The Gambia women's national football team (recognized at The Gambia by

FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...

) represents

the Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

in international

women's football Women's football most often refers to: * Women's association football Women's football may also refer to: * Women's gridiron football * Women's Australian rules football * Ladies' Gaelic football * Women's rugby league * Women's rugby union ...

. It is governed by the

Gambia Football Federation The Gambia Football Federation (GFF), formerly known as the Gambia Football Association, is the governing body of football in Gambia. It was founded in 1952, and affiliated to FIFA in 1968 and to CAF in 1966. It organizes the GFA League First D ...

. As of December 2019, it has only competed in one major international competition, the 2018 Africa Women Cup of Nations qualification. The Gambia has two youth teams, an under-17 side that has competed in

FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup The FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup is an annual (biennial until 2024) international women's association football tournament for female players under the age of 17. It is organized by ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (FIFA) ...

qualifiers, and an under-19 side that withdrew from regional qualifiers for an under-19 World Cup. The development of a national team faces challenges similar to those across Africa, although the national football association has four staff members focusing on women's football.

History

The team

In 1985, few countries had women's national football teams. While the sport gained popularity worldwide in later decades, the Gambia's national team only played its first game in 2007. That game was not FIFA-recognized. The Gambian Senior National Team's first appearance at a major event occurred in April 2018 when they lost a 1–2 result at

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

in the opening round of qualifying for the 2018 Africa Cup of Nations. In the second leg of the fixture, the Gambia produced a 2–1 victory of their own. As the results of both legs were identical, a

penalty shoot-out The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...

was required to determine which squad would advance. The Gambia converted all five of its penalty kicks, and advanced to the second round of qualifying. The Gambia drew the defending Cup of Nations champions

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

as their second round opponent. They failed to score against the Super Falcons, and were eliminated from the tournament with a 0–7 aggregate line. The country did not have a FIFA-recognised youth national team until 2012, when the Gambia under-17 women's team competed in

Confederation of African Football The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is the administrative and controlling body for association football, beach soccer, and futsal in Africa. It was established on 8 February 1957 at the ''Grand Hotel'' in Khartoum, Sudan. At the FIFA Co ...

qualifiers for the

FIFA U-17 World Cup The FIFA U-17 World Cup, founded as the FIFA U-16 World Championship, later changed to U-17 in 1991 and to its current name in 2007, is the annual world championship of association football for male players under the age of 17 organized by ''Fé ...

, to be held in

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

in September 2012. The Gambia fielded a team of 24 players, narrowed from an initial pool of 49 young women. Two girls from the SOS Children’s Village Bakoteh were chosen as a members of the team. The Gambia first played

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

in a pair of qualifying matches for the tournament. The Gambia won the first match 3–0 in

Banjul Banjul (, (US) and ), officially the City of Banjul, is the capital city of The Gambia. It is the centre of the eponymous administrative division which is home to an estimated 400,000 residents, making it The Gambia's largest and most densely ...

, the Gambia's capital. The return match was delayed for 24 hours and played in

Makeni Makeni is the largest city in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. The city is the capital of Bombali District, and is the economic center of the Northern Province. Makeni is the fifth largest city in Sierra Leone by population. The city of ...

. The Gambia beat Sierra Leone 4–3 to qualify for the final round. The Gambia then beat

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

1–0 at home and won 2–1 in the away fixture.

Adama Tamba Adama Tamba (born 29 August 1998) is a Gambian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Seconde Ligue club Rodez and the Gambia national team. Early life Adama and her sister were born in Banjul, and grew up at the SOS Children' ...

and Awa Demba scored the Gambia's goals. Tunisia's only goal was a Gambian own goal. The win qualified the Gambia for the 2012 Azerbaijan World Cup. The Gambia also has an Under -19 team that was to play in the 2002 African U-19 Women's Championship. That Gambian squad's first match was to be against Morocco, but the team withdrew from the competition.

Background and development

The development of women's football in Africa faces several challenges, including limited access to education, poverty amongst women, inequalities and human rights abuses targeting women. Funding is another issue impacting the game in Africa, where most financial assistance comes from FIFA and not national football associations. Another challenge is the retention of football players. Many women footballers leave the continent to seek greater opportunity in Europe or the United States. Gambia's national football association was founded in 1952, and became affiliated with FIFA in 1968. Football is the most popular women's sport in the country, and was first played in an organized system in 1998. A national competition was launched in 2007, the same year FIFA started an education course on football for women. Competition was active on both the national and scholastic levels by 2009. There are four staffers dedicated to women's football in the

Gambia Football Association The Gambia Football Federation (GFF), formerly known as the Gambia Football Association, is the governing body of football in Gambia. It was founded in 1952, and affiliated to FIFA in 1968 and to CAF in 1966. It organizes the GFA League First D ...

, and representation of women on the board is required by the association's charter.

Death of Fatim Jawara

In September 2016,

Fatim Jawara Fatim Jawara (13 March 1997 – 27 October 2016) was a Gambian footballer who played for the Gambia women's national football team, Gambia women's national team and top Gambian women's football club Red Scorpions FC. In 2012, she played as the s ...

, a member of the national team, left

Serrekunda Serekunda (or Serrekunda; ) is a major city and the largest metropolitan area in The Gambia. It is situated close to the Atlantic coast, on the Gambia River, near the capital, Banjul. Serekunda and Banjul form an urban area known as the Kombos ...

in her homeland the Gambia and crossed the

Sahara Desert The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

. In November 2016, she travelled with others on two boats across the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

, heading towards the

Lampedusa Lampedusa ( , , ; ; ) is the largest island of the Italian Pelagie Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. The ''comune'' of Lampedusa e Linosa is part of the Sicilian province of Agrigento which also includes the smaller islands of Linosa and Lamp ...

island of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. She did this as she sought to smuggle herself into Europe, where the national team was due to play Casa Sports F.C. from Senegal as part of a festival to celebrate women's football. Due to a severe storm, their boats capsized and Jawara drowned at the age of 19, with her family was contacted several days after the tragedy.

Lamin Kaba Bajo Lamin Kaba Bajo (born 10 November 1964) is a former Gambian politician and diplomat who is the current president of the Gambia Football Federation, having been elected in September 2014. A military officer who commanded the presidential guard ...

, President of the

, said "We are grieving at the moment as this is a great loss to the national soccer team and the nation."

Team image

Home stadium

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled. ;Legend

2025

Coaching staff

Current coaching staff

Manager history

* Bubacarr Jallow (????–2022) * Bubacarr Jallow(2022–2023) * Yahya Manneh (2023–2024 ) * Mariama Sowe (2024-)

Players

Current squad

The following is the squad called up for the 2025 WAFU Zone A Women's Cup named on 16 May 2025.

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up to a Gambia squad in the past 12 months.

Previous squads

;WAFU Zone A Women's Cup * 2023 WAFU Zone A Women's Cup squads

Records

''*Active players in bold, statistics correct as of 1 August 2021.''

Most capped players

Top goalscorers

Competitive record

FIFA Women's World Cup

:''*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.''

Olympic Games

Africa Women Cup of Nations

:''*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.''

African Games

WAFU Women's Cup record

Honours

Regional

; WAFU Zone A Women's Cup *3rd Place (1):

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

All−time record against FIFA recognized nations

The list shown below shows the Djibouti national football team all−time international record against opposing nations.
''*As of xxxxxx after match against xxxx.'' ;Key

Record per opponent

''*As ofxxxxx after match against xxxxx.'' ;Key The following table shows Djibouti's all-time official international record per opponent:

References

External links

WebsiteFacebookX
{{National sports teams of the Gambia African women's national association football teams

women A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional u ...