Eritrea national football team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Eritrea women's national football team.
This article contains several patronymic names rather than family names. These persons are addressed by their given name, and not by their inherited name.

Eritrea
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Red Sea Boys[1][2]
AssociationEritrean National Football Federation (ENFF)
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationCECAFA
(East & Central Africa)
Head coachAlemseged Efrem
CaptainRobel Teklemichael[3]
Most capsYidnekachew Shimangus (22)
Top scorerBerhane Aregai
Yonas Fesehaye
Yidnekachew Shimangus (5)
Home stadiumCicero Stadium
FIFA codeERI
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
CurrentNR (24 October 2024)[4]
Highest121[5] (August 2007)
Lowest207 (April–May 2018, September 2019)
First international
Pre-independence
 Sudan 1–1 Eritrea Ethiopia
(Khartoum, Sudan; 26 June 1992)
Post-independence
 Seychelles 0–1 Eritrea 
(Mumias, Kenya; 29 November 1994)
Biggest win
 Djibouti 0–3 Eritrea 
(Kampala, Uganda; 13 December 2019)
 Kenya 1–4 Eritrea 
(Kampala, Uganda; 17 December 2019)
Biggest defeat
 Ghana 5–0 Eritrea 
(Accra, Ghana; 28 February 1999)
 Angola 6–1 Eritrea 
(Luanda, Angola; 25 March 2007)
CECAFA Cup
Appearances12 (first in 1994)
Best resultRunners-up (2019)

The Eritrea national football team represents Eritrea in men's international football and it is controlled by the Eritrean National Football Federation (ENFF). It is nicknamed the Red Sea Boys. It has never qualified for the finals of the FIFA World Cup or the Africa Cup of Nations. Asmara side Red Sea FC are the main supplier for the national team and the team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF). Out of 211 national teams in the FIFA men's team world rankings, they are the only one that is unranked.

  1. ^ "Eritrea Red Sea Boys hold Zanzibar Heroes | EastAFRO.com". Archived from the original on 2019-09-05. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  2. ^ "Team Eritrea: The Red Sea Boys Are Back". Archived from the original on 2023-02-12. Retrieved 2020-01-06.
  3. ^ "History Makers: The Red Sea Camels win Silver at the Cecafa Seniors Challenge Cup". shabait.com. 21 December 2019. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  4. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 24 October 2024. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  5. ^ "FIFA World Ranking". FIFA.com. FIFA. Archived from the original on June 20, 2007. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  6. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 18 November 2024. Retrieved 18 November 2024.