Eswatini national football team
This article needs additional citations for verification. (November 2020) |
| Nickname(s) | Sihlangu Semnikati (King's Shield) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Eswatini Football Association (EFA) | |||
| Confederation | CAF (Africa) | |||
| Sub-confederation | COSAFA (Southern Africa) | |||
| Captain | Mthunzi Mkhontfo | |||
| Most caps | Sabelo Ndzinisa (72) | |||
| Top scorer | Sabelo Ndzinisa (17) | |||
| Home stadium | Somhlolo National Stadium | |||
| FIFA code | SWZ | |||
|
| ||||
| FIFA ranking | ||||
| Current | 159 Increase 1 (28 November 2024)[1] | |||
| Highest | 88 (April–May 2017) | |||
| Lowest | 190 (September–October 2012) | |||
| First international | ||||
| United Kingdom Swaziland 2–0 Malawi File:Flag of Malawi.svg (Swaziland; 1 May 1968) | ||||
| Biggest win | ||||
| File:Flag of Djibouti.svg Djibouti 0–6 Swaziland File:Flag of Eswatini.svg (Djibouti City, Djibouti; 9 October 2015) | ||||
| Biggest defeat | ||||
| File:Flag of Egypt.svg Egypt 10–0 Swaziland File:Flag of Eswatini.svg (Alexandria, Egypt; 22 March 2013) | ||||
| COSAFA Cup | ||||
| Appearances | 19 (first in 1997) | |||
| Best result | Third place (2016, 2021)[2] Semi-finals (1999, 2002, 2003) | |||
.svg){kind=link}
The Eswatini national football team, nicknamed Sihlangu Semnikati (King's Shield),[4] represents Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, in international football and is controlled by the Eswatini Football Association. It has never qualified for the World Cup or the Africa Cup of Nations finals. Swaziland's best performance in an international tournament is a semi-final finish in the COSAFA Cup. On 8 June 2008, they achieved their first win in a World Cup qualifier since 1992, beating 2006 finalists Togo 2–1 on home soil. The team's best recent performance came in 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification where Eswatini finished second in Group L above Guinea and Malawi.
History
Beginnings
The team played its first international match against Malawi, winning 2–0.[5] For the first decade, the national team only played Malawi and Zambia, failing to register a single win from 1969 until 1984, when they beat Lesotho 3–1 in a friendly at home. Following the Lesotho win, Eswatini entered the 1986 African Cup of Nations qualifiers for the first time, losing 1–8 on aggregate to Zimbabwe. The team then entered the 1987 All-Africa Games qualifiers however they lost 2–9 on aggregate against Malawi. The first time that Eswatini progressed past the first round of a qualifying competition was for the 1990 African Cup of Nations qualifiers, beating Tanzania 3–1 on penalties after drawing the tie 2–2. In the second round they faced Malawi who knocked them out again, 1–3 after two legs. Eswatini next entered the 1990 SADCC Tournament, advancing past the group stage on goal difference ahead of Malawi, before losing to Zimbabwe on penalties (5–3) in the semi-finals following a 4–4 draw after extra-time. In the 1992 African Cup of Nations qualifiers, Eswatini beat Zambia (2–1) during the preliminary group stage but finished in third and failed to progress. Eswatini entered the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifiers for the first time, but ended up in second place behind Cameroon thereby not advancing to the final round. For the 1998 World Cup first qualification round, Eswatini lost twice to Gabon (0–1 and 0–2) and were eliminated. They failed to make it past the first qualifying round for the inaugural 1997 COSAFA Cup, where they lost 0–4 to Mozambique, and in the 1998 COSAFA Cup where they lost to an own-goal in extra-time against Angola (0–1). Eswatini returned to the 2000 African Cup of Nations qualification matches after missing the previous three tournaments but they fell 2–3 against Madagascar and were eliminated. They managed to qualify for the 1999 COSAFA Cup after beating Mozambique 3–1 in the qualifiers, then beat Zimbabwe in the quarter-finals 4–3 on penalties after drawing 1–1 in regular time, with Bongani Mdluli having scored the equaliser for Eswatini in the 89th minute. In the semi-finals they lost to Namibia on penalties, 2–4.
21st century
Eswatini were eliminated by Angola in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers, losing 1–8 on aggregate. They then lost to Kenya in the 2002 African Cup of Nations qualification round 3–5. Their next success in a competition came in the 2002 COSAFA Cup where they qualified ahead of Namibia (2–1) and beat Zimbabwe (2–0) to advance to the semis. There they lost to South Africa (1–4) who would go on to win the tournament. In the 2004 AFCON qualifiers, Eswatini finished third in their group, two points behind Libya and three behind DR Congo therefore missing out on qualification. In the following tournaments, Eswatini failed to progress past the first qualifying round. They finished bottom of their qualifying groups until 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification where they finished in second on goal-difference ahead of Guinea but were three points off of qualifying, behind Zimbabwe. In the 2018 World Cup qualifying, Eswatini thrashed Djibouti 8–1 over two legs, but were beaten 0–2 by Nigeria to end their hopes of qualification.
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled. Win Draw Loss Fixture
2024
| 20 March 2025 AFCON qualification | Somalia File:Flag of Somalia.svg | 0–3 | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | El Jadida, Morocco |
| Report | Stadium: Ben M'Hamed El Abdi Stadium Referee: Andre Kolissala Mbangui (Central African Republic) |
| 26 March 2025 AFCON qualification | Eswatini File:Flag of Eswatini.svg | 2–2 (5–2 agg.) | File:Flag of Somalia.svg Somalia | Mbombela, South Africa |
| Report |
|
Stadium: Mbombela Stadium Referee: Joseph Odey Ogabor (Nigeria) | ||
| Note: Eswatini won 5–2 on aggregate. | ||||
| 7 June 2026 World Cup qualification | Angola File:Flag of Angola.svg | 1–0 | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | Luanda, Angola |
| 20:00 UTC+1 | Report | Stadium: Estádio 11 de Novembro Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Hillary Hambaba (Zambia) |
| 11 June 2026 World Cup qualification | Mauritius File:Flag of Mauritius.svg | 2–1 | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | Saint Pierre, Mauritius |
| 17:00 UTC+4 | Report | Stadium: Côte d'Or National Sports Complex Attendance: 4,000 Referee: Mohamed Athoumani (Comoros) |
| 26 June 2024 COSAFA Cup | Eswatini File:Flag of Eswatini.svg | 0–0 | File:Flag of Botswana.svg Botswana | Gqeberha, South Africa |
| 15:00 | Report | Stadium: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium |
| 29 June 2024 COSAFA Cup | Mozambique File:Flag of Mozambique.svg | 0–0 | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | Gqeberha, South Africa |
| 12:00 | Report | Stadium: Isaac Wolfson Stadium |
| 2 July 2024 COSAFA Cup | South Africa File:Flag of South Africa.svg | 1–0 | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | Gqeberha, South Africa |
| 15:00 | Report | Stadium: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium |
| 5 September 2024 2025 AFCON qualifier | Guinea-Bissau File:Flag of Guinea-Bissau.svg | 1–0 | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | Bissau, Guinea-Bissau |
| 16:00 UTC±0 | Burá File:Soccerball shade.svg 14' | Report | Stadium: Estádio 24 de Setembro Referee: Raphiou Ligali (Benin) |
| 10 September 2024 2025 AFCON qualifier | Eswatini File:Flag of Eswatini.svg | 0-1 | File:Flag of Mali.svg Mali | Mbombela, South Africa |
| 15:00 UTC+2 | Report | Bissouma File:Soccerball shade.svg 7' | Stadium: Mbombela Stadium Attendance: 406 Referee: Jean-Claude Ishimwe (Rwanda) |
| 11 October 2024 2025 AFCON qualifier | Mozambique File:Flag of Mozambique.svg | 1-1 | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | Maputo, Mozambique |
| 15:00 UTC+2 | Report | Stadium: Estádio do Zimpeto Referee: Pierre Jean Nguiene (Congo) |
| 14 October 2024 2025 AFCON qualifier | Eswatini File:Flag of Eswatini.svg | 0-3 | File:Flag of Mozambique.svg Mozambique | Mbombela, South Africa |
| 21:00 UTC+2 | Report | Stadium: Mbombela Stadium Referee: Ring Nyier (South Sudan) |
| 15 November 2024 2025 AFCON qualifier | Eswatini File:Flag of Eswatini.svg | 1-1 | File:Flag of Guinea-Bissau.svg Guinea-Bissau | Mbombela, South Africa |
| 17:00 UTC+2 | Stadium: Mbombela Stadium |
| 19 November 2024 2025 AFCON qualifier | Mali File:Flag of Mali.svg | v | File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | Bamako, Mali |
| 19:00 UTC±0 | Stadium: Stade du 26 Mars |
Coaches
- Caretakers are listed in italics.
- Romania Ted Dumitru (1983–85)
- Eswatini Dumisa Mahlalela (1992–93)
- Eswatini Scara Thindwa (1996)
- Zambia Jan Simulambo (1997)
- Zambia Francis Banda (1998–2000)
- Eswatini Dumisa Mahlalela (2001–02)
- Eswatini Mandla Dlamini (2003)
- Zambia Francis Banda (2003)
- Germany Werner Bicklehaput (2003)
- Eswatini Dumisa Mahlalela (2004)
- Zambia Francis Banda (2005)
- Belgium Jan Van Winckel (2006)
- Egypt Ayman El Yamani (2006–07)
- Eswatini Martin Chabangu (2007)
- Switzerland Raoul Savoy (2007–08)
- South Africa Ephraim Mashaba (2008–10)
- Eswatini Musa Zwane (2010–11)
- Eswatini Obed Mlotsa (2011)
- Eswatini Caleb Ngwenya (2011–12)
- Belgium Valere Billen (2012–13)
- Eswatini Harris Bulunga (2013–14)
- Eswatini Harris Bulunga (2014–16)
- Eswatini Anthony Mdluli (2017)
- Netherlands Hendrik Pieter de Jongh (2017–18)
- Eswatini Anthony Mdluli (2018)
- Serbia Kosta Papić (2018–19)
- Eswatini Dominic Kunene (2020–22)
- Eswatini Dominic Kunene (2023–24)
- Croatia Zdravko Logarušić (2024)
- Eswatini Sifiso Ntibane (2024)
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
Players
Current squad
The following players were called up for the 2025 AFCON qualification matches against Mozambique on 11 and 14 October 2024.[6] Caps and goals correct as of 10 September 2024, after the match against Mali
Recent call-ups
The following players were called up for Eswatini in the last 12 months.
Player records
- As of 14 October 2024[7]
- Players in bold are still active with Eswatini.
| Rank | Player | Caps | Goals | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tony Tsabedze | 71 | 8 | 2003–2018 |
| 2 | Sabelo Ndzinisa | 69 | 17 | 2012–present |
| 3 | Sifiso Matse | 53 | 4 | 2017–present |
| 4 | Mxolisi Mthethwa | 52 | 3 | 1998–2010 |
| 5 | Wonder Nhleko | 48 | 5 | 2001–2018 |
| 6 | Lindo Mkhonta | 46 | 1 | 2018–present |
| 7 | Machawe Dlamini | 44 | 1 | 2011–2019 |
| Sandile Gamedze | 44 | 8 | 2018–present | |
| 9 | Dennis Masina | 42 | 2 | 1999–2011 |
| 10 | Felix Badenhorst | 41 | 15 | 2008–2021 |
| Rank | Player | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sabelo Ndzinisa | 17 | 69 | 0.25 | 2012–present |
| 2 | Felix Badenhorst | 15 | 43 | 0.35 | 2008–2021 |
| 3 | Mfanzile Dlamini | 9 | 35 | 0.26 | 1998–2009 |
| Siza Dlamini | 9 | 39 | 0.23 | 1997–2010 | |
| 5 | Sandile Gamedze | 8 | 44 | 0.18 | 2018–present |
| Tony Tsabedze | 8 | 71 | 0.11 | 2003–2018 | |
| 7 | Fanelo Mamba | 6 | 38 | 0.16 | 2018–present |
| 8 | Wonder Nhleko | 5 | 48 | 0.1 | 2001–2018 |
| 9 | Sidumo Shongwe | 4 | 8 | 0.5 | 2011–2014 |
| Sandile Hlatjwako | 4 | 15 | 0.27 | 2014–2017 | |
| Sifiso Matse | 4 | 53 | 0.08 | 2017–present |
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup
| FIFA World Cup record | Qualification record | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1930 to 1966 | Part of United Kingdom United Kingdom | Part of United Kingdom United Kingdom | |||||||||||||
| as File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Swaziland | |||||||||||||||
| 1970 to 1978 | Not a FIFA member | Not a FIFA member | |||||||||||||
| 1982 to 1990 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
| United States 1994 | Did not qualify | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||||||||
| France 1998 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | |||||||||
| South Korea Japan 2002 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 8 | |||||||||
| Germany 2006 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |||||||||
| South Africa 2010 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 | |||||||||
| Brazil 2014 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 | |||||||||
| Russia 2018 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 3 | |||||||||
| as File:Flag of Eswatini.svg Eswatini | |||||||||||||||
| Qatar 2022 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||
| Canada Mexico United States 2026 | To be determined | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 6 | ||||||||
| Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 | To be determined | ||||||||||||||
| Saudi Arabia 2034 | |||||||||||||||
| Total | – | 0/11 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 24 | 4 | 5 | 15 | 17 | 47 | |
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
Africa Cup of Nations
| Africa Cup of Nations record | Qualification record | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| Sudan 1957 to Ethiopia 1968 | Part of United Kingdom | Part of United Kingdom | |||||||||||||
| Sudan 1970 to Ethiopia 1976 | Not affiliated to CAF | Not affiliated to CAF | |||||||||||||
| Ghana 1978 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
| Nigeria 1980 | |||||||||||||||
| Libya 1982 | |||||||||||||||
| Ivory Coast 1984 | Withdrew | Withdrew | |||||||||||||
| Egypt 1986 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||||||||
| Morocco 1988 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
| Algeria 1990 | Did not qualify | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 | ||||||||
| Senegal 1992 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 9 | |||||||||
| Tunisia 1994 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
| South Africa 1996 | Withdrew | Withdrew | |||||||||||||
| Burkina Faso 1998 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
| Ghana Nigeria 2000 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||
| Mali 2002 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | |||||||||
| Tunisia 2004 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 12 | |||||||||
| Egypt 2006 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |||||||||
| Ghana 2008 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | |||||||||
| Angola 2010 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 | |||||||||
| Equatorial Guinea Gabon 2012 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 14 | |||||||||
| South Africa 2013 | Withdrew | Withdrew | |||||||||||||
| Equatorial Guinea 2015 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||
| Gabon 2017 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 9 | |||||||||
| Egypt 2019 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 14 | |||||||||
| Cameroon 2021 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 9 | |||||||||
| Ivory Coast 2023 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 9 | |||||||||
| Morocco 2025 | |||||||||||||||
| Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
| File:Flag placeholder.svg 2029 | |||||||||||||||
| Total | – | 0/25 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 65 | 9 | 21 | 35 | 44 | 118 | |
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
.svg){kind=link}
COSAFA Cup
| Year | COSAFA Cup record | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1997 | First round | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1998 | Quarter-finals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1999 | Semi-finals | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 |
| 2000 | Quarter-finals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 2001 | Quarter-finals | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 2002 | Semi-finals | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 |
| 2003 | Semi-finals | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| 2004 | Quarter-finals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| 2005 | First round | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 2006 | First round | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2007 | First round | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| South Africa 2008 | First round | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| Zimbabwe 2009 | First round | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| Zambia 2013 | First round | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| South Africa 2015 | First round | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| Namibia 2016 | Third place | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 7 |
| South Africa 2017 | Quarter-finals | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| South Africa 2018 | Quarter-finals | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| South Africa 2019 | First round | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| South Africa 2020 | Cancelled | ||||||
| South Africa 2021 | Third place[2] | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 6 |
| South Africa 2022 | Quarter-finals | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 |
| Total | 21/21 | 53 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 57 | 59 |
Honours
Regional
- COSAFA Cup
- Third place (2): 2016, 2021
References
- ↑ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 28 November 2024. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Mozambique vs. Eswatini – 18 July 2021 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. 18 July 2021. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ↑ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 21 November 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
- ↑ zana-arts Archived 25 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Courtney, Barrie. "Swaziland (eSwatini) — List of International Matches". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 4 March 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
- ↑ "Final Squad". Twitter. EFA.
- ↑ "Eswatini". National Football Teams.
