Somalia national football team facts for kids
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Nickname(s) | The Ocean Stars | ||
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Association | Somali Football Federation (Xiriirka Soomaaliyeed ee Kubbadda Cagta) |
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Confederation | CAF (Africa) | ||
Sub-confederation | CECAFA (Central & East Africa) |
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Head coach | Rachid Lousteque | ||
Captain | Abdulsamed Abdullahi | ||
Most caps | Yasin Ali Egal (20) | ||
Top scorer | Abdullahi Sheikh Mohamed (3) | ||
Home stadium | Mogadishu Stadium | ||
FIFA code | SOM | ||
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FIFA ranking | |||
Current | 204 ![]() |
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Highest | 65 (April–June 1996) | ||
Lowest | 203 (April–May 2019) | ||
Elo ranking | |||
Current | 203 ![]() |
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Highest | 126 (1973) | ||
Lowest | 205 (2015) | ||
First international | |||
![]() ![]() (Mombasa, Kenya; 1958) |
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Biggest win | |||
![]() ![]() (Casablanca, Morocco; 7 August 1985) |
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Biggest defeat | |||
![]() ![]() (Jakarta, Indonesia; 14 November 1963) |
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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 controlled by the Somali Football Federation (SFF), which is part of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The first captain of Somalia's national team was Mohamed Shangole, and Hasan Babay has been the longest-serving captain.
Contents
History of Somali Football
The first football teams in Somalia started in the 1940s. These early games were simple and connected to the movement against colonial rule. The Somali Youth League (SYL), which was 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 started. A special government office for sports in Somalia was created in 1958.
Challenges and Comebacks
Even though the Somali national football team has played in many qualifying matches, it has never made it to the main FIFA World Cup tournament. For many years after the civil war started 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 had to be played in other countries.
However, after the capital city of Mogadishu became peaceful again in 2011, the SFF started getting ready for a big sports event. In December 2012, the first major game in years was held at the Mogadishu Stadium.
Before 2019, the Somali FA decided to find new, talented young players. They held local tryouts to make both the Olympic and national football teams stronger. Many great football players from the Somali community living abroad, like Islam Feruz and Mukhtar Ali, have also joined the team.
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. They almost made it to the next round but lost 3–1 in Zimbabwe after two late goals from the other team.
Team Look: Kits and Crest
The Somali national football team has had different kit providers over the years:
Kit provider | Period |
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2002–2019 |
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2020–2021 |
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2021–2022 |
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2022–present |
From the 1970s to the 1990s, the team wore solid sky blue shirts and socks with white shorts for home games. Their away kits were the opposite: white shirts and socks with blue shorts. These colors are the main colors of the Somali national flag. In the 2010s, the team changed to vertically striped blue and white shirts.
The team's badge used to be the coat of arms of Somalia. Now, it's the Somali Federation crest. The Ocean Stars play their home games at the Mogadishu Stadium. While the main stadium was being rebuilt, they played matches at Engineer Yaarisow Stadium, which is Mogadishu's second stadium for sports.
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Recent Games and Coaches
The Somali national team plays matches throughout the year for different tournaments. Here are some of their recent results:
- On November 16, 2023, Somalia lost 3–1 to Algeria in a World Cup qualifying game.
- On November 21, 2023, they lost 0–1 to Uganda in another World Cup qualifier.
- In March 2024, they played Eswatini in Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, losing one game 0–3 and drawing the other 2–2. Eswatini won 5–2 overall.
- In June 2024, they lost 2–1 to Mozambique and 1–3 to Botswana in World Cup qualifying matches.
Coaches of the Team
Many coaches have led the Somali national team over the years. They come from different countries, including Somalia itself, Germany, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Qatar, Morocco, and the Netherlands.
Players
The team's players come from Somalia and also from the Somali community living in other countries around the world.
Current Squad
These players were chosen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification games in June 2024 against Mozambique and Botswana.
The number of games played (Caps) and goals scored are correct as of June 10, 2024, after the match against Botswana.
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
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GK | Abdirahman Mohamud | 1 January 2001 | 3 | 0 | ![]() |
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GK | Abdi Samad | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
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GK | Aleeleya Sheikh Saeed | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Ahmed Banu Hirabe | 12 December 1997 | 12 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Saadiq Elmi | 11 November 2000 | 11 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Mohamud Ali | 8 July 1994 | 10 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Abel Gigli | 16 August 1990 | 10 | 1 | ![]() |
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DF | Abdi Salim | 1 April 2001 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Isse Abdulkadir | 1 July 1999 | 3 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Fahad Mohamed | 21 March 2000 | 4 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Abdulsamed Abdullahi | 19 January 1997 | 8 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Ismail Liban | 29 July 2001 | 4 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Ismael Shirwa | 13 March 1994 | 4 | 1 | ![]() |
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MF | Mohamed Sheik Ahmed | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Zakariyah Nur | 12 December 2005 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Abdullahi Osman | 5 April 1999 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Mohamed Omar | 22 January 1999 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Mohamed Awad | 7 May 1994 | 10 | 1 | ![]() |
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FW | Sak Hassan | 21 March 2001 | 10 | 2 | ![]() |
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FW | Yusuf Ahmed | 24 April 1997 | 8 | 1 | ![]() |
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FW | Mukhtar Suleiman | 10 August 1998 | 8 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Issa Adim Abatari | 13 February 2002 | 6 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Yusuf Ali | 1 | 1 | ![]() |
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FW | Handwalla Bwana | 25 June 1999 | 0 | 0 | Unattached |
Players Called Up Recently
These players have also been called to play for Somalia in the last year.
Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
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GK | Mustaf Yuusuf | 1 January 1998 | 18 | 0 | ![]() |
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GK | Ibrahim Ahmed Hussein | 23 December 2005 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
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GK | Ahmed Mayow Shariff | 8 February 2002 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Abdiwali Abdirahman Mohamed | 1 January 2000 | 6 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Ayman Mohamed Hussein | 12 December 2000 | 6 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Abdi Mohamed | 25 October 1996 | 7 | 0 | ![]() |
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DF | Ahmed Isse | 3 February 2001 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Isse Ismail | 20 April 1999 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Omar Jama | 21 May 1998 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Abdulkadir Sidow | 2 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Haji Adan | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Haji Abdikadir | 15 October 1998 | 3 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Muqtar Ahmed | 15 April 2005 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
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MF | Abdi Sharif | 1 January 2001 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Ibrahim Ilyas | 5 March 2000 | 6 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Hussein Mohamed | 20 March 1997 | 11 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Farhan Mohamed Ahmed | 15 November 2000 | 9 | 2 | ![]() |
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FW | Mahad Mohamed Abdulkadir | 19 August 2001 | 3 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Siad Haji | 1 December 1999 | 2 | 0 | ![]() |
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FW | Bilal Njie | 13 June 1998 | 2 | 0 | ![]() |
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Player Records: Most Games and Goals
Here are some records for players who have played the most games or scored the most goals for Somalia. Players whose names are in bold are still playing for the team.
Most Appearances
This list shows the players who have played the most games for the Somali national team.
Rank | Name | Caps | Goals | Career |
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1 | Yasin Ali Egal | 20 | 0 | 2003–2011 |
2 | Mustaf Yuusuf | 18 | 0 | 2015–present |
3 | Omar Ibrahim Abdulkadir | 14 | 0 | 2000–2007 |
4 | Abubakar Nur Abdikarim | 12 | 0 | 2011–2015 |
5 | Mohamed Ali Abdiaziz | 11 | 2 | 2006–2011 |
Mohamed Abdi Hajir | 11 | 2 | 2005-2011 | |
Farhan Mohamed Ahmed | 11 | 2 | 2019-present | |
8 | Cisse Aadan Abshir | 10 | 1 | 2003–2011 |
Ahmed Said Ahmed | 10 | 0 | 2019–present | |
Hussein Mohamed | 10 | 0 | 2019–present | |
Mahad Mohamed Haji | 10 | 0 | 2010–2015 | |
Abdinur Mohamud | 10 | 0 | 2011–2019 |
Top Goalscorers
This list shows the players who have scored the most goals for the Somali national team.
Rank | Name | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
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1 | Abdullahi Sheikh Mohamed | 3 | 6 | 0.5 | 2000–2005 |
2 | Mohammed Abdi | 2 | — | — | 1985–1994 |
Omar Mohamed | 2 | 6 | 0.33 | 2019 | |
Sak Hassan | 2 | 10 | 0.25 | 2022–present | |
Farhan Mohamed Ahmed | 2 | 11 | 0.18 | 2019–present | |
Mohamed Abdi Hajir | 2 | 11 | 0.18 | 2005–2011 | |
Mohamed Ali Abdiaziz | 2 | 11 | 0.18 | 2006–2011 |
Tournament History
The Somalia national football team has taken part in many international tournaments. While they haven't yet qualified for the main stages of the biggest competitions like the FIFA World Cup or the Africa Cup of Nations, they continue to compete and improve.
FIFA World Cup
Somalia has tried to qualify for the FIFA World Cup several times. They first entered the qualifiers for the 1982 World Cup. Since then, they have played in various qualifying rounds but have not yet made it to the final tournament.
Africa Cup of Nations
The team has also participated in the qualifying rounds for the Africa Cup of Nations, which is the main football tournament for African countries. They have not yet qualified for the main tournament.
CECAFA Cup
The CECAFA Cup is a regional tournament for teams in Central and East Africa. Somalia has played in this cup many times, with 26 appearances. They have reached fifth place several times, showing their strength in regional competitions. Their best performances were in 1974, 1977, 1978, 1984, 1994, and 2019.
Other Tournaments
Somalia has also competed in other tournaments like the African Nations Championship and the Arab Games. In the 1985 Arab Games, they reached seventh place.
See also
- Somali national beach soccer team
- Somali League
- Somali Cup
- Somali Football Federation