Kosovo national football team
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| Nickname(s) | The Rising Eagles | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Football Federation of Kosovo | ||
| Confederation | None | ||
| Head coach | Albert Bunjaki | ||
| Home stadium | City Stadium, Pristina | ||
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| First international | |||
 Albania 3 – 1 Kosovo (Tirana, Albania; 14 February 1993) |
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| Biggest win | |||
 Kosovo 7 – 1 Monaco  (Cap d'Ail, France; April 22, 2006) |
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| Biggest defeat | |||
| Albania 3 – 1 Kosovo (Tirana, Albania; 14 February 1993) |
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The Kosovo national football team represents Republic of Kosovo[a] in international men's football. Controlled by the Football Federation of Kosovo,[1] the governing body for football in Kosovo, they are neither a member of FIFA nor UEFA.
The national team was formed following the break-up of the former Yugoslavia, and has played a number of friendly matches. Most of these friendly matches were played against football clubs, although a number were played against national teams of other countries. The team is coached by Albert Bunjaki,[2] who took charge in May 2009.
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Match record [edit]
Kosovo has played a number of international matches. The last international match was a 1–0 win over Saudi Arabia[3][dead link], played in Ankara, Turkey, on June 15, 2007. It was the first time that Kosovo played a team that has taken part in the FIFA World Cup and the winning goal was scored by Kristian Nushi from the penalty spot on the 84th minute. The biggest win for Kosovo is the 7–1 defeat of Monaco[4][dead link], who hosted the event on April 24, 2006. The team that played against Monaco was led by the former Kosovo national team coach, Muharrem Sahiti, who after the match stated that: "I am very pleased with the team's performance even though we had predicted a stronger opponent. However, I want to emphasize that our players have been fantastic. The fact that we do not play many international matches may have inspired the players to give it their all this time"[5][dead link].
Previously, Kosovo played two matches against Albania and lost in both of them: 0–1 at home, and 3–1 away. In two other matches the Kosovo team played against Turkey, winning one and losing one: the first match was won by Kosovo 3–0 while the second was a 2–1 defeat, with both matches played in same stadium, but on different dates. The games against Turkey were, however, played with a team consisting of 34–35 year-old seniors. Turkey and Albania on the first match played with their B teams.
In 2005 they participated to the KTFF 50th Anniversary Cup in Northern Cyprus, finishing second out of three. They lost 1–0 against the host and won 4–1 against Sàpmi.
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This section does not cite any references or sources. (July 2010) |
Kosovo score listed first
| Date | Venue | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friday September 6, 2002 |  Kosovo[a] |
Albania |
1–0 W |
| Thursday November 3, 2005 |  Northern Cyprus |
 Sápmi |
4–1 W |
| Saturday April 22, 2006 |  France |
Monaco |
7–1 W |
| Friday June 15, 2007 |  Turkey |
 Saudi Arabia |
1–0 W |
| Saturday March 9, 2010 |  Stade de la Maladière, Switzerland |
Neuchâtel Xamax |
2–0 W |
Current status [edit]
On February 17, 2008 Kosovo declared independence from Serbia and sought international recognition. A number of states such as France, the United States and the United Kingdom immediately recognised the new state. Others, such as Serbia, Russia and China are fiercely opposed to independence.[6]
On May 6, 2008, Kosovo applied for FIFA membership. "It's an historical moment for our country. We hope to be accepted.", said Fadil Vokrri, president of the FFK[citation needed]. Kosovo's applications was discussed at the FIFA Congress in Zurich, in October 2008 when Kosovo was rejected membership in FIFA and denied right to play any friendly matches as it was deemed it does not comply with article 10 of the FIFA statutes, that only "an independent state recognized by the international community" may be admitted into FIFA.[7][8] FIFA reverted that decision in May 22, 2012, stating that Kosovo may play other nations in international friendlies according to Article 79 of the FIFA Statutes.[9]
In September 2012, Albanian international Lorik Cana, along with Swiss internationals Xherdan Shaqiri, Granit Xhaka and Valon Behrami (all of them with Kosovar Albanian origin) wrote a declaration to the president of FIFA, Sepp Blatter, asking him to allow the Kosovo national team to be allowed to play friendly matches. The declaration was also signed by 5 other Albanian footballers. This came about as a consequence of the decision by FIFA not to allow the Kosovo team to play friendly matches against other national teams. In a meeting held in May 2012, FIFA decided to allow friendly matches to be played, a decision it later revoked following a strong protest issued by Football Association of Serbia. A new meeting was planned to be held at FIFA on September 27 and 28 same year in which the Kosovo issue was again planned to be discussed, which was then postponed until December.[10][11]
In February 2013, FIFA announced that they would allow Kosovo to play against other nations in non-official competitions providing that they did not display national symbols.
"We would like to inform you that the FIFA Executive Committee decided at its meeting held on 14 December 2012 in Tokyo to allow the FIFA member associations to play international friendly games with teams of the Football Federation of Kosovo.
"The FIFA Executive Committee specified that matches should not be played with national symbols (flags, national anthems, etc.) and that the authorisation was valid for youth, amateur, women and club football. In addition, matches in the territory of Kosovo are subject to a prior authorisation of the Football Association of Serbia."— Jérôme Valcke, General Secretary, FIFA[12]
Tournament Record [edit]
Kosovo has so far only participated in one international tournament, the KTFF 50th Anniversary Cup, held to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Northern Cyprus Football Federation.[13]
KTFF Cup [edit]
| Year | Round | Position | Matches | Wins | Draws* | Losses | Goals Scored | Goals Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KTFF 50th Anniversary Cup | Group Stage | Runners Up | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
Notes and references [edit]
Notes:
| a. | ^ Kosovo is the subject of a territorial dispute between the Republic of Serbia and the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo. The latter declared independence on 17 February 2008, but Serbia continues to claim it as part of its own sovereign territory. Kosovo's independence has been recognised by 99 out of 193 United Nations member states. |
References:
- ^ Kosovo national team info by FFK
- ^ coach of Kosovo Kent national football team (AlbaniaSoccer)
- ^ Kosovo 1:0 Saudi Arabia (Futbolli.com)
- ^ Kosovo defeated Monaco by a score of 7–1 (AlbaniaSoccer)
- ^ AlbaniaSoccer (2006). "Salihi's statement after the Monaco friendly".
- ^ "Kosovo recognition irritates Russia and China". February 19, 2008.
- ^ "FIFA's finances solid". FIFA. 2008-10-24. Retrieved 2008-10-24.
- ^ http://sofiaecho.com/2008/10/25/664220_fifa-rejects-kosovo-football-body-application
- ^ "FIFA ExCo makes reform progress and Audit and Compliance Committee appointment". Media Release. FIFA.com. 22 May 2012. Retrieved 22 May 2012.
- ^ "Cana, Šaćiri, Džaka i Behrami pisali Blateru zbog Kosova" (in Serbian). Sportski žurnal. 21 September 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
- ^ "Vokri: FIFA i UEFA imaju dvostruke standarde" (in Serbian). Sportski žurnal. 2 October 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
- ^ "FIFA Circular no.1342". FIFA.com. 6 February 2013.
- ^ "Tr Northern Cyprus - 50 Years Anniversary Cup 2005". Rssf.com. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
External links [edit]
- Football Federation of Kosovo Official website
- International results from Roon Ba
- FIFA receives Kosovo football delegation KosovaReport 21 February 2006
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