barbados Defence Force
1GK Liam Brathwaite (2000-11-06) 6 November 2000 (age 23) 13 0 Barbados UWI Blackbirds
1GK Nashton Browne (2001-04-12) 12 April 2001 (age 22) 0 0 United States Essex County Wolverines
2DF Ricardio Morris (1993-04-24) 24 April 1993 (age 30) 44 1 Barbados Weymouth Wales
2DF Ramon Manning (1993-01-11) 11 January 1993 (age 30) 12 0 Barbados Paradise
2DF Krystian Pearce (1990-01-05) 5 January 1990 (age 33) 9 0 England Kidderminster Harriers
2DF Andre Applewhaite (2002-06-03) 3 June 2002 (age 21) 7 0 United States Coastal Bend College
3MF Hadan Holligan (1996-09-11) 11 September 1996 (age 27) 52 5 Barbados Weymouth Wales
3MF Mario Williams (1992-08-19) 19 August 1992 (age 31) 43 0 Australia Macarthur
3MF Jomo Harris (1995-02-15) 15 February 1995 (age 28) 39 2 Barbados Paradise
3MF Ackeel Applewhaite (1999-07-17) 17 July 1999 (age 24) 37 1 Barbados Paradise
3MF Akeem Hill (1996-11-01) 1 November 1996 (age 27) 31 1 Barbados Barbados Defence Force
3MF Nicoli Brathwaite (2000-12-24) 24 December 2000 (age 22) 13 0 Barbados UWI Blackbirds
3MF Darico King (1997-05-29) 29 May 1997 (age 26) 12 0 Barbados Saint Andrew Lions
3MF Niall Reid-Stephen (2001-09-08) 8 September 2001 (age 22) 10 1 Barbados UWI Blackbirds
3MF Roshon Gittens (2002-02-05) 5 February 2002 (age 21) 7 1 Barbados Ellerton
3MF Nadre Butcher (2004-03-06) 6 March 2004 (age 19) 6 0 Free agent
3MF Sheran Hoyte (2000-02-21) 21 February 2000 (age 23) 6 0 Barbados Paradise
3MF Azarel Croney (1996-06-16) 16 June 1996 (age 27) 2 0 Barbados Notre Dame
3MF Devonte Richards (2002-09-27) 27 September 2002 (age 21) 2 0 United States Feather River Golden Eagles
3MF Jamol Williams (2003-04-20) 20 April 2003 (age 20) 2 0 Barbados Saint Andrew Lions
4FW Armando Lashley (1991-11-08) 8 November 1991 (age 32) 38 3 Barbados Paradise
4FW Omani Leacock (1998-05-01) 1 May 1998 (age 25) 21 2 Free agent
4FW Keon Atkins (1995-05-19) 19 May 1995 (age 28) 11 2 Barbados Deacons
4FW Tajio James (2003-12-17) 17 December 2003 (age 19) 4 0 United States Feather River Golden Eagles

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up within the past 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Justin Griffith (2005-02-18) 18 February 2005 (age 18) 1 0 Free agent v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022
DF Carl Hinkson (1997-04-14) 14 April 1997 (age 26) 12 0 Free agent v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022
DF Lemar Catlyn (2002-12-06) 6 December 2002 (age 20) 4 0 Barbados Ellerton v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022
DF Honor Bradshaw (2003-02-28) 28 February 2003 (age 20) 2 0 Free agent v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022
DF Shay Prescod (2004-03-04) 4 March 2004 (age 19) 2 0 Free agent v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022
DF Zachary Ellis-Hayden (1992-03-01) 1 March 1992 (age 31) 0 0 Canada Electric City FC Nations League pre-match camp, 2 June 2022
MF Xavier Clarke (1998-11-02) 2 November 1998 (age 25) 2 0 Barbados Notre Dame v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022
MF Reymar Walters (2000-04-18) 18 April 2000 (age 23) 1 0 Barbados UWI v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022
MF Adio Forde (2003-06-27) 27 June 2003 (age 20) 0 0 Free agent v.  Suriname, 28 January 2022

Player records

Players in bold are still active with Barbados.

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 to West Germany 1974 Did not enter (as until 1966, British Barbados) Did not enter
Argentina 1978 Did not qualify 3 1 0 2 3 5
Spain 1982 Did not enter Did not enter
Mexico 1986 Withdrew Withdrew
Italy 1990 Did not enter Did not enter
United States 1994 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 1 5
France 1998 4 2 0 2 2 3
South Korea Japan 2002 12 4 3 5 17 27
Germany 2006 2 0 0 2 2 5
South Africa 2010 4 1 1 2 2 10
Brazil 2014 6 0 0 6 2 14
Russia 2018 Disqualified after qualifying for third round 4 2 0 2 6 4
Qatar 2022 Did not qualify 4 1 2 1 3 3
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined To be determined
Total - - - - - - - - 41 11 6 24 38 76

CONCACAF Gold Cup

CONCACAF Championship & Gold Cup record
Year Round Position GP W D* L GF GA
El Salvador 1963 Did not enter
Guatemala 1965
Honduras 1967
Costa Rica 1969
Trinidad and Tobago 1971
Haiti 1973
Mexico 1977 Did not qualify
Honduras 1981 Withdrew
1985 Did not enter
1989
United States 1991
MexicoUnited States 1993 Did not qualify
United States 1996
United States 1998
United States 2000
United States 2002
MexicoUnited States 2003
United States 2005
United States 2007
United States 2009
United States 2011
United States 2013
CanadaUnited States 2015
United States 2017
United StatesCosta RicaJamaica 2019
United States 2021
2023
Total - - - - - - - -

CONCACAF Nations League

CONCACAF Nations League record
Year Division Group Pld W D* L GF GA P/R Rank
United States 2019−20 C A 6 4 0 2 14 4 Rise 31st
2022–23 B A To be determined
Total 6 4 0 2 14 4 31st

CFU Caribbean Cup

CFU Championship & Caribbean Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position GP W D* L GS GA GP W D* L GS GA
Trinidad and Tobago 1978 First Round - 2 0 1 1 0 1 -
Suriname 1979 Did not enter Did not enter
Puerto Rico 1981 Did not qualify 2 0 2 0 2 2
French Guiana 1983 4 1 2 1 2 3
Barbados 1985 Runners-up 2nd 3 0 3 0 2 2 Qualified as host
Martinique 1988 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 1 9
Barbados 1989 Group stage 5th 2 1 0 1 1 3 Qualified as host
Trinidad and Tobago 1990 Abandoned - 2 1 1 0 5 4 3 2 1 0 3 1
Jamaica 1991 Did not enter Did not enter
Trinidad and Tobago 1992 Did not qualify 3 1 1 1 4 4
Jamaica 1993 3 2 0 1 9 2
Trinidad and Tobago 1994 Group stage 6th 3 0 2 1 3 5 2 1 0 1 4 3
Cayman Islands Jamaica 1995 Did not qualify 4 2 1 1 9 3
Trinidad and Tobago 1996 2 1 0 1 2 2
Antigua and Barbuda Saint Kitts and Nevis 1997 2 1 1 0 3 1
Jamaica Trinidad and Tobago 1998 3 1 0 2 6 9
Trinidad and Tobago 1999 5 3 1 1 9 4
Trinidad and Tobago 2001 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 2 10 3 2 1 0 9 5
Barbados 2005 Fourth place 4th 3 0 0 3 2 7 Qualified as host
Trinidad and Tobago 2007 Group stage 8th 3 0 1 2 3 6 6 4 2 0 17 5
Jamaica 2008 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 4 8 5 4 1 0 11 6
Martinique 2010 Did not qualify 3 1 2 0 6 1
Antigua and Barbuda 2012 3 2 0 1 3 2
Jamaica 2014 6 2 1 3 12 13
Martinique 2017 2 1 0 1 1 2
Total Runners-up 9/25 24 2 8 14 22 46 63 31 16 16 113 77

Head-to-head record

These all-time records are exclusively class 'A' internationals matches.

Key

      Winning record       Equal record       Losing record

Opponent Pld W D L GF GA
 Anguilla 2 2 0 0 8 1
 Antigua and Barbuda 7 5 1 1 14 8
 Aruba 6 5 0 1 16 7
 Bahamas 1 1 0 0 2 1
 Belize 2 0 1 1 0 1
 Bermuda 13 4 4 5 16 19
 Canada 3 0 0 3 2 9
 Cayman Islands 3 2 0 1 11 4
 Costa Rica 2 1 0 1 2 4
 Cuba 7 0 4 3 3 10
 Curaçao 1 1 0 0 1 0
 Dominica 12 7 2 3 18 11
 Dominican Republic 2 0 0 2 0 3
 El Salvador 1 0 0 1 0 3
 Finland 1 0 1 0 0 0
 Grenada 18 9 7 2 32 18
 Guadeloupe 4 1 1 2 3 4
 Guatemala 3 0 1 2 1 5
 Guyana 17 5 5 7 26 24
 Haiti 2 0 0 2 2 6
 Jamaica 12 2 2 10 9 24
 Martinique 8 1 2 5 12 19
 Montserrat 1 1 0 0 5 0
 Netherlands Antilles 3 2 1 0 3 1
 Nicaragua 2 1 0 1 1 1
 Northern Ireland 1 0 1 0 1 1
 Panama 1 0 0 1 0 1
 Puerto Rico 3 1 0 2 2 2
 Saint Kitts and Nevis 10 3 2 5 13 18
 Saint Lucia 8 3 2 3 16 11
Saint Martin 2 1 0 1 4 1
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 16 6 5 5 25 21
 Suriname 4 1 3 0 6 5
 Sweden 1 0 0 1 0 4
 Turks and Caicos Islands 1 1 0 0 2 0
 U.S. Virgin Islands 5 4 0 1 12 1
 United States 4 0 0 4 0 20
Total 190 70 45 76 259 267

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Barbados para niños

  • Sport in Barbados
  • Barbados 4–2 Grenada (1994 Caribbean Cup qualification)
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