Cyprus national football team

Cyprus
Association Cyprus Football Association (CFA)
Κυπριακή Ομοσπονδία Ποδοσφαίρου
Confederation UEFA (Europe)
Head coach Ran Ben Shimon
Most caps Ioannis Okkas (106)
Top scorer Michalis Konstantinou (32)
Home stadium GSP Stadium, Nicosia
FIFA code CYP
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 86 Increase 1 (20 September 2018)
Highest 43 (September 2010)
Lowest 142 (June 2014)
Elo ranking
Current 105 Decrease 1 (20 August 2018)
Highest 69 (22 March 2000)
Lowest 141 (March 1992)
First international
Unofficial:
 Israel 3–1 Cyprus 
(Tel-Aviv, Israel; 30 July 1949)
Official:
 Cyprus 1–1 Israel 
(Nicosia, Cyprus; 13 November 1960)
Biggest win
 Cyprus 5–0 Andorra 
(Limassol, Cyprus; 15 November 2000)
 Cyprus 5–0 Andorra 
(Nicosia, Cyprus; 16 November 2014)
Biggest defeat
 West Germany 12–0 Cyprus 
(Essen, West Germany; 21 May 1969)

The Cyprus national football team (Greek: Εθνική ομάδα ποδοσφαίρου της Κύπρου) represents Cyprus in association football and is controlled by the Cyprus Football Association, the governing body for football in Cyprus. Cyprus' home ground is the GSP Stadium in Nicosia and the current coach is Ran Ben Shimon. They have never reached the finals of either the European Championship or the World Cup.

History

The team's first match took place on 23 July 1949, one year after becoming a member of the world governing body FIFA: a friendly against Maccabi Tel-Aviv in Tel Aviv, ending in a 3–3 draw. Seven days later, the team had its first international game: a 3–1 defeat against Israel in the same city.

In November 1960, following independence from British rule, Cyprus drew its first post-independence official match 1–1 against Israel, as part of the 1962 FIFA World Cup qualifying tournament. Cyprus' first international victory was a 3–1 win against Greece on 27 November 1963 in a friendly. On 17 February 1968, Cyprus recorded their first competitive win, beating Switzerland 2–1 in a European Championship qualifying match in Old GSP Stadium in Nicosia.

In 1974, the national team enjoyed one of their most famous victories when they beat Northern Ireland 1–0 in Nicosia. On 12 February 1983, as part of the Euro 1984 qualifiers, Cyprus held world champions Italy to a 1–1 draw in Tsirio Stadium in Limassol, followed a month later by the same result against Czechoslovakia. Four years later, in the Euro 1988 qualification, Cyprus recorded their first ever point achieved in an away match, against Poland. In 1989 they drew 1–1 with France in the World Cup qualifying match. Despite a number of triumphs on home soil, Cyprus had to wait until 1992 to record their first away win: a 2–0 victory against the Faroe Islands.

Results in qualifying tournaments have also improved considerably in recent times. In the qualifying stages for the 1996 UEFA European Championship, Cyprus drew 1–1 with holders Denmark. Four years later, they missed out on a place in the 2000 European Football Championship despite 3–2 victories against both Spain and Israel and a 4–0 win over San Marino.

On 15 November 2000, Cyprus scored their biggest win in history by beating Andorra in Limassol 5–0 in the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification. On 7 October 2006, as part of the Euro 2008 qualifiers, Cyprus caused a major upset by beating the Republic of Ireland 5–2 in New GSP Stadium in Nicosia, with Michalis Konstantinou and Constantinos Charalambides each scoring two goals and Alexandros Garpozis one goal. Just one month later, on 15 November 2006, they caused another surprise by holding the World Cup semi-finalists Germany to a 1–1 draw at home. On 13 October 2007, they beat Wales 3–1 in Nicosia. On 17 October 2007, Cyprus came close to a historic away victory in Dublin against the Republic of Ireland, but the hosts equalised in the last minute of the game, and the match ended 1–1. On 3 September 2010, as part of the Euro 2012 qualifiers, Cyprus claimed a historic result against Portugal after drawing 4–4 in Guimarães.

During the Euro 2016 qualifying, Cyprus national football team managed by Pambos Christodoulou claimed one of their most historic victories by defeating 2014 World Cup participant Bosnia with 2–1 in Zenica. In the last group match, the team faced Bosnia needing a victory to finish in 3rd and rely on Belgium to beat Israel in Brussels. As fate would have it, the Bosnians won the reverse 3–2 and qualified to play-offs at the expense of the home team, who at one point took a 2–1 lead during first half and for number of minutes held onto 3rd spot and a birth in the play-offs for a first time in history, as Belgium, a soon to be World number 1 side, were comfortably beating Israel at home.[1]

Kit

On 7 October 2006, a new kit was made by Diadora. It outlines a map of Cyprus in amber from the shoulder to the sleeve, with a green line running down the middle to indicate the division of the island. This kit was used for the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying, and was replaced by a kit made by Adidas for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification, the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying, and the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign. For 2018 Macron will replace Adidas as part of the UEFA's Kit Assistance Scheme programme.

Kit provider Period
Italy Lotto –2000
Italy Errea 2000–2002
England Umbro 2002–2006
Italy Diadora 2006–2008
Germany Adidas 2008–2018
Italy Macron 2018–

Home stadium

Cyprus currently plays home matches at the GSP Stadium in Nicosia. Home matches had previously been staged at different stadiums all around the country. Until 1974 Cyprus used either the old GSP Stadium in central Nicosia, or the GSE stadium in Famagusta. After the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, some matches were played at Tsirion Stadium in Limassol and the Makario Stadium in Nicosia. In 1999, the building of the New GSP Stadium in Nicosia provided a new home for the national team but in 2008 a change of sponsorship forced home fixtures for 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification to be played at the Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium. However, Cyprus returned to the GSP Stadium for the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying round matches.

Total results and records

As of 9 June 2017.

Competition Played Won Drawn Lost GF GA
FIFA World Cup qualification11014138383290
European Championship qualification10416147483268
Friendly matches120353154130174
TOTAL3346558211296732

FIFA World Cup record

2012 Cyprus national football team in Bulgaria.
FIFA World Cup record FIFA World Cup Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Did not enter Declined participation
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 2 7
England 1966 4 0 0 4 0 19
Mexico 1970 6 0 0 6 2 35
West Germany 1974 6 1 0 5 1 14
Argentina 1978 6 0 0 6 3 24
Spain 1982 8 0 0 8 4 29
Mexico 1986 6 0 0 6 3 18
Italy 1990 8 0 1 7 6 20
United States 1994 10 2 1 7 8 18
France 1998 8 3 1 4 10 15
South Korea Japan 2002 10 2 2 6 13 31
Germany 2006 10 1 1 8 8 20
South Africa 2010 10 2 3 5 14 16
Brazil 2014 10 1 2 7 4 15
Russia 2018 10 3 1 6 9 18
Qatar 2022 To be determined To be determined
Canada Mexico United States 2026
Total 0/21 114 15 13 86 87 299

European Championship record

UEFA European Championship record
Year Round Position GP W D* L GS GA
France 1960 Did not enter
Spain 1964
Italy 1968 Did not qualify
Belgium 1972
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1976
Italy 1980
France 1984
West Germany 1988
Sweden 1992
England 1996
Belgium Netherlands 2000
Portugal 2004
Austria Switzerland 2008
Poland Ukraine 2012
France 2016
Europe 2020 To be determined
Germany 2024
Total 0/15

UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Belgium Wales Bosnia and Herzegovina Israel Cyprus Andorra
1  Belgium 10 7 2 1 24 5 +19 23 Qualify for final tournament — 0–0 3–1 3–1 5–0 6–0
2  Wales 10 6 3 1 11 4 +7 21 1–0 — 0–0 0–0 2–1 2–0
3  Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 5 2 3 17 12 +5 17 Advance to play-offs 1–1 2–0 — 3–1 1–2 3–0
4  Israel 10 4 1 5 16 14 +2 13 0–1 0–3 3–0 — 1–2 4–0
5  Cyprus 10 4 0 6 16 17 −1 12 0–1 0–1 2–3 1–2 — 5–0
6  Andorra 10 0 0 10 4 36 −32 0 1–4 1–2 0–3 1–4 1–3 —
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

Matches

The fixtures were released by UEFA the same day as the draw, which was held on 23 February 2014 in Nice.[2] Times are CET/CEST, as listed by UEFA: UTC+1 for matches on 27–28 March 2015 and all matches in November, and UTC+2 for matches on 29 and 31 March 2015 and all matches in June, September and October (local times are in parentheses).

Bosnia and Herzegovina 1–2 Cyprus
Ibišević  6' Report Christofi  45', 73'
Attendance: 12,100

Cyprus 1–2 Israel
Makrides  67' Report Damari  38'
Ben Haim  45'
Attendance: 19,164

Wales 2–1 Cyprus
Cotterill  13'
Robson-Kanu  23'		 Report Laban  36'
Attendance: 21,273

Cyprus 5–0 Andorra
Merkis  9'
Efrem  31', 42', 60'
Christofi  87' (pen.)		 Report
Attendance: 6,078

Belgium 5–0 Cyprus
Fellaini  21', 66'
Benteke  35'
Hazard  67'
Batshuayi  80'		 Report
Attendance: 45,213

Andorra 1–3 Cyprus
Júnior  2' (o.g.) Report Mitidis  13', 45', 53'
Attendance: 1,054
Referee: Tobias Welz (Germany)

Cyprus 0–1 Wales
Report Bale  82'
Attendance: 14,992

Cyprus 0–1 Belgium
Report Hazard  86'
Attendance: 11,866

Israel 1–2 Cyprus
Bitton  76' Report Dossa Júnior  58'
Demetriou  80'
Attendance: 25,300

Cyprus 2–3 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Charalambides  32'
Mitidis  41'		 Report Medunjanin  13', 44'
Đurić  67'
Attendance: 17,687

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Belgium 10 9 1 0 43 6 +37 28 Qualification to 2018 FIFA World Cup — 1–1 4–0 8–1 4–0 9–0
2  Greece 10 5 4 1 17 6 +11 19 Advance to second round 1–2 — 1–1 0–0 2–0 4–0
3  Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 5 2 3 24 13 +11 17 3–4 0–0 — 5–0 2–0 5–0
4  Estonia 10 3 2 5 13 19 −6 11 0–2 0–2 1–2 — 1–0 4–0
5  Cyprus 10 3 1 6 9 18 −9 10 0–3 1–2 3–2 0–0 — 3–1
6  Gibraltar 10 0 0 10 3 47 −44 0 0–6 1–4 0–4 0–6 1–2 —
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

Matches

The match schedule was released by UEFA on 26 July 2015, the day after the draw was held in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Times are CET/CEST,[note 1] as listed by UEFA (local times are in parentheses).[3]

Cyprus 0–3 Belgium
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 Lukaku  13', 61'
Carrasco  81'
Attendance: 12,029

Greece 2–0 Cyprus
Mitroglou  11'
Mantalos  42'		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Attendance: 16,512

Bosnia and Herzegovina 2–0 Cyprus
Džeko  70', 81' Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Attendance: 8,900
Cyprus 3–1 Gibraltar
Laifis  29'
Sotiriou  65'
Sielis  87'		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 L. Casciaro  51'
Attendance: 3,166

Cyprus 0–0 Estonia
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Attendance: 3,864
Referee: Ville Nevalainen (Finland)
Gibraltar 1–2 Cyprus
Hernandez  30' Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 R. Chipolina  10' (o.g.)
Pieros Sotiriou  87'
Attendance: 480
Referee: Nikola Popov (Bulgaria)

Cyprus 3–2 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Christofi  65'
Laban  67'
Sotiriou  76'		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 Šunjić  33'
Višća  44'
Attendance: 7000

Cyprus 1–2 Greece
 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Attendance: 7,222

Belgium 4–0 Cyprus
 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Attendance: 37,765
Referee: Luca Banti (Italy)

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League C matches against Norway and Slovenia on 6 and 9 September, 2018 respectively.
[4]
Caps and goals as of 9 September 2018, after the match against Slovenia.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Antonis Georgallides (1982-01-30) 30 January 1982 66 0 Cyprus Olympiakos Nicosia
1GK Constantinos Panagi (1994-10-08) 8 October 1994 12 0 Cyprus Omonia
1GK Urko Pardo (1983-01-28) 28 January 1983 4 0 Cyprus Alki Oroklini
2DF Jason Demetriou (1987-11-18) 18 November 1987 47 1 England Southend United
2DF Giorgos Merkis (1984-07-30) 30 July 1984 43 1 Cyprus APOEL
2DF Konstantinos Laifis (1993-05-19) 19 May 1993 22 2 Belgium Standard Liège
2DF Valentinos Sielis (1990-03-01) 1 March 1990 14 1 South Korea Gangwon FC
2DF Charis Kyriakou (1989-10-15) 15 October 1989 10 0 Cyprus AEL Limassol
2DF Giorgos Vasiliou (1984-06-12) 12 June 1984 10 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol
2DF Nicholas Ioannou (1995-11-10) 10 November 1995 4 0 Cyprus APOEL
2DF Ioannis Kousoulos (1996-06-14) 14 June 1996 4 0 Cyprus Omonia
3MF Georgios Efrem (1989-07-05) 5 July 1989 39 3 Cyprus APOEL
3MF Andreas Avraam (1987-06-06) 6 June 1987 36 5 Cyprus AEL Limassol
3MF Kostakis Artymatas (1993-04-15) 15 April 1993 26 0 Cyprus APOEL
3MF Grigoris Kastanos (1998-01-30) 30 January 1998 16 0 Italy Juventus U23
3MF Chambos Kyriakou (1995-02-09) 9 February 1995 15 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol
3MF Renato Margaça (1985-07-17) 17 July 1985 13 0 Cyprus Nea Salamina
3MF Giorgos Economides (1990-04-10) 10 April 1990 12 0 Cyprus Anorthosis Famagusta
3MF Gerasimos Fylaktou (1991-07-24) 24 July 1991 3 0 Cyprus Ermis Aradippou
3MF Fotios Papoulis (1985-01-22) 22 January 1985 2 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol
3MF Vasilios Papafotis (1995-08-10) 10 August 1995 1 0 Cyprus Doxa Katokopias
4FW Nestoras Mitidis (1991-06-01) 1 June 1991 31 5 Cyprus AEL Limassol
4FW Pieros Sotiriou (1993-01-13) 13 January 1993 30 6 Denmark Copenhagen
4FW Onisiforos Roushias (1992-07-15) 15 July 1992 6 0 Cyprus AEK Larnaca

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Cyprus squad within the last 12 months and are still available for selection.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Andreas Christodoulou (1997-03-26) 26 March 1997 0 0 Cyprus AEK Larnaca v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
GK Neofytos Michael (1993-12-16) 16 December 1993 0 0 Greece PAS Giannina v.  Armenia, 13 November 2017
DF Marios Antoniades (1990-05-14) 14 May 1990 15 0 Cyprus AEK Larnaca v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
DF Fanos Katelaris (1996-08-26) 26 August 1996 8 1 Cyprus Omonia v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
DF Stelios Demetriou (1990-10-04) 4 October 1990 1 0 Scotland Ross County v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
DF Andreas Karo (1996-09-09) 9 September 1996 0 0 Cyprus Pafos FC v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
DF Dossa Júnior (1986-08-27) 27 August 1986 23 1 Cyprus AEL Limassol v.  Montenegro, 23 March 2018
DF Marios Stylianou (1993-10-23) 23 October 1993 6 0 Cyprus Apollon Limassol v.  Armenia, 13 November 2017
MF Vincent Laban (1984-09-09) 9 September 1984 28 3 Cyprus AEK Larnaca v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
MF Dimitris Froxylias (1993-06-28) 28 June 1993 2 0 Scotland Falkirk v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
MF Anthony Georgiou (1997-02-24) 24 February 1997 2 0 England Tottenham Hotspur v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
FW Demetris Christofi (1988-09-28) 28 September 1988 50 8 Cyprus Omonia v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
FW Marios Elia (1996-05-19) 19 May 1996 1 0 Cyprus Alki Oroklini v.  Jordan, 20 May 2018
FW Minas Antoniou (1994-02-22) 22 February 1994 1 0 Cyprus APOEL v.  Montenegro, 23 March 2018
  • INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
  • PRE Preliminary squad.
  • RET Retired from international football.
  • SUS Suspended

Head to head records

As of 23 March 2018.

Past managers

As of 1 December 2015.[5][6]

Player records

As of 10 October 2017.

Most capped players

# Name Period Caps Goals
1 Ioannis Okkas 1997–2011 106 27
2 Constantinos Charalambides 2003–2016 92 12
3 Michalis Konstantinou 1998–2012 86 32
4 Pambos Pittas 1987–1999 82 7
5 Constantinos Makrides 2004–2017 77 5

Top goalscorers

# Player Period Caps Goals
1 Michalis Konstantinou 1998–2012 86 32
2 Ioannis Okkas 1997–2011 106 27
3 Constantinos Charalambides 2003–2016 92 12
4 Efstathios Aloneftis 2005–2017 62 10
Marios Agathokleous 1994–2003 38 10

Notable results

Date Tournament Place Opponent Score
27 November 1963 Friendly Nicosia, Cyprus  Greece 3–1
17 February 1968 UEFA Euro 1968 qualifying Nicosia, Cyprus   Switzerland 2–1
14 February 1973 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification Nicosia, Cyprus  Northern Ireland 1–0
13 May 1979 UEFA Euro 1980 qualifying Limassol, Cyprus  Romania 1–1
12 February 1983 UEFA Euro 1984 qualifying Limassol, Cyprus  Italy 1–1
27 March 1983 UEFA Euro 1984 qualifying Nicosia, Cyprus  Czechoslovakia 1–1
12 April 1987 UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying Gdańsk, Poland  Poland 0–0
22 October 1988 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification Nicosia, Cyprus  France 1–1
24 March 1993 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification Limassol, Cyprus  Czechoslovakia 1–1
29 March 1995 UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying Limassol, Cyprus  Denmark 1–1
15 November 1995 UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying Limassol, Cyprus  Belgium 1–1
10 November 1996 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification Limassol, Cyprus  Israel 2–0
29 March 1997 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification Paralimni, Cyprus  Russia 1–1
5 September 1998 UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying Larnaca, Cyprus  Spain 3–2
5 September 1999 UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying Limassol, Cyprus  Israel 3–2
6 February 2000 Friendly Nicosia, Cyprus  Romania 3–2
15 November 2000 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification Limassol, Cyprus  Andorra 5–0
28 February 2001 Friendly Larnaca, Cyprus  Ukraine 4–3
14 November 2001 Friendly Athens, Greece  Greece 2–1
11 October 2003 UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying Limassol, Cyprus  Slovenia 2–2
18 August 2004 Friendly Limassol, Cyprus  Albania 2–1
7 October 2006 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Nicosia, Cyprus  Republic of Ireland 5–2
15 November 2006 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Nicosia, Cyprus  Germany 1–1
13 October 2007 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Nicosia, Cyprus  Wales 3–1
17 October 2007 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Dublin, Ireland  Republic of Ireland 1–1
6 February 2008 Friendly Nicosia, Cyprus  Ukraine 1–1
11 October 2008 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Tbilisi, Georgia  Georgia 1–1
11 February 2009 Friendly Nicosia, Cyprus  Slovakia 3–2
28 March 2009 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Larnaca, Cyprus  Georgia 2–1
9 September 2009 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Podgorica, Montenegro  Montenegro 1–1
11 October 2009 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Larnaca, Cyprus  Bulgaria 4–1
3 September 2010 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Guimarães, Portugal  Portugal 4–4
29 February 2012 Friendly Larnaca, Cyprus  Serbia 0–0
23 March 2013 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification Nicosia, Cyprus   Switzerland 0–0
9 September 2014 UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina  Bosnia and Herzegovina 2–1
16 November 2014 UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Nicosia, Cyprus  Andorra 5–0
10 October 2015 UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Jerusalem, Israel  Israel 2–1
31 August 2017 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Nicosia, Cyprus  Bosnia and Herzegovina 3–2
9 September 2018 2018–19 UEFA Nations League C Nicosia, Cyprus  Slovenia 2–1

References

Notes
  1. ↑ CET (UTC+1) for matches on 13 November 2016 and 25 March 2017, and CEST (UTC+2) for all other matches.
Citation
  1. ↑ uefa.com (13 October 2015). "Bosnia and Herzegovina in play-offs, Cyprus out". Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  2. ↑ "Qualifying fixtures" (PDF). UEFA.com.
  3. ↑ "Fixture List – 2018 FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition" (PDF). UEFA.com.
  4. ↑ "Η κλήση της Εθνικής Ανδρών για το φιλικό με την Ιορδανία" (in Greek). 10 May 2018.
  5. ↑ Cyprus Football Association – Εθνική Ανδρών: Προπονητές
  6. ↑ RSSSF – Cyprus National Team Coaches
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