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Somalia national football team facts for kids

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Somalia Football Federation
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s) The Ocean Stars
Association Somali Football Federation
(Xiriirka Soomaaliyeed ee Kubbadda Cagta)
Confederation CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation CECAFA
(Central & East Africa)
Head coach Yusuf Ali Nur
Captain Abdulsamed Abdullahi
Most caps Ayub Daud (31)
Top scorer Ayub Daud (6)
Home stadium Mogadishu Stadium
FIFA code SOM
First colours
Second colours
Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current 204 Steady (7 February 2019)
Highest 65 (April–June 1996)
Lowest 203 (April–May 2019)
Elo ranking
Current 203 Increase 3 (3 March 2019)
Highest 126 (1973)
Lowest 205 (2015)
First international
 Kenya 0–4 Somalia
(Mombasa, Kenya; 1958)
Biggest win
 Somalia 5–2 Mauritania 
(Casablanca, Morocco; 7 August 1985)
Biggest defeat
 North Korea 14–0 Somalia 
(Jakarta, Indonesia; 14 November 1963)
CECAFA Cup
Appearances 26 (first in 1973)
Best result Fifth place (1974, 1977, 1978, 1984, 1994, 2019)
Arab Games
Appearances 1 (first in 1985)
Best result Seventh place (1985)

The Somalia national football team, also known as the Ocean Stars, represents Somalia in international football games. The team is managed by the Somali Football Federation (SFF). This organization is part of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The first captain of the Somali national team was Mohamed Shangole. Hasan Babay has been the team's longest-serving captain.

History of the Ocean Stars

Early Days of Somali Football

The first football teams in Somalia started in the 1940s. These early games were simple and linked to the movement against colonial rule. The Somali Youth League (SYL), Somalia's first political party, created a team of young local players. This team played against teams made up of Italian people living in Somalia. The SYL's football team, which later became known as Bondhere, won the first few competitions. In 1951, the Somali Football Federation (SFF) was officially formed. A special government role for sports was created in 1958.

Playing on the World Stage

The Somali national football team has played in many qualifying matches. However, they have never made it to the main FIFA World Cup tournament. For many years after the Somali Civil War began in the early 1990s, official FIFA games could not be played in Somalia. Because of this, qualifying matches for the Africa Cup of Nations and the World Cup were played in other countries.

After the capital city, Mogadishu, became safer in 2011, the SFF started planning. They prepared for the first big sports event in years at the Mogadishu Stadium. This event took place in December 2012.

New Talents and Big Wins

Before 2019, the Somali FA decided to look for new, young football talents. They held local tryouts to find players for both the Olympic and national football teams. Many Somali players who live in other countries have also become great footballers. Examples include Islam Feruz and Mukhtar Ali.

On September 5, 2019, Somalia won their first qualifying match since 1984. This was also their first-ever win in a FIFA World Cup qualifying game. They beat Zimbabwe 1–0. The Ocean Stars almost moved to the next round. However, they lost 3–1 in Zimbabwe after two late goals from the opposing team. This meant they were out of the competition.

Team Look and Uniforms

Team Kits and Crest

The Somali national football team has had different kit providers over the years.

Kit provider Period
Somalia A2Z Sports 2020–2021
Somalia A2Z Sports 2022–present

From the 1970s to the 1990s, the team's home uniform featured the Somali Flag. This included socks with the flag design. The away kits were the opposite colors. The main colors of the Somali national flag are blue and white. In the 2010s, the team changed its solid sky blue shirts. They now wear shirts with vertical blue and white stripes.

The team's badge used to be the coat of arms of Somalia. Now, it is the Somali Federation crest. The Ocean Stars play their home games at the Mogadishu Stadium. When the stadium was being rebuilt, the team played at Engineer Yaarisow Stadium. This is Mogadishu's second stadium for sports events.

Somalia's first colours in the 1970s–1990s
Somalia's second colours in the 1970s–1990s

Recent Matches and Upcoming Games

Here are some of the recent match results for the Somali national team. Also included are any future games that have been planned.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

Matches in 2024

  • March 20, 2024: Somalia lost 0-3 to Eswatini in a 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification match in Morocco.
  • March 26, 2024: Somalia drew 2-2 with Eswatini in the return leg in South Africa. Eswatini won 5-2 on total score.
  • June 7, 2024: Somalia lost 1-2 to Mozambique in a World Cup qualifier in Mozambique.
  • June 10, 2024: Somalia lost 1-3 to Botswana in a World Cup qualifier in Mozambique.

Matches in 2025

  • March 21, 2025: Somalia drew 0-0 with Guinea in a World Cup qualifier in Ivory Coast.
  • March 25, 2025: Somalia lost 0-2 to Botswana in a World Cup qualifier in Botswana.
  • September 2025: Somalia is scheduled to play Guinea and Uganda in World Cup qualifiers.
  • October 2025: Somalia is scheduled to play Algeria and Mozambique in World Cup qualifiers.
  • November 2025: Somalia is scheduled to play Oman in the 2025 FIFA Arab Cup in Qatar.

Team Coaches

2015 29 Somali National Team-1 (21007355596)
The Somalia national football team players during a training session in 2015
2015 29 Somali National Team-4 (20410936704)
Another picture of the Somalia national football team players in 2015

Many coaches have led the Somali national football team over the years. Here is a list of some of them:

Name Nat Period Matches Wins Draws Losses Win rate
Qi Wusheng China 1978–1979
Klaus Ebbighausen West Germany 1980
Hussein Ali Abdulle Somalia May 1999 – Dec 2000 8 0 1 7 6.3%
Awil Ismail Mohamed Somalia Nov 2001 – Dec 2002 7 1 2 4 28.6%
Ali Abdi Farah Somalia Oct 2003 – Dec 2005 9 1 0 8 11.1%
Daniel Muwathe Kenya Oct 2006 – Dec 2006 6 0 0 6 0%
Hussein Ali Abdulle Somalia Oct 2007 – Dec 2007 4 0 0 4 0%
Ali Abdi Farah Somalia Sept 2008 – Dec 2009 8 2 0 6 25%
Mohamed Farayare Somalia Jan 2010 – Mar 2010 2 1 0 1 50%
Yousef Adam Qatar Oct 2010 – Dec 2010 3 0 0 3 0%
Alfred Imonje Kenya Oct 2011 – Dec 2011 5 0 1 4 10%
Sam Ssimbwa Uganda Dec 2011 – Oct 2013 6 0 0 6 0%
Sam Ssimbwa Uganda Mar 2014 – Sept 2015 2 0 0 2 0%
Charles Mbabazi Uganda Sept 2015
Haruna Mawa Uganda Nov 2016 – Nov 2019
Bashir Hayford Ghana Mar 2019 – 2019 7 2 2 3 42.8%
Said Abdi Haibeh Somalia Dec 2019 – May 2021 4 1 2 1 25%
Abdellatif Salef Morocco May 2021 – June 2021 0 0 0 0 0%
Salad Farah Somalia June 2021 – February 2022 2 0 0 2 0%
Pieter de Jongh Netherlands February 2022 – May 2022 2 0 0 2 0%
Rachid Lousteque Morocco July 2022 – 2023 0 0 0 0 0%

Current Players

Meet the Squad

The players listed below were chosen for the World Cup qualifying matches. These games were against Guinea and Botswana in March 2025.

The number of games played (caps) and goals scored are correct as of March 25, 2025, after the match against Botswana.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Abdirahman Mohamud (2001-01-01) 1 January 2001 (age 24) 5 0 Somalia Dekedaha
1GK Ibrahim Ahmed Hussein (2005-12-23) 23 December 2005 (age 19) 1 0 Somalia Waxool
1GK Aleeleya Sheikh Saeed 0 0 Somalia Mogadishu City

2DF Abel Gigli (1990-08-16) 16 August 1990 (age 34) 11 1 Italy Correggese
2DF Mohamud Ali (1994-07-08) 8 July 1994 (age 31) 10 0 Wales Llandudno
2DF Yonis Farah (1999-09-04) 4 September 1999 (age 25) 9 0 Kosovo FC Mitrovica
2DF Ayman Mohamed Hussein (2000-12-12) 12 December 2000 (age 24) 8 0 Somalia Horseed
2DF Fahad Mohamed (2000-03-21) 21 March 2000 (age 25) 5 0 Finland Ekenäs
2DF Ali Mohammed Omar (1999-09-14) 14 September 1999 (age 25) 2 0 Northern Ireland Larne
2DF Abdulle Abdullahi (2006-11-03) 3 November 2006 (age 18) 2 0 Somalia Dekedaha
2DF Suleyman Sidali (2004-10-02) 2 October 2004 (age 20) 0 0 Somalia Dekedaha

3MF Ahmed Hirabe (1997-12-12) 12 December 1997 (age 27) 12 0 Somalia Horseed
3MF Abdulsamed Abdullahi (1997-01-19) 19 January 1997 (age 28) 10 0 Montenegro Arsenal Tivat
3MF Mukhtar Suleiman (1998-08-10) 10 August 1998 (age 26) 10 0 Netherlands SV Spakenburg
3MF Ibrahim Ilyas (2000-03-05) 5 March 2000 (age 25) 6 0 Tanzania KMC
3MF Aweys Adan (1995-06-14) 14 June 1995 (age 30) 5 0 Somalia Dekedaha
3MF Mohamed Omar (1999-01-22) 22 January 1999 (age 26) 2 0 United States San Antonio FC

4FW Mohamed Awad (1994-05-07) 7 May 1994 (age 31) 12 1 Malta Sliema Wanderers
4FW Sak Hassan (2001-03-21) 21 March 2001 (age 24) 11 2 England Hashtag United
4FW Yusuf Ahmed (1997-04-24) 24 April 1997 (age 28) 10 1 Australia Avondale
4FW Issa Adim Abatari (2002-02-13) 13 February 2002 (age 23) 6 0 Somalia Mogadishu City
4FW Ali Adem Musse (1996-01-01) 1 January 1996 (age 29) 6 0 Canada Cavalry
4FW Mahad Shine (2001-08-19) 19 August 2001 (age 23) 6 0 Somalia Horseed
4FW Bilal Habib (2000-11-21) 21 November 2000 (age 24) 2 0 Australia Altona Magic

Players Called Up Recently

These players have also been called to the Somalia squad in the last year.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Abdi Samad 0 0 Somalia Waxool v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024

DF Saadiq Elmi (2000-11-11) 11 November 2000 (age 24) 11 0 Norway Moss v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024
DF Abdi Salim (2001-04-01) 1 April 2001 (age 24) 5 0 United States Detroit City v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024
DF Isse Abdulkadir (1999-07-01) 1 July 1999 (age 26) 3 0 Somalia Elman v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024

MF Ismail Liban (2001-07-29) 29 July 2001 (age 23) 4 0 Australia Bentleigh Greens v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024
MF Ismael Shirwa (1994-03-13) 13 March 1994 (age 31) 4 1 Australia Werribee City v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024
MF Mohamed Sheik Ahmed 0 0 United States Ohio Dominican Panthers v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024
MF Zakariyah Nur (2005-12-12) 12 December 2005 (age 19) 1 0 Australia Cumberland United v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024
MF Abdullahi Osman (1999-04-05) 5 April 1999 (age 26) 1 0 Australia Perth v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024

FW Yusuf Ali 1 1 United States Vermont Green v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024
FW Handwalla Bwana (1999-06-25) 25 June 1999 (age 26) 0 0 United States Tormenta v.  Botswana; 10 June 2024

Player Achievements

Most Games Played

These players have played the most games for Somalia. Players in bold are still active.

Rank Name Caps Goals Career
1 Omar Abdulkadir [es] 31 0 1999–2007
2 Yasin Ali Egal 20 0 2003–2011
3 Mustaf Yuusuf 18 0 2015-now
4 Khalid Ali Mursal [es] 13 0 2025-present
Salah Hussein Sa'ad 13 0 2010–2013
6 Abubakar Nur Abdikarim 12 0 2011–2015
Hassan Abdulkadir [es] 12 0 2000–2002
Sheikh Abdulkadir [es] 12 0 2011–2015
Mohamed Awad 12 1 2021–present
Ahmed Hirabe 12 0 2017–present
Hussein Mohamed 12 0 2019–present

Top Goal Scorers

These players have scored the most goals for Somalia. Players in bold are still active.

Rank Name Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Abdullahi Sheikh Mohamed 3 6 0.5 2000–2005
Mohamed Ali Abdi Nur 3 7 0.43 1985–1995
3 Omar Mohamed 2 6 0.33 2019
Farhan Mohamed Ahmed 2 10 0.2 2019–present
Mohamed Ali Abdiaziz 2 11 0.18 2006–2011
Ciise Aden Abshir 2 11 0.18 2003–2011
Sak Hassan 2 11 0.18 2022–present

Tournament Records

FIFA World Cup

Somalia has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup.

FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 1958 Part of  Italy &  United Kingdom Part of  Italy &  United Kingdom
Chile 1962 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
1966 to 1978 Did not enter Did not enter
Spain 1982 Did not qualify 2 0 2 0 1 1
1986 to 1998 Did not enter Did not enter
South Korea Japan 2002 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 0 6
Germany 2006 2 0 0 2 0 7
South Africa 2010 1 0 0 1 0 1
Brazil 2014 2 0 1 1 0 5
Russia 2018 2 0 0 2 0 6
Qatar 2022 2 1 0 1 2 3
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined 6 0 1 5 3 11
Total 0/15 19 1 4 14 6 40

Africa Cup of Nations

Somalia has not yet qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Africa Cup of Nations record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Sudan 1957 Part of  Italy &  United Kingdom Part of  Italy &  United Kingdom
United Arab Republic 1959
Ethiopia 1962 Not affiliated to CAF Not affiliated to CAF
Ghana 1963
Tunisia 1965
Ethiopia 1968
Sudan 1970 Withdrew Withdrew
Egypt 1974 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 2 5
Ethiopia 1976 2 1 0 1 1 2
Ghana 1978 Did not enter Did not enter
Nigeria 1980 Withdrew Withdrew
Libya 1982 Did not enter Did not enter
Ivory Coast 1984 Did not qualify 1 0 0 1 0 1
Egypt 1986 2 1 0 1 1 1
Morocco 1988 2 0 1 1 0 5
Algeria 1990 Did not enter Did not enter
Senegal 1992
Tunisia 1994
South Africa 1996
Burkina Faso 1998
Ghana Nigeria 2000
Mali 2002
Tunisia 2004
Egypt 2006
Ghana 2008
Angola 2010
Equatorial Guinea Gabon 2012
South Africa 2013
Equatorial Guinea 2015
Gabon 2017
Egypt 2019
Cameroon 2021
Ivory Coast 2023 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 1 5
Morocco 2025 2 0 0 2 2 5
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027 To be determined To be determined
Total 0/35 13 3 1 9 7 24

CECAFA Cup

The CECAFA Cup is a regional tournament for East and Central African teams. Somalia has played in it 26 times.

CECAFA Cup record
Appearances: 26
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Uganda 1973 Group stage 6th 2 0 0 2 2 12
Tanzania 1974 5th 2 0 1 1 2 3
Zambia 1975 Did not enter
Zanzibar 1976 Group stage 7th 3 0 0 3 2 7
Somalia 1977 5th 3 1 1 1 2 2
Malawi 1978 5th 4 0 1 3 3 10
Kenya 1979 Did not enter
Sudan 1980 Group stage 6th 2 0 1 1 1 3
Tanzania 1981 Did not enter
Uganda 1982
Kenya 1983 Group stage 7th 3 0 1 2 3 5
Uganda 1984 5th 3 1 1 1 3 3
Zimbabwe 1985 Did not enter
Ethiopia 1987
Malawi 1988
Kenya 1989
Zanzibar 1990
Uganda 1991
Tanzania 1992
Kenya 1994 Group stage 5th 3 1 0 2 3 8
Uganda 1995 8th 3 0 0 3 1 15
Sudan 1996 Did not enter
Rwanda 1999 Group stage 12th 2 0 0 2 0 5
Uganda 2000 9th 4 0 1 3 1 11
Rwanda 2001 9th 3 0 1 2 0 6
Tanzania 2002 8th 4 1 0 3 1 4
Sudan 2003 Did not enter
Ethiopia 2004 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 0 7
Rwanda 2005 7th 4 1 0 3 6 10
Ethiopia 2006 10th 3 0 0 3 0 8
Tanzania 2007 10th 3 0 0 3 0 6
Uganda 2008 9th 4 1 0 3 1 9
Kenya 2009 10th 3 0 0 3 1 6
Tanzania 2010 12th 3 0 0 3 0 11
Tanzania 2011 12th 3 0 0 3 1 11
Uganda 2012 12th 3 0 0 3 1 13
Kenya 2013 11th 3 0 0 3 0 7
Ethiopia 2014 Not held
Rwanda 2015 Group stage 10th 3 0 0 3 0 9
Kenya 2016 Not held
Kenya 2017 Withdrew
Kenya 2018 Not held
Uganda 2019 Group stage 5th 4 1 2 1 1 2
Ethiopia 2021 Did not enter
Total 0 titles 26/42 80 7 10 63 35 193

More About Somali Football

  • Somali national beach soccer team
  • Somali League
  • Somali Cup
  • Somali Football Federation

See also

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

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