Football is the most popular sport in Eritrea. After being under
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
n control,
Eritrea gained its independence in 1991 and in 1998 the country became a member of
FIFA.
History
The football in Eritrea was started during colonial times in Italian Asmara, when the
Italians
, flag =
, flag_caption = The national flag of Italy
, population =
, regions = Italy 55,551,000
, region1 = Brazil
, pop1 = 25–33 million
, ref1 =
, region2 ...
ruled the
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...
. The first championship (amateur) was in 1936: the most important teams were "Gruppo Sportivo Cicero" (later ''
Asmara Calcio'' and in the late 1940s renamed "GS Asmara"), "Gruppo Rionale Neghelli", "GS Zuco", "GS Melotti", "GS Ferrovieri", "GS Marina' and the "GS Decamerè". In December 1936 the first six indigenous Eritrean teams started to compete in their own league (separate from the Italian league) and the best 3 native clubs (all having Italian names) were: "Ardita", "Savoia", "Vittoria".
The second championship was done in 1937 and was directly affiliated to the
Italian Football Championship
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language
Italian (''italiano'' or ) ...
, as serie "D" or fourth level. It was divided in "Direttori" and Eritrea was the ''Direttorio XXIII Zona (Eritrea)''. The teams in the first Eritrean "Divisione" were:
* G.S. 175ª Compagnia Radio Genio,
Asmara
* Dop. Ala Littoria
* Amba Galliano
* S.S. Asmara,
Asmara
* G.A. Cicero
* Dop. Decameré
* G.S. Deposito Territoriale,
Asmara
* Dop. Coloniale Eritreo Duca di Bergamo,
Asmara
* Dopolavoro Ferroviario
* Gioventu Universitaria Fascista
* Dopolavoro O.C.R.A.E.
* Dop. Postelegrafonico,
Asmara
The 1937 teams in the second Eritrean "Divisione" (amateur) were: G.S. 175ª Compagnia Radio Genio (B),
Asmara; Aerobase; G.S. Capronia; Dopolavoro Gondrand and Zuco.
The first football stadium was built in 1938
Asmara during the
Italian colonial period by the
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
businessman Francesco Cicero and since then it is called
Cicero Stadium. It was later used by the ''
GS Asmara
GS may stand for:
Businesses and organizations
* Goldman Sachs, one of the world's largest global investment banks
* Global Star Software, a former Canadian video game publisher
* GS (Swedish union), a trade union in Sweden
* GS Group, a Korean ...
'', the team winner of the first professional football championships in
Eritrea with the Asmara-born
Luciano Vassalo.
In the late 1940s the Asmara Calcio was renamed "GS Asmara", won the Eritrean Championship in 1945-1947-1949.
Between 1953 and the
Eritrean full independence in 1993,
Eritrean teams played in the
Ethiopian Premier League
The Ethiopian Premier League (Amharic:የኢትዮጵያ ፕሪምየር ሊግ), known as the BetKing Ethiopian Premier League for sponsorship reasons, is the top tier association football league of Ethiopia run by the Ethiopian Premier League ...
, winning that league's championship 9 times. These Eritrean team champions were "Hamassien, "Akale Guzay", "
Tele S.C.", "
GS Asmara
GS may stand for:
Businesses and organizations
* Goldman Sachs, one of the world's largest global investment banks
* Global Star Software, a former Canadian video game publisher
* GS (Swedish union), a trade union in Sweden
* GS Group, a Korean ...
" and "
Embassoyra":
*1955: Hamassien (Asmara)
*1957: Hamassien (Asmara)
*1958: Akale Guzay (Eritrea)
*1959:
Tele S.C.(Asmara)
*1969:
Tele S.C. (Asmara)
*1970:
Tele S.C. (Asmara)
*1972:
GS Asmara
GS may stand for:
Businesses and organizations
* Goldman Sachs, one of the world's largest global investment banks
* Global Star Software, a former Canadian video game publisher
* GS (Swedish union), a trade union in Sweden
* GS Group, a Korean ...
(Asmara)
*1973:
GS Asmara
GS may stand for:
Businesses and organizations
* Goldman Sachs, one of the world's largest global investment banks
* Global Star Software, a former Canadian video game publisher
* GS (Swedish union), a trade union in Sweden
* GS Group, a Korean ...
(Asmara)
*1974:
Embassoyra (Eritrea)
Two of the most famous Eritrean footballers in Eritrean History football,
Luciano Vassalo and his brother
Italo, played for the
Ethiopia national football team
The Ethiopia national football team, nicknamed ''ዋሊያ'', after the Walia, represents Ethiopia in men's international football and is controlled by the Ethiopian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Ethiopia. The team ...
(because Eritrea was annexed to Ethiopia in those years) in the qualifying rounds for the
1962 FIFA World Cup
The 1962 FIFA World Cup was the seventh edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams. It was held from 30 May to 17 June 1962 in Chile. The qualification rounds took place be ...
and won the
1962 African Cup of Nations
The 1962 African Cup of Nations was the third edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the soccer championship of Africa ( CAF). It was hosted by Ethiopia. Nine countries entered the competition, including the reigning champions Egypt, meaning for t ...
(when
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
obtained their only international trophy to date).
After being under
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
n control,
Eritrea gained its independence in 1991-1993. In 1998 the country became a member of
FIFA.
Since 1996 the
Eritrean National Football Federation
The Eritrean National Football Federation (E.N.F.F.) ( ti, ሃገራዊ ፈደረሽን ኩዕሶ እግሪ ኤርትራ) is the governing body of football in Eritrea.
History
The ENFF was founded in 1996 and affiliated to FIFA and the Confede ...
organizes the
Eritrean Premier League
The Eritrean Premier League is the highest division in football in Eritrea. The league was delivered in 1994 to the first time.
Between 1953 and the Eritrean independence in 1993, Eritrean teams played in the Ethiopian Premier League, winnin ...
and the
Eritrea national football team
The Eritrea national football team ( ti, ጋንታ ኩዕሶ እግሪ አርትራ) represents Eritrea in men's international football and it is controlled by the Eritrean National Football Federation (ENFF). It is nicknamed the ''Red Sea Boy ...
. Most of the Eritrean Championships have been won by
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(12 times) and by
Adulis Club (3 times).
In recent years -because of dire economic and socio-political reasons- there have been many
refugees leaving Eritrea and some football athletes travelling to competitions abroad have taken the opportunity to abscond. Indeed nine players and the national Eritrean team's coach disappeared in
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
...
in December 2013.
Furthermore, in
2018 World Cup qualification 10 players from the Eritrean football team have refused to return home after playing a World Cup qualifying match in
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalaha ...
and have been granted asylum there.
List of champions in Eritrean football
* 1995:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 1996:
Adulis Club (
Asmara)
* 1997:
FC Al Tahrir
Football Club Al Tahrir is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara.
Achievements
* Eritrean Premier League: 2
::1997, 2007
Performance in CAF competitions
* CAF Champions League: 1 appearance
::2008 – First Round
Current squad
...
(
Asmara)
* 1998:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 1999:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2000:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2001:
Hintsa FC (
Asmara)
* 2002:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2003:
Anseba S.C. (
Keren)
* 2004:
Adulis Club (
Asmara)
* 2005:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2006:
Adulis Club (
Asmara)
* 2007:
FC Al Tahrir
Football Club Al Tahrir is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara.
Achievements
* Eritrean Premier League: 2
::1997, 2007
Performance in CAF competitions
* CAF Champions League: 1 appearance
::2008 – First Round
Current squad
...
(
Asmara)
* 2008:
Asmara Brewery
* 2009:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2010:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2011:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2012:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2013:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
* 2014:
Red Sea FC
Red Sea Football Club is an Eritrean football club based in Asmara. With 13 league titles they are the most successful club in the country.
History
Red Sea FC was founded in 1945. After the 2011 Kagame Interclub Cup in Tanzania, thirteen mem ...
(
Asmara)
In 2015 and 2016 the Eritrean championship has not been done for various reasons.
Historical data of Eritrean Championships since 2010
/ref>
Other clubs
* FC Haben
Eritrea football stadiums
See also
* Eritrean Premier League
The Eritrean Premier League is the highest division in football in Eritrea. The league was delivered in 1994 to the first time.
Between 1953 and the Eritrean independence in 1993, Eritrean teams played in the Ethiopian Premier League, winnin ...
* Cicero Stadium
* GS Asmara
GS may stand for:
Businesses and organizations
* Goldman Sachs, one of the world's largest global investment banks
* Global Star Software, a former Canadian video game publisher
* GS (Swedish union), a trade union in Sweden
* GS Group, a Korean ...
References
{{Eritrea italiana (Colonia Primigenia)