Nations League campaign gives San Marino football fans new hope
The tiny landlocked nation of San Marino began playing football in 1986 as an international team but didn’t gain entrance into UEFA and FIFA until 1988.
Their international team made its debut in competitive action in qualifying for the 1992 European Championships. As is understandable for a new team, they struggled and lost all of their first eight qualifiers.
Their first campaign was a sign of things to come in the international game for San Marino in competitive action.
An awful record in international football
In truth, San Marino has been the whipping boys of international football for a long time, well, for virtually their entire competitive history.
The FIFA world rankings reflect San Marino’s poor record, as they have been ranked as the world’s worst team, 210 on the official ranking for much of the team’s existence.
Their record in the international game is truly woeful. San Marino has played 211, winning just three times, drawing ten games and suffering 198 defeats.
All three of their victories have come against another European minnow, Liechtenstein. More on those victories later on.
San Marino has conceded an incredible 834 goals, having scored just 38 times. The leaky defence and a poor attacking return have given them a goal difference of -796.
The fact that San Marino’s leading goalscorer is Andy Selva, who retired in 2016 and scored just eight goals in his international career, demonstrates the team’s attacking struggles.
The San Marino Futbol X account is gold when the team is playing, as they get so excited if their team scores. Even if you have no affiliation with San Marino, it’s a must-follow account on X, as it details the travails of the national team and is hugely entertaining.
A lack of player options
The lack of players available for the coaching staff to choose from in the country is a big problem. According to a 2023 survey, San Marino has a population of just 33,642 people.
According to United Nations figures from 2021, nearby Rimini has a population of 149,705. It basically means that Rimini would have a more extensive selection of players to choose from if they wanted to break off from Italy and form an international team.
A lack of player numbers also generally means a lack of quality, as it’s just the law of averages that fewer players mean less of a chance of finding players capable of playing competitively at international level.
The fact that most of the current squad plays in the domestic league or the lower levels of the Italian game doesn’t help the national team’s development.
What seems to be changing is that the San Marino squad is now full of younger players who will hopefully improve on the last generation of players who tried hard but lacked quality at the top level in competitive action.
A light at the end of the tunnel
In recent months, there has been a chink of light for San Marino fans and players in the shape of the Nations League D Group 1.
The Nations League was set up in a way that teams played other teams around the same standard, which is a good way of helping teams gain competitive experience.
San Marino played in a group that also involved Gibraltar and Liechtenstein. The group had immense potential to give San Marino hope of picking up positive results.
On September 5th 2024, the Titano made history by recording their first-ever competitive victory, as they defeated Liechtenstein 1-0. It was their first competitive win in 140 games.
SAN MARINO WON.
— San Marino fan account (@SanMarino_FA) September 5, 2024
The victory even received praise from the country’s government through a statement that read: “It is always exciting to see the athletes of San Marino reach such significant goals. The result obtained with sacrifice and dedication is the testimony of the great commitment, determination and passion that the players and the technical staff put into the field when they have to defend the colors of the flag of our country. Despite the size often imposing prohibitive challenges on us, our athletes have always shown that with attention, preparation and team spirit, you can achieve extraordinary results”
The team followed up with three straight defeats in all competitions against Moldova, Gibraltar and Andorra. However, Roberto Cevoli’s team bounced back with a 1-1 home draw against Gibraltar in their next outing.
On November 18th 2024, San Marino picked up another victory, this time recording a 3-1 win in Liechtenstein. The game was once again a historic one, as it was the first time San Marino had recorded a competitive away win and the first time they had scored more than one goal in a competitive match.
The victory saw San Marino clinch the top spot in League D Group 1 and promotion to League C. It was a truly momentous achievement for San Marino and their national team.
San Marino’s Italian head coach, Roberto Cevoli, has been praised for his efforts since his 2023 appointment.
Maybe the former Reggina boss can keep developing his team, especially the younger players at his disposal, and turn San Marino into a far more competitive team for years to come. It will be just reward for their long-suffering supporters.