Captain Álex Bergantiños Managers Míchel Salgado, Fran | Location Galicia, Spain | |
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Nickname(s) A Irmandiña (The Fellowship) Head coach Fran González & Míchel Salgado Association Galician Football Federation | ||
The Galicia national football team is the official football team of Galicia. It is organised by the Galician Football Federation. The team is not affiliated with FIFA or UEFA and is, therefore, only allowed to play friendly matches.
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Early years
The first game of the Galician national football team took place on November 19, 1922 in Coia, Vigo as part of official tournament Copa del Príncipe de Asturias organised by RFEF – This was at a time when there was no national club championship per se, Galician teams would play each other in the Galician Championship and the winner would then go on to face the other regional champions in the Spanish Championship. However, later political developments in Spain made it impossible for Galicia national football team to take part at official competitions. Hence, after Copa del Príncipe de Asturias was discontinued all games were merely friendlies. The Galician national football team as such ceased all activity during the time of the Spanish Civil War and the subsequent dictatorship (1936–1975).
Revival in 2000s
The project was retaken in the early 1980s, although Galicia's first recent game only happened on 29 December 2005. It was a 3–2 win over Uruguay, and it was played at the packed stadium of San Lázaro, Santiago de Compostela. In December 2006, another game was contested against Ecuador, played in Riazor, A Coruña. The teams tied 1–1. Against Cameroon, on the next year, the result was the same, 1–1. Once again, in 2008, the Irmandiña played another friendly game, this time against Iran. The result was 3–2.
Amateur era
Changes in the composition of the Galician Government after the 2009 elections resulted in a lack of official support for the national team. However, the supporters' group Siareiros Galegos managed to organise a number of non-official international games involving Galician players from lower categories as a sign of protest, giving continuation to the project. These efforts were supported by a number of local governments, which would allow the use of their facilities. Galicia played teams representing Palestine, Western Sahara, Iraqi Kurdistan and Occitania in 2013. Siareiros Galegos announced at that time that it would be the last match until further notice due to the financial situation. On December 26, 2015, however, Siareiros Galegos did set up yet another game, where Galicia faced players representing Senegal.
Second revival
The current president of the FGF, Mr Louzán, days after the Senegal game, announced that the Federation would organise a first-level game again in 2016. It was mentioned that players from the top professional Galician teams, Deportivo and Celta, had lobbied in favour. A game was eventually held on May 20 in Riazor, where Galicia met Venezuela to a 1-1 draw. After the game, the Galician coaches mentioned the keen interest expressed by players to continue with the project and play more games on a regular basis.
Current squad
The following players were called up for the friendly against Venezuela on 20 May 2016.
Age, caps and goals updated as of 21 May 2016 after the match against Venezuela.
Recent call-ups
The following players were named to a squad in the last friendly against Iran on 27 December 2008