São Tomé and Príncipe national football team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
São Tomé and Príncipe

Nickname(s)	Seleção dos Falcões e Papagaios (Falcons and True Parrots Team) Guerreiros do Equador (Warriors of the Equator) Os Elefantes (The Elephants)
Association	Federação Santomense de Futebol (FSF)
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation	UNIFFAC (Central Africa)
Head coach	Ricardo Monsanto
Captain	Luís Leal
Most caps	Joazhifel Soares (36)
Top scorer	Luís Leal (11)
Home stadium	Estádio Nacional 12 de Julho
FIFA code	STP
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	185 (7 February 2019)
Highest	115 (March 2012)
Lowest	200 (September – October 2007)
Elo ranking
Current	181 2 (3 March 2019)
Highest	166 (June 1976)
Lowest	194 (August 1998)
First international
Gabon 6–1 São Tomé and Príncipe  (Libreville, Gabon; 2 May 1976)
Biggest win
São Tomé and Príncipe 2–0 Equatorial Guinea  (Libreville, Gabon; 14 November 1999)  São Tomé and Príncipe 2–0 Sierra Leone  (São Tomé, São Tomé and Príncipe; 8 April 2000)  Mauritius 1–3 São Tomé and Príncipe  (Belle Vue Harel, Mauritius; 9 October 2019)
Biggest defeat
Congo 11–0 São Tomé and Príncipe  (Libreville, Gabon; 7 July 1976)

The São Tomé and Príncipe national football team plays for the country of São Tomé and Príncipe. This team is also known as the Falcons and True Parrots Team or Warriors of the Equator. They are controlled by the São Toméan Football Federation. The team is a member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and FIFA.

Team History

Early Matches and First Wins

São Tomé and Príncipe played their first football match in May 1976. It was a friendly game against Gabon, which they lost 6–1. Their next game was a big loss, 11–0, against Congo. This is still their largest loss ever.

In the following year, São Tomé got their first win. They beat Rwanda in a friendly match. They also managed to get draws at home against Angola in 1978 and 1987.

Returning to Play and FIFA Ranking

After an eleven-year break, the team started playing again. They joined their first official FIFA tournament. In 1999, they won 2–0 against Equatorial Guinea. They also beat Sierra Leone 2–0. These wins helped them reach their highest FIFA ranking at the time, which was 179.

In 2003, São Tomé lost badly to Libya. They then took another break and did not play any matches for four years. This meant they were not ranked by FIFA for a while.

Recent Comebacks and Challenges

In November 2011, São Tomé and Príncipe returned to play in the qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup. They lost to Congo but then drew 1–1 with the same team. This brought them back into the FIFA rankings at number 192.

In January 2012, São Tomé won their first ever two-game series. They beat Lesotho 1–0 at home and then held them to a 0–0 draw away. This meant they moved on to the next round. They almost beat Sierra Leone but lost by a small margin.

The team continued to show promise with good wins at home against Ethiopia and Libya. However, poor results in away games stopped them from moving forward in competitions.

In October 2019, São Tomé achieved their first ever away win in a competitive match. They beat Mauritius 3–1. They won the second game at home too, moving on to the group stage of the 2021 AFCON Qualifiers. They faced tough teams like Ghana and South Africa, finishing last in their group.

During the 2023 AFCON qualifiers, São Tomé won their first game against Mauritius 1–0. However, they were later removed from the competition. This happened because of a rule about player health that was not followed for one of their players. São Tomé appealed this decision. After some back and forth, they were allowed back into the competition just before the group games started.

Match Results and Upcoming Games

Here are the results from the last year and any games planned for the future.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2024 Matches

São Tomé and Príncipe  v  South Sudan

22 March 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification	São Tomé and Príncipe	1–1	South Sudan	Berkane, Morocco
19:00 UTC±0	Leal  50'		Elly  78'	Stadium: Berkane Municipal Stadium Referee: Alhasan Bass (Gambia)

South Sudan  v  São Tomé and Príncipe

26 March 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification	South Sudan	0–0 (1–1 agg.)	São Tomé and Príncipe	Berkane, Morocco
17:00 UTC±0				Stadium: Berkane Municipal Stadium Referee: Keren Yocette (Seychelles)
Note: 1–1 on aggregate; South Sudan won on away goals.

Malawi  v  São Tomé and Príncipe

6 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification	Malawi	3–1	São Tomé and Príncipe	Lilongwe, Malawi
15:00 UTC+2	Kawonga  6' Nkhoma  14' Mphasi  78'		Silva  67'	Stadium: Bingu National Stadium Referee: Ahmed Arajiga (Tanzania)

São Tomé and Príncipe  v  Liberia

9 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification	São Tomé and Príncipe	0–1	Liberia	Oujda, Morocco
14:00 UTC+1			Sesay  90'	Stadium: Stade municipal d'Oujda Referee: Andofetra Rakotojaona (Madagascar)

2025 Matches

Equatorial Guinea  v  São Tomé and Príncipe

21 March 2026 World Cup qualification	Equatorial Guinea	2–0	São Tomé and Príncipe	Malabo, Equatorial Guinea
14:00 UTC+1			Nsue  14' Salvador  17'	Stadium: Estadio de Malabo Referee: Adissa Abdul Raphiou Ligali (Benin)

Liberia  v  São Tomé and Príncipe

24 March 2026 World Cup qualification	Liberia	2–1	São Tomé and Príncipe	Paynesville, Liberia
16:00 UTC±0				Stadium: Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex

São Tomé and Príncipe  v  Equatorial Guinea

September 2026 World Cup qualification

São Tomé and Príncipe

v

Equatorial Guinea

Namibia  v  São Tomé and Príncipe

September 2026 World Cup qualification

Namibia

v

São Tomé and Príncipe

São Tomé and Príncipe  v  Tunisia

October 2026 World Cup qualification

São Tomé and Príncipe

v

Tunisia

São Tomé and Príncipe  v  Malawi

October 2026 World Cup qualification

São Tomé and Príncipe

v

Malawi

Team Coaches

Team Players

Current Squad Members

The players listed below were chosen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification games in March 2025.

Caps and goals are correct as of March 24, 2025, after the game against Liberia.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
12	1GK	Pedro Mateus	(1996-09-27) 27 September 1996 (age 28)	6	0	Feirense
22	1GK	Fehér	(2004-01-27) 27 January 2004 (age 21)	2	0	Leões Porto Salvo
1	1GK	Yaniel Bonfim	(2004-11-02) 2 November 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Celtic Castilla
2	2DF	Vavá Pequeno	(1994-02-05) 5 February 1994 (age 31)	13	0	Comércio e Indústria
4	2DF	Adjakson	(2002-10-08) 8 October 2002 (age 22)	12	0	Novoli
14	2DF	Rogério Fernandes	(2002-08-28) 28 August 2002 (age 22)	9	0	Guarda FC
3	2DF	Gilberto	(2000-12-02) 2 December 2000 (age 24)	7	0	6 de Setembro
5	2DF	Ricardo Fernandes	(2002-08-28) 28 August 2002 (age 22)	5	0	União de Santarém
6	2DF	Elias Varela	(2000-05-19) 19 May 2000 (age 25)	3	0	Argozelo
17	3MF	Iniesta	(1992-10-21) 21 October 1992 (age 32)	15	2	Leões Porto Salvo
8	3MF	Joel Neves	(1994-05-01) 1 May 1994 (age 31)	14	0	Oriental
10	3MF	Mauro Vilhete	(1993-05-10) 10 May 1993 (age 32)	6	0	Hampton & Richmond Borough
21	3MF	João Silva	(2005-06-15) 15 June 2005 (age 20)	3	0	Farsley Celtic
18	3MF	Nicola	(2000-04-23) 23 April 2000 (age 25)	2	0	Serpa [pt]
9	3MF	Dola	(1999-10-11) 11 October 1999 (age 25)	2	1	Sporting Praia Cruz
15	3MF	Waldimison	(1997-06-01) 1 June 1997 (age 28)	2	0	Associação Murteirense
19	3MF	Jamil	(1997-01-22) 22 January 1997 (age 28)	1	0	Comércio e Indústria
7	4FW	Eba Viegas	(1999-10-08) 8 October 1999 (age 25)	17	0	Modica
11	4FW	Ronaldo	(2000-07-11) 11 July 2000 (age 25)	14	0	Paços de Ferreira
13	4FW	Mimi	(1996-10-07) 7 October 1996 (age 28)	13	0	Bansko
20	4FW	Sérgio Malé	(2004-05-08) 8 May 2004 (age 21)	4	0	Estrela da Amadora
16	4FW	Edson Daio	(2002-12-16) 16 December 2002 (age 22)	0	0	NK Pitomača

Players Called Up Recently

These players were also part of the squad in the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
DF	Nuno Malheiro	(1994-02-01) 1 February 1994 (age 31)	2	0	UMF Grindavík	v.  Liberia, 9 June 2024
MF	Marcos Barbeiro	(1995-07-29) 29 July 1995 (age 30)	16	1	Pontevedra	v.  Liberia, 9 June 2024
MF	Aldair	(1989-09-04) 4 September 1989 (age 35)	14	0	RSD Jette	v.  Liberia, 9 June 2024
MF	Denilson	(1998-07-02) 2 July 1998 (age 27)	8	1	Omladinac Gornja Vrba	v.  Liberia, 9 June 2024
FW	Luís Leal	(1987-05-29) 29 May 1987 (age 38)	29	11	Bentín Tacna Heroica	v.  Equatorial Guinea, 21 March 2025 INJ
FW	Edmílson Viegas	(1996-10-29) 29 October 1996 (age 28)	9	1	Íþróttafélagið Höttur	v.  Liberia, 9 June 2024
FW	Gué	(2001-09-23) 23 September 2001 (age 23)	8	2	KPV	v.  Liberia, 9 June 2024

Player Records

Here are some records for players on the São Tomé and Príncipe team.

Players in bold are still playing for São Tomé and Príncipe.

Most Games Played (Caps)

Top Goal Scorers

Luís Leal is São Tomé and Príncipe's top scorer with 11 goals.

Competition Records

FIFA World Cup History

This table shows how São Tomé and Príncipe has done in the FIFA World Cup over the years.

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 1974	Part of  Portugal									Part of  Portugal
1978 to 1986	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1990	Did not enter									Declined participation
1994	Withdrew									Withdrew
1998	Did not enter									Did not enter
2002	Did not qualify									2	1	0	1	2	4
2006										2	0	0	2	0	9
2010	Withdrew									Withdrew
2014	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	1	6
2018										2	1	0	1	1	3
2022										2	0	0	2	1	3
2026										6	0	0	6	2	14
2030	To be determined
2034
Total	-	0/9	-	-	-	-	-	-		16	2	1	13	7	39

Africa Cup of Nations History

This table shows São Tomé and Príncipe's performance in 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
1957	Part of  Portugal									Part of  Portugal
1959
1962
1963
1965
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976	Not affiliated to CAF									Not affiliated to CAF
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988	Did not enter									Did not enter
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000	Did not qualify									2	0	0	2	0	6
2002										2	0	1	1	2	5
2004	Withdrew									Withdrew
2006	Did not qualify									2	0	0	2	0	9
2008	Did not enter									Did not enter
2010	Withdrew									Withdrew
2012	Did not enter									Did not enter
2013	Did not qualify									4	2	1	1	5	5
2015										2	0	0	2	0	4
2017										6	1	0	5	4	19
2019										2	0	0	2	2	4
2021										8	2	0	6	8	18
2023										6	1	2	3	7	22
2025										2	0	2	0	1	1
2027	To be determined									To be determined
2029
Total	0 titles	0/35	—	—	—	—	—	—		36	6	6	24	29	93

Head-to-Head Records

São Tomé and Príncipe national football team results

See also

In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Santo Tomé y Príncipe para niños