Antigua and Barbuda national football team

Nickname

The official nickname of the Antigua and Barbuda national football team is The Benna Boys due to the indigenous music of the country. The name was selected in a contest with the fanbase in 2012 after the team advanced to the third round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers. The Benna Boys beat out other entries in the contest such as Beach Boys, Iron Bandits, Rhythm Warriors and Party Crashers. In the past, the national team was unofficially known as the Wadadli Boys, another name that was in the contest but did not win.

(1972) First international matches

The Antigua and Barbuda Football Association became affiliated with the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) in 1970. The first official FIFA match played by Antigua and Barbuda was away against Trinidad and Tobago in Port-of Spain, Trinidad on 10 November 1972 for a home and away series during 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification. Trinidad and Tobago won the first match 11–1, making this result Antigua and Barbuda's worst loss in team history. The Soca Warriors also won the second leg in St. John's, Antigua 2–1 nine days later.

(1998) Fourth place finish in the 1998 Caribbean Cup Finals

The 1998 Caribbean Cup, hosted by Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, saw Antigua and Barbuda, led by Serbian coach Zoran Vraneš, serve up a surprise as they reached the semi-finals of the competition. In the qualifying round, the Benna Boys had an unbeaten string of matches securing progression to group stages of the finals. Antigua were placed in Group 4, along with Grenada, Guyana and Anguilla. A 2–2 draw to Guyana in the opening game was followed by a 7–0 thrashing of Anguilla – in which The Benna Boys were rampant. All this before a narrow 2–1 victory over Grenada, who finished in second spot on 6 points. Winning two matches and drawing one saw Antigua and Barbuda topped the group with 7 points, sealing their progression to the group stage of the Caribbean Cup Finals.

In the group stage, there were two groups. Antigua and Barbuda were put into Group A with their first match coming against a very talented Trinidad and Tobago team, a match they narrowly lost 3–2. A 2–1 win over Dominica followed, with Derrick Edwards and Winston Roberts grabbing the crucial goals that gave Antigua the platform to carry onto the final tie against Martinique, and a 5–1 hammering of the latter was assured. The performances in the aforementioned three matches saw Antigua and Barbuda get second place in the group and qualify for the knockout phase of the tournament.

The Benna Boys' first and only qualification to the knockout round saw them pitted against the heavy favourites of the tournament, Jamaica's Reggae Boys. Antigua and Barbuda did so well to keep their fierce rivals at bay for normal time, until Onandi Lowe struck in the 110th minute of extra time to send Antigua and Barbuda into a 3rd Place Playoff with Haiti who lost to Trinidad & Tobago in the other semi-final. That would produce a magnificent encounter, with Antigua ending up the losing team in a five-goal thriller. Vaughn Christopher and Ranjae Christian bagged the duo of goals for Antigua and Barbuda but it wasn’t enough to grab third place and a bronze medal. To this day, placing fourth in this edition of the Caribbean Cup is the highest achievement for the Benna Boys.

Semifinals

Third Place Playoff

(2005) First UEFA opponent

On December 17, 2005 the Antigua and Barbuda national team played their first and only ever match against a European opponent after the Hungarian Football Federation invited the Benna Boys to play Hungary in an international friendly at Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. This was the first match coached by former national striker Derrick Edwards. Antigua and Barbuda went down early in the 10th minute when Krisztian Vadocz tricky footwork saw him evade three defenders and fired past goalkeeper Elvis Anthony to make it 1–0. Then in the 32nd minute, the Hungarians doubled the scoreline when Robert Feczesin easily redirected a Daniel Tozser free kick with his head past Anthony, who failed adjust quickly enough. The Hungarians then added a third 10 minutes from time through Istvan Ferenczi, who fired home from just outside the six-yards box.

(2011–2012) Historical run in 2014 World Cup Qualifying

Antigua and Barbuda led by Tom Curtis made a historic run to the third round of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. They received a bye from the first round of CONCACAF qualifiers and were grouped with the U.S. Virgin Islands, Curaçao and Haiti in the second round. Their first match was at home to Curaçao. After conceding the first goal, the Benna Boys came back to win the match 5–2. Next, Antigua and Barbuda played away to the U.S. Virgin Islands and won convincingly 8–1. In their third fixture, Antigua and Barbuda had to play a tricky away match at Curaçao. Tamarley Thomas scored the game-winning goal in the 73rd minute to give Antigua and Barbuda all 3 points. Up next in their fourth fixture of the second round was a home match versus the U.S. Virgin Islands. Antigua and Barbuda wasted little time before scoring the opening goal. In this match, the Benna Boys made history with an emphatic 10–0 win that saw Peter Byers and Tamarley Thomas both scoring hat-tricks. This was the biggest win in Antigua and Barbuda football history. While Antigua and Barbuda easily beat the U.S. Virgin Islands, Curaçao drew away at Haiti. This meant that Haiti needed at least a draw in their next match in Antigua to stay alive in the competition. On November 11, 2011, Antigua and Barbuda played versus Haiti at home. This match proved difficult for the Benna Boys. For large spells of the match Haiti had majority of the possession and almost scored on a number of occasions including hitting the post twice in the first half. In the second half, Haiti was content on settling for a draw knowing that the next match was in Port-au-Prince and would be favoured to win. In the 82nd minute, Antigua and Barbuda opened up the deadlock with a strike from Kerry Skepple. After the goal, Haiti pressed for the equalizer and forced goalkeeper Molvin James to make some terrific saves. Antigua and Barbuda won this match 1–0 and advanced to the third round of CONCACAF qualifying thus eliminating Haiti with a game to spare. In the final match, the Benna Boys lost in the return leg in Haiti 2–1. Winning this group saw Antigua and Barbuda's FIFA World ranking go to 83rd, their highest ever at the time.

In the third round, Antigua and Barbuda were grouped with Jamaica, Guatemala and the United States. The first fixture in his group was an away match to the United States. Most people were expecting a convincing win by the U.S. but Antigua and Barbuda made it a competitive game. After conceding the first two goals from Carlos Bocanegra and Clint Dempsey in the 8th and the 44th minute respectively, Peter Byers scored a goal on a through pass from Mikele Leigertwood to bring the match to 2–1 in the 65th minute. The Benna Boys were somehow trying to equalize but that came to an end in the 72nd minute when Hercules Gomez scored a goal. The match ended in a 3–1 loss but Antigua and Barbuda gained respect for standing toe to toe with a CONCACAF giant. Up next was a home match to Jamaica. It ended in 0–0 draw gaining their first ever point in the third round of World Cup qualifying. Next, was another tough road test versus Guatemala in the pouring rain that saw some areas of field flooded. Surprisingly, Antigua and Barbuda opened the scoring in the 39th minute from Peter Byers and took the lead into half time. In the second half, Carlos Ruiz leveled the match at 1–1 in the 60th minute. It went from bad to worse when they were reduced to 10 men. Molvin James received a second yellow card for time wasting and Ruiz scored another goal to take the lead 3 minutes later. In the 91st minute Dwight Pezzarossi sealed the match 3–1. The return leg against Guatemala in Antigua saw Guatemala win 1–0 on a wonder strike from Carlos Ruiz in the 25th minute. A home match versus the United States was the next on the schedule. The United States opened up the scoring in the 20th minute on a header from Eddie Johnson but then 5 minutes later the Benna Boys leveled the score from Dexter Blackstock from a Peter Byers pass. The match saw both teams have chances to take the lead even though the U.S. had majority of the possession. Unfortunately, Antigua and Barbuda conceded a late goal, again off of an Eddie Johnson header in the 90th minute. The match ended in a 2–1 defeat thus eliminating them from advancing to the next round. The final match of the third round was a 4–1 loss away to Jamaica ending their 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign.

(2016) Friendly arranged with Estonia

It was announced by the Estonian Football Association on May 2, 2016 that their national team will play Antigua and Barbuda in an international friendly on November 22. It will be the Benna Boys second match ever versus a European opponent.

Rivalries

The Antigua and Barbuda Benna Boys' biggest rivals are with the Saint Kitts and Nevis' Sugar Boys dating back from the inauguration of the Leeward Islands Tournament in 1949. In that tournament in particular, Saint Kitts and Nevis has the majority of wins in the head to head meetings. Although in FIFA 'A' international matches both teams have the same number of wins in the head to head meetings whether in Caribbean Cup Qualifying or international friendlies. The rivalry has calmed down a bit due to the Leeward Islands Tournament not being played since 2003. Another rival to a much lesser degree is with Haiti. Overall, Haiti has the better all time head to head record with seven wins to Antigua and Barbuda's two along with three draws between them. The rivalry in recent years comes from both World Cup Qualifying and Gold Cup Qualifying with Antigua and Barbuda eliminating Haiti in 2011 in the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers and then the following year in 2012, Haiti eliminated Antigua and Barbuda from reaching the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Antigua Recreation Ground

The original home stadium of the Antigua and Barbuda national football team. Located in the heart of the capital, Saint John's between Independence Avenue and Coronation Road. The maximum capacity that this stadium can hold is roughly 12,000 spectators. Currently the team plays there for international friendlies and sometimes the Caribbean Cup. In 2008, FIFA banned the ABFA from using this stadium for World Cup Qualifiers, citing that it is a safety hazard. The last World Cup Qualifier at the Antigua Recreation Grounds was a 1-0 victory against Aruba on March 26th, 2008.

Sir Vivian Richards Stadium

Another home venue for the Benna Boys, which is located in North Sound, a 10-20 minute drive from Saint John's, the capital city. This more modern, state of the art venue holds up to 10,000 people. Since 2008, Sir Vivian Richards Stadium has hosted mainly World Cup Qualifiers, the first match being a 4-3 loss to Cuba on June 17th, 2008.

Past and present crests

These are the crests used over the years by the Antigua and Barbuda national football team.

Kit manufacturer

The current kit of the Antigua and Barbuda national football team are manufactured by British company Admiral on June 2016 in time for the second round of the 2017 Caribbean Cup qualifiers. The first kit is the gold combined with black for mainly the home matches and the red with the black are the away uniforms. Before Admiral, the team kits were from China-based Peak Sportswear. The Benna Boys have worn that brand since 2012, after they qualified to the third round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers.

Kit Evolution

These are some of the kits worn over the years by the Antigua and Barbuda national football team over the years.

Latest results and upcoming fixtures

Results and fixtures from the 2014 World Cup in Brazil to the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Since the last World Cup the Antigua and Barbuda national football team has a record of 11 wins, 2 draws and 10 losses, scoring 33 goals and conceding 31 goals, with the team having only 6 shutouts.

2014

2015

2016

  Win   Draw   Loss

All-time record against all opponents

These all-time records are exclusively class 'A' internationals matches.

  Winning record   Equal record   Losing record

Caribbean Cup record

  Champion   Runners-up   3rd Place   4th Place   Qualified

Honours

Regional Competition

Current squad

The following players were called up by head coach Rolston Williams for a International Friendly versus Estonia. Caps and goals updated as October 8, 2016 after match against Puerto Rico.

Match Dates:
November 22, 2016
Opposition:
 Estonia

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Antigua and Barbuda squad within the last twelve months.

Coaching history

These are some of the head coaches of the Antigua and Barbuda national football team throughout the years.