Macau national football team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Macau

Nickname(s)	Selecção do Lótus (The Lotus' Team) Verdes (The Greens)
Association	Associação de Futebol de Macau
Confederation	AFC (Asia)
Sub-confederation	EAFF (East Asia)
Head coach	Kwok Kar Lok
Captain	Chan Man
Most caps	Cheang Cheng Ieong (58)
Top scorer	Chan Kin Seng (17)
Home stadium	Estádio Campo Desportivo
FIFA code	MAC
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	183 (7 February 2019)
Highest	156 (September 1997)
Lowest	204 (July 2014)
Elo ranking
Current	NR (3 March 2019)
Highest	182 (13 February 2000)
Lowest	229 (March 2015)
First international
Macau 4–2 Hong Kong  (Macau; 29 March 1948)
Biggest win
Macau 6–1 Northern Mariana Islands  (Yona, Guam; 11 March 2009)
Biggest defeat
Macau 0–10 Japan  (Muscat, Oman; 25 March 1997)  Japan 10–0 Macau  (Tokyo, Japan; 22 June 1997)
AFC Solidarity Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 2016)
Best result	Runners-up, (2016)
AFC Challenge Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 2006)
Best result	Group stage, (2006)

The Macau national football team is also known as the Lotus' Team or The Greens. It represents Macau, a special region of China, in international football games. The team is managed by the Macau Football Association.

Macau's team has one of the lowest rankings among all FIFA members. They have never played in big tournaments like the AFC Asian Cup or the EAFF East Asian Championship. However, they did play in the 2006 AFC Challenge Cup. There, they managed one draw and had two losses.

Before 1999, Macau was a territory of Portugal. The team represented Macau even then. After 1999, Macau became a special region of China. But the team still represents Macau in sports. This is allowed by the "one country, two systems" rule. This means the Macau team is separate from the China national football team. In Macau, people call their team the "Macau team." They call the Chinese national team the "national team."

Team History

Early Tournaments

Macau first played in the 2006 AFC Challenge Cup. This tournament was held in Bangladesh. Macau was in a group with teams from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan. Unfortunately, Macau lost all its matches in this tournament.

AFC Solidarity Cup Success

In 2016, Macau played in the first 2016 AFC Solidarity Cup. This event took place in Kuching, Malaysia. Macau was in a group with Laos, Mongolia, and Sri Lanka.

In their first match, Macau beat Mongolia 2–1. Their captain, Niki Torrão, scored both goals. Next, Macau won against Laos with a score of 4–1. They then drew 1–1 with Sri Lanka. These results helped Macau finish first in their group.

Macau then played against Brunei in the semi-finals. Leong Ka Hang scored a goal to tie the game at 1–1. The match went to extra time and then to a penalty shootout. Macau won the shootout and reached their first international cup final!

On November 15, 2016, Macau played against Nepal in the final. Nepal scored in the 29th minute and won the cup. Even though they lost, Macau had some great players. Leong Ka Hang was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. Niki Torrão was one of the top goal scorers with 4 goals.

Recent Matches

In 2022, Macau played in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC first round. They won their first game against Sri Lanka 1–0. However, they did not play the second game due to safety concerns. This was because of the 2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings. Sri Lanka was then given a 3–0 win.

After a break due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Macau played again in March 2023. They played their first home game at Estádio Campo Desportivo. They lost 1–0 to Singapore. In June 2023, Macau played a friendly match against Myanmar in China. Since returning to international football, Macau has mostly played against teams from Southeast Asia. These teams include Cambodia and Brunei.

Macau starting line-up during a 2024 match against Brunei.

In August 2024, some players who were not Chinese citizens could no longer play for Macau. This was due to a new FIFA rule. Players like Vitor Almeida and captain Nicholas Torrão were affected.

In September 2024, Macau signed a new deal with Adidas. This was to prepare for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification – play-off round. This ended their 10-year partnership with Nike. It also means the team will wear Adidas again, as they did in 2004.

Team Rivalries

Macau vs. Hong Kong

Macau has a long-standing football rivalry with Hong Kong. This rivalry is called the Hong Kong–Macau Interport. The teams have been playing against each other since 1937.

FIFA Suspension

In 2005, FIFA temporarily stopped Macau from playing international matches. This happened because FIFA thought the government was too involved in the football association. The ban was lifted after Macau fixed the issue.

Coaching Staff

The Macau national football team has a dedicated coaching staff. They help the players train and prepare for matches.

Position	Name
Team Manager	Zhang Liqun
Head coach	Kwok Kar Lok
Assistant coaches	Pedro Simões Lai Yong Luo Wei Xing Cai Cheng Zhang
Doctor	Liu Zhi Liang
Staff	Lok Chong-keong

Coaching History

Many coaches have led the Macau team over the years. Here are some of them:

• João dos Santos (1996–1998)
• Eiji Ueda (2000–2002)
• Masataka Imai (2003–2004)
• Masanaga Kageyama (2006–2008)
• Leung Sui Wing (2008–2015)
• Tam Iao San (2015–2017)
• Chan Hiu Ming (2017–2018)
• Iong Cho Ieng (2018–2019)
• Lázaro Oliveira (2020–2024)
• Kwok Kar Lok (2024–)

Players

Current Team Members

Here are the players who were chosen for the matches against Brunei in September 2024. The numbers for games played (caps) and goals scored are correct as of September 10, 2023.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Ho Man Fai	(1993-04-24) 24 April 1993 (age 32)	45	0	Chao Pak Kei
20	1GK	Lo Weng Hou	(1996-01-31) 31 January 1996 (age 29)	3	0	Cheng Fung
22	1GK	Fong Chi Hang	(1989-10-26) 26 October 1989 (age 35)	2	0	Cheng Fung
7	2DF	Chan Man (Captain)	(1993-10-04) 4 October 1993 (age 31)	32	2	Benfica de Macau
4	2DF	Kam Chi Hou	(1995-04-04) 4 April 1995 (age 30)	17	0	Benfica de Macau
6	2DF	Ng Wa Seng	(1999-08-02) 2 August 1999 (age 25)	14	0	Central and Western
3	2DF	Amâncio	(1990-03-29) 29 March 1990 (age 35)	8	0	Benfica de Macau
2	2DF	Ip Ieong	(1999-04-03) 3 April 1999 (age 26)	3	0	Universidade de Macau
2	2DF	Marcos Cheong	(2002-08-25) 25 August 2002 (age 22)	1	0	Benfica de Macau
18	2DF	Chu Kai Wang	(1995-07-29) 29 July 1995 (age 29)	1	0	Benfica de Macau
5	2DF	Leong Chon Kit	(2005-08-16) 16 August 2005 (age 19)	1	0	Monte Carlo
8	3MF	Ng Wa Keng	(1999-08-02) 2 August 1999 (age 25)	11	0	Chao Pak Kei
19	3MF	Nuno Jerónimo	(1997-11-02) 2 November 1997 (age 27)	6	0	Imortal Desportivo Clube
10	3MF	Choi Dion Carlos	(1999-02-06) 6 February 1999 (age 26)	4	0	Chao Pak Kei
16	3MF	Ao Chi Kin	(1994-02-12) 12 February 1994 (age 31)	1	0	Cheng Fung
11	3MF	Ieong Lek Hang	(2003-11-11) 11 November 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Benfica de Macau
23	3MF	Lei Man Tek	(2006-03-08) 8 March 2006 (age 19)	1	0	Benfica de Macau
9	3MF	Si Hou In	(2004-10-21) 21 October 2004 (age 20)	1	0	Cheng Fung
15	3MF	Cheong Ka Chon	(1995-10-14) 14 October 1995 (age 29)	0	0	Cheng Fung
21	4FW	Pang Chi Hang	(1993-11-03) 3 November 1993 (age 31)	34	1	Chao Pak Kei
12	4FW	Lee Keng Pan	(1990-02-28) 28 February 1990 (age 35)	13	0	Benfica de Macau
13	4FW	Ho Ka Seng	(1993-10-21) 21 October 1993 (age 31)	8	0	Gala
14	4FW	Leung Chi Seng	(2000-06-03) 3 June 2000 (age 25)	8	0	Chao Pak Kei
17	4FW	Lei Cheng Lam	(2005-01-24) 24 January 2005 (age 20)	5	0	Chao Pak Kei

Players Called Up Recently

These players have also been part of the Macau squad in the last year.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Sou Leng Fong	(2001-07-22) 22 July 2001 (age 23)	0	0	Chao Pak Kei	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
DF	Filipe Duarte	(1985-03-30) 30 March 1985 (age 40)	13	3	Chao Pak Kei	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023RET
DF	Vítor Almeida	(1991-02-05) 5 February 1991 (age 34)	4	0	Chao Pak Kei	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
MF	Cheong Hoi San	(1998-06-28) 28 June 1998 (age 26)	19	0	Monte Carlo	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
FW	Niki Torrão (Captain)	(1987-11-18) 18 November 1987 (age 37)	21	9	Chao Pak Kei	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
FW	Lam Ka Seng	(1994-05-28) 28 May 1994 (age 31)	30	6	Chao Pak Kei	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
FW	Leong Hou In	(1997-06-15) 15 June 1997 (age 28)	3	0	Benfica de Macau	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
FW	Wong Chi Son	(1994-02-03) 3 February 1994 (age 31)	2	0	Monte Carlo	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
FW	Sam Cheng Fai	(1991-06-22) 22 June 1991 (age 33)	1	0	Monte Carlo	v.  Myanmar, 17 October 2023
RET Player retired from international football

Team Records

Here are some interesting records for the Macau national football team. Players whose names are in bold are still playing for Macau.

Most Games Played

Top Goal Scorers

Tournament Achievements

Continental Cups

• AFC Solidarity Cup
  • Runners-up (1): 2016

Summary of Achievements

Competition				Total
AFC Solidarity Cup	0	1	0	1
Total	0	1	0	1

See also

In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Macao para niños