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Cyprus national football team facts for kids

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Cyprus
Shirt badge/Association crest
Association Cyprus Football Association (CFA)
Κυπριακή Ομοσπονδία Ποδοσφαίρου
Kıbrıs Futbol Federasyonu
Confederation UEFA (Europe)
Head coach Akis Mantzios
Captain Kostakis Artymatas
Most caps Ioannis Okkas (103)
Top scorer Michalis Konstantinou (32)
Home stadium AEK Arena
FIFA code CYP
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 87 Decrease 1 (7 February 2019)
Highest 43 (September 2010)
Lowest 142 (June 2014)
Elo ranking
Current 102 Increase 2 (3 March 2019)
Highest 69 (22 March 2000)
Lowest 141 (March 1992)
First international
Unofficial:
 Israel 3–1 Cyprus 
(Tel Aviv, Israel; 30 July 1949)
Official:
 Cyprus 1–1 Israel 
(Nicosia, Cyprus; 13 November 1960)
Biggest win
 Cyprus 5–0 Andorra 
(Limassol, Cyprus; 15 November 2000)
 Cyprus 5–0 Andorra 
(Nicosia, Cyprus; 16 November 2014)
 Cyprus 5–0 San Marino 
(Nicosia, Cyprus; 21 March 2019)
Biggest defeat
 West Germany 12–0 Cyprus 
(Essen, West Germany; 21 May 1969)

The Cyprus national football team represents the country of Cyprus in men's international football games. This team is managed by the Cyprus Football Association. Their main home stadium is the AEK Arena in Larnaca.

Team History

Early Matches and First Wins

The Cyprus national football team played its first match on July 23, 1949. This was a friendly game against Maccabi Tel Aviv in Tel Aviv, which ended in a 3–3 draw. A week later, they played their first official international game, losing 3–1 to Israel.

After Cyprus became independent from British rule in November 1960, they had their first official post-independence match. It was a 1–1 draw against Israel during the 1962 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Cyprus got its first international win on November 27, 1963, beating Greece 3–1 in a friendly game. Their first win in a competitive match was on February 17, 1968, when they defeated Switzerland 2–1 in a European Championship qualifier in Nicosia.

In 1974, Cyprus had a famous 1–0 victory over Northern Ireland in Nicosia. Later, in February 1983, they drew 1–1 with world champions Italy in a Euro 1984 qualifier. A month later, they had the same result against Czechoslovakia. Four years later, in the Euro 1988 qualifiers, Cyprus earned their first away point against Poland. In 1989, they drew 1–1 with France in a World Cup qualifier. Cyprus finally got their first away win in 1992, beating the Faroe Islands 2–0.

The team's performance in qualifying tournaments got much better over the years. In the 1996 UEFA European Championship qualifiers, they drew 1–1 with the defending champions Denmark. Four years later, they almost made it to UEFA Euro 2000. They had exciting 3–2 wins against both Spain and Israel, and a big 4–0 win over San Marino.

Successes in the 2000s

Cyprus national football team 2012
Cyprus national team playing against Bulgaria in 2012.

On November 15, 2000, Cyprus achieved their biggest win ever, beating Andorra 5–0 in a 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifier. On October 7, 2006, during the Euro 2008 qualifiers, Cyprus surprised many by beating the Republic of Ireland 5–2. Michalis Konstantinou and Constantinos Charalambidis each scored two goals in that game.

Just one month later, on November 15, 2006, they had another surprising result. They drew 1–1 at home against Germany, who had hosted the previous World Cup. On October 13, 2007, Cyprus beat Wales 3–1. A few days later, on October 17, 2007, they nearly won an away game against the Republic of Ireland in Dublin, but the hosts scored in the last minute, making it a 1–1 draw.

Highlights of the 2010s

On September 3, 2010, Cyprus had a memorable 4–4 draw against Portugal in a Euro 2012 qualifier.

During the Euro 2016 qualification, Cyprus, led by coach Pambos Christodoulou, achieved one of their most important wins. They defeated 2014 World Cup participant Bosnia 2–1. In their final group match, Cyprus needed to beat Bosnia and hope Belgium won against Israel to finish third in their group. Bosnia won the game 3–2, which meant they went to the play-offs instead of Cyprus.

In the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Cyprus finished fifth in their group. They had an impressive 3–2 home victory over Bosnia during this time.

Recent Years (2020s)

In the Euro 2020 qualifiers, Cyprus beat San Marino 5–0. However, they lost to stronger teams like Belgium and Scotland. Despite an away win against Kazakhstan, they finished fourth in their group.

The 2020–21 UEFA Nations League was a tough period for Cyprus. They lost their first three games and drew one. Even though they beat Luxembourg 2–1 at home, they finished last in their group. This meant they had to play Estonia in relegation play-offs, which they won 2–0 overall. In the next Nations League competition, Cyprus again finished last in their group.

In the 2024 Euro qualifiers, Cyprus lost all eight of their games. This was their worst Euro qualification campaign ever in terms of points and goal difference.

Team Kits

On October 7, 2006, Diadora revealed Cyprus' new kit. It featured a map of Cyprus in amber with a green line, which caused some discussion. This kit was used for the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying phase. Later, Adidas made Cyprus' kits for several World Cup and Euro qualifying phases. In 2018, Macron took over from Adidas as part of a UEFA program. Since 2022, Errea has been the kit provider.

Kit provider Period
Italy Lotto 0000–2000
Italy Errea 2000–2002
England Umbro 2002–2006
Italy Diadora 2006–2008
Germany Adidas 2008–2018
Italy Macron 2018–2022
Italy Errea 2022–present

Home Stadiums

Since late 2021, Cyprus has played its home matches at the Georgios Karapatakis AEK Arena in Larnaca.

Before this, home games were played at different stadiums across the country. Until 1974, they used the old GSP Stadium in Nicosia or the GSE Stadium in Famagusta. After the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, some matches were held at the Tsirion Stadium in Limassol and the Makario Stadium in Nicosia. In 1999, the New GSP Stadium in Nicosia became the team's new home. However, due to sponsorship changes, some games were played at the Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium in Larnaca. Cyprus returned to the GSP Stadium for the Euro 2012 qualifiers but has not played there since September 2021.

Recent Match Results

Here are some of the recent match results for the Cyprus national football team.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2024 Matches

  • September 6, 2024: Lithuania 0–1 Cyprus (Win)
  • September 9, 2024: Cyprus 0–4 Kosovo (Loss)
  • October 12, 2024: Cyprus 0–3 Romania (Loss)
  • October 15, 2024: Kosovo 3–0 Cyprus (Loss)
  • November 15, 2024: Cyprus 2–1 Lithuania (Win)
  • November 18, 2024: Romania 4–1 Cyprus (Loss)

2025 Matches

  • March 21, 2025: Cyprus 2–0 San Marino (Win)
  • March 24, 2025: Bosnia and Herzegovina 2–1 Cyprus (Loss)
  • June 6, 2025: Bulgaria 2–2 Cyprus (Draw)
  • June 10, 2025: Romania 2–0 Cyprus (Loss)

Coaching Staff

The current coaching staff helps the team prepare for matches.

Manager Greece Akis Mantzios
Assistant Manager Greece Pavlos Sokratidis
Assistant Manager Cyprus Panayiotis Engomitis
Goalkeeping Coach Cyprus Nicos Constantinidis
Physical Trainer Cyprus Panicos Sakki
Physical Trainer Cyprus Ioakim Ioakim
Match Analyst Cyprus Giorgos Christodoulou

Coaching History

Many coaches have led the Cyprus national team over the years.

  • Greece Argyrios Gavalas (1960–1967)
  • Cyprus Pambos Avraamidis (1968–1969)
  • England Ray Wood (1970–1971)
  • Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Sima Milovanov (1972)
  • Cyprus Pambos Avraamidis (1972–1974)
  • Cyprus Panikos Iakovou (1974)
  • Cyprus Pambos Avraamidis (1975)
  • Cyprus Kostas Talianos (1976)
  • Cyprus Panikos Krystallis (1976–1977)
  • Cyprus Andreas Lazarides (1977)
  • Cyprus Kostas Talianos (1978–1982)
  • Bulgaria Vasil Spasov (1982–1984)
  • Cyprus Panikos Iakovou (1984–1987)
  • Cyprus Takis Charalambous (1987)
  • Cyprus Panikos Iakovou (1988–1991)
  • Cyprus Andreas Michaelides (1991–1996)
  • Cyprus Stavros Papadopoulos (1997)
  • Cyprus Panikos Georgiou (1997–1999)
  • Cyprus Stavros Papadopoulos (1999–2001)
  • Cyprus Takis Charalambous (2001)
  • Serbia and Montenegro Momčilo Vukotić (2001–2004)
  • Greece Angelos Anastasiadis (2005–2011)
  • Greece Nikos Nioplias (2011–2013)
  • Cyprus Pambos Christodoulou (2014–2015)
  • Cyprus Christakis Christoforou (2015–2017)
  • Israel Ran Ben Shimon (2017–2020)
  • Belgium Johan Walem (2020–2021)
  • Greece Nikos Kostenoglou (2021–2022)
  • Georgia (country) Temur Ketsbaia (2022–2024)
  • Cyprus Sofronis Avgousti (2024)
  • Greece Akis Mantzios (2025–)

Team Players

Current Squad Members

These players were chosen for recent matches in June 2025. Their stats are updated as of June 6, 2025.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Joël Mall (1991-04-05) 5 April 1991 (age 34) 17 0 Switzerland Servette
13 1GK Demetris Demetriou (1999-01-15) 15 January 1999 (age 26) 12 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol
22 1GK Neofytos Michail (1993-12-16) 16 December 1993 (age 31) 15 0 Cyprus Pafos

2 2DF Kostas Pileas (1998-12-11) 11 December 1998 (age 26) 10 1 Cyprus Pafos
3 2DF Nikolas Panagiotou (2000-05-12) 12 May 2000 (age 25) 18 0 Cyprus Omonia
7 2DF Anderson Correia (1991-05-06) 6 May 1991 (age 34) 14 0 Cyprus Aris Limassol
14 2DF Giorgos Malekkidis (1997-07-14) 14 July 1997 (age 28) 7 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol
15 2DF Christos Sielis (2000-02-02) 2 February 2000 (age 25) 7 0 Greece Panetolikos
16 2DF Evagoras Antoniou (2002-11-04) 4 November 2002 (age 22) 0 0 Cyprus APOEL
24 2DF Andreas Shikkis (2002-01-13) 13 January 2002 (age 23) 1 0 Cyprus Omonia Aradippou
2DF Konstantinos Laifis (1993-05-19) 19 May 1993 (age 32) 65 4 Cyprus APOEL

5 3MF Charalampos Charalampous (2002-04-04) 4 April 2002 (age 23) 21 1 Cyprus Omonia
6 3MF Giannis Satsias (2002-12-28) 28 December 2002 (age 22) 8 1 Cyprus APOEL
8 3MF Charalampos Kyriakou (1995-02-20) 20 February 1995 (age 30) 68 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol
18 3MF Kostakis Artymatas (1993-04-15) 15 April 1993 (age 32) 76 1 Cyprus Anorthosis Famagusta
20 3MF Grigoris Kastanos (1998-01-30) 30 January 1998 (age 27) 70 7 Italy Hellas Verona
23 3MF Ioannis Kosti (2000-03-17) 17 March 2000 (age 25) 12 0 Greece Levadiakos
25 3MF Antonio Foti (2003-11-03) 3 November 2003 (age 21) 1 0 Germany Borussia Dortmund
3MF Rafail Mamas (2001-03-04) 4 March 2001 (age 24) 2 0 Cyprus AEL Limassol

9 4FW Marios Ilia (1996-05-19) 19 May 1996 (age 29) 16 1 Cyprus Pafos
10 4FW Pieros Sotiriou (1993-01-13) 13 January 1993 (age 32) 65 12 Cyprus APOEL
11 4FW Andronikos Kakoullis (2001-05-03) 3 May 2001 (age 24) 27 5 Sweden AIK
12 4FW Stavros Gavriel (2002-01-29) 29 January 2002 (age 23) 4 0 Belgium Zulte Waregem
17 4FW Loizos Loizou (2003-07-18) 18 July 2003 (age 22) 39 1 Cyprus Omonia
21 4FW Marinos Tzionis (2001-07-16) 16 July 2001 (age 24) 34 3 Romania UTA Arad
26 4FW Nikolas Koutsakos (2003-11-14) 14 November 2003 (age 21) 1 1 Cyprus Omonia Aradippou

Other Players Called Up Recently

These players have also been part of the Cyprus squad in the last 12 months.


Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Konstantinos Panagi (1994-10-08) 8 October 1994 (age 30) 28 0 Cyprus AC Omonia v.  San Marino, 11 June 2024

DF Stelios Andreou (2002-07-24) 24 July 2002 (age 23) 24 0 Belgium Charleroi v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 24 March 2025
DF Andreas Karo (1996-09-09) 9 September 1996 (age 28) 25 1 Israel Maccabi Petah Tikva v.  Kosovo, 15 October 2024
DF Nicholas Ioannou (1995-11-10) 10 November 1995 (age 29) 48 2 Italy Sampdoria v.  Kosovo, 15 October 2024
DF Minas Antoniou (1994-02-22) 22 February 1994 (age 31) 20 0 Cyprus Karmiotissa FC v.  Kosovo, 15 October 2024
DF Marios Stylianou (1993-09-23) 23 September 1993 (age 31) 6 0 Cyprus Ethnikos Achna FC v.  Kosovo, 15 October 2024
DF Andreas Panayiotou Filiotis (1995-05-31) 31 May 1995 (age 30) 7 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol v.  Moldova, 8 June 2024
DF Pavlos Korrea (1998-07-14) 14 July 1998 (age 27) 4 0 Greece Volos v.  San Marino, 11 June 2024

MF Ioannis Kousoulos (1996-06-14) 14 June 1996 (age 29) 43 4 Cyprus Omonia v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 24 March 2025
MF Hector Kyprianou (2001-05-27) 27 May 2001 (age 24) 10 0 England Peterborough United v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 24 March 2025
MF Alex Gogić (1994-04-13) 13 April 1994 (age 31) 33 0 Scotland St Mirren v.  Kosovo, 15 October 2024
MF Andreas Chrysostomou (2001-01-14) 14 January 2001 (age 24) 4 0 Cyprus Anorthosis Famagusta FC v.  Kosovo, 15 October 2024
MF Danilo Špoljarić (1999-07-14) 14 July 1999 (age 26) 16 1 Cyprus Apollon Limassol FC v.  Kosovo, 9 September 2024

FW Ioannis Pittas (1996-07-10) 10 July 1996 (age 29) 47 8 Bulgaria CSKA Sofia v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 24 March 2025
FW Ruel Sotiriou (2000-08-24) 24 August 2000 (age 24) 1 0 England Bristol Rovers v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 24 March 2025
FW Andreas Katsantonis (2000-02-16) 16 February 2000 (age 25) 1 0 Poland Piast Gliwice v.  Kosovo, 9 September 2024

  • INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
  • PRE Preliminary squad.
  • RET Retired from international football.
  • SUS Suspended

Player Records

These tables show the players with the most games played and the most goals scored for Cyprus. Players in bold are still active with the team.

Most Games Played

Ioannis Okkas1
Ioannis Okkas has played the most games for Cyprus, with 103 appearances.
Rank Name Caps Goals Career
1 Ioannis Okkas 103 27 1997–2011
2 Constantinos Charalambidis 93 12 2003–2017
3 Michalis Konstantinou 84 32 1997–2012
4 Pambos Pittas 82 7 1987–1999
5 Kostakis Artymatas 77 1 2012-present
Constantinos Makrides 77 5 2004–2016
7 Nicos Panayiotou 74 0 1994–2006
8 Demetris Christofi 72 9 2008–2023
9 Grigoris Kastanos 71 7 2015-present
10 Charalampos Kyriakou 69 0 2014-present
Elias Charalambous 69 0 2002–2017
Chrysis Michael 69 7 2000–2017
Giorgos Theodotou 69 0 1996–2008

Top Goal Scorers

Rank Name Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Michalis Konstantinou 32 86 0.37 1997–2012
2 Ioannis Okkas 27 103 0.26 1997–2011
3 Pieros Sotiriou 12 65 0.18 2012–present
Constantinos Charalambidis 12 93 0.13 2003–2017
5 Ioannis Pittas 10 49 0.2 2019–present
Efstathios Aloneftis 10 62 0.11 2005–2017
7 Marios Agathokleous 9 38 0.24 1994–2003
Demetris Christofi 9 72 0.13 2008–2023
9 Fivos Vrahimis 8 18 0.44 1977–1982
Milenko Špoljarić 8 21 0.38 1997–2001
Siniša Gogić 8 37 0.22 1994–1999
Andreas Sotiriou 8 39 0.21 1991–1999

Tournament Records

FIFA World Cup History

Cyprus has tried to qualify for the FIFA World Cup many times but has not yet made it to the main tournament.

FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Result Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950 Did not enter Did not enter
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958 Withdrew Withdrew
Chile 1962 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 2 7
England 1966 4 0 0 4 0 19
Mexico 1970 6 0 0 6 2 35
West Germany 1974 6 1 0 5 1 14
Argentina 1978 6 0 0 6 3 24
Spain 1982 8 0 0 8 4 29
Mexico 1986 6 0 0 6 3 18
Italy 1990 8 0 1 7 6 20
United States 1994 10 2 1 7 8 18
France 1998 8 3 1 4 10 15
South Korea Japan 2002 10 2 2 6 13 31
Germany 2006 10 1 1 8 8 20
South Africa 2010 10 2 3 5 14 16
Brazil 2014 10 1 2 7 4 15
Russia 2018 10 3 1 6 9 18
Qatar 2022 10 1 2 7 4 21
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined 3 1 0 2 3 4
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total 0/19 127 17 15 95 94 324

UEFA European Championship History

Cyprus has also competed in qualifiers for the UEFA European Championship but has not yet reached the final tournament.

UEFA European Championship record Qualifying record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
France 1960 Not a UEFA member Not a UEFA member
Spain 1964 Did not enter Did not enter
Italy 1968 Did not qualify 6 1 0 5 3 25
Belgium 1972 6 0 0 6 2 26
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1976 6 0 0 6 0 16
Italy 1980 6 0 1 5 2 19
France 1984 8 0 2 6 4 21
West Germany 1988 8 0 1 7 3 16
Sweden 1992 8 0 0 8 2 25
England 1996 10 1 4 5 6 20
Belgium Netherlands 2000 8 4 0 4 12 21
Portugal 2004 8 2 2 4 9 18
Austria Switzerland 2008 12 4 2 6 17 24
Poland Ukraine 2012 8 0 2 6 7 20
France 2016 10 4 0 6 16 17
Europe 2020 10 3 1 6 15 20
Germany 2024 8 0 0 8 3 28
United Kingdom Republic of Ireland 2028 To be determined To be determined
Italy Turkey 2032
Total 0/16 122 19 15 88 101 316

UEFA Nations League Performance

The UEFA Nations League is a newer competition. Here's how Cyprus has done in it.

UEFA Nations League record
Season Division Group Pld W D L GF GA P/R Rank
2018–19 C 3 6 1 2 3 5 9 Same position 36th
2020–21 C 1 8 2 2 4 4 10 Same position 46th
2022–23 C 2 6 1 2 3 4 12 Same position 45th
2024–25 C 2 6 2 0 4 4 15 Same position 43rd
Total 26 6 6 14 17 46 36th

Team Achievements

Friendly Tournaments

  • Cyprus International Football Tournament
    • Champions (2): 1998, 2000

See also

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