Cyprus national football team

Cyprus

Association	Cyprus Football Association (CFA) Κυπριακή Ομοσπονδία Ποδοσφαίρου Kıbrıs Futbol Federasyonu
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Sofronis Avgousti
Captain	Kostakis Artymatas
Most caps	Ioannis Okkas (103)
Top scorer	Michalis Konstantinou (32)
Home stadium	AEK Arena
FIFA code	CYP
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	130 3 (28 November 2024)[1]
Highest	43 (September 2010)
Lowest	142 (June 2014)
First international
Unofficial:  Israel 3–1 Cyprus  (Tel Aviv; 30 July 1949) Official:  Cyprus 1–1 Israel  (Nicosia; 13 November 1960)
Biggest win
Cyprus 5–0 Andorra  (Limassol; 15 November 2000)  Cyprus 5–0 Andorra  (Nicosia; 16 November 2014)  Cyprus 5–0 San Marino  (Nicosia; 21 March 2019)
Biggest defeat
West Germany 12–0 Cyprus  (Essen; 21 May 1969)

The Cyprus national football team (Greek: Εθνική ομάδα ποδοσφαίρου της Κύπρου, Turkish: Kıbrıs Futbol Federasyonu) represents Cyprus in men's international football and is controlled by the Cyprus Football Association. The team's home ground is the AEK Arena in Larnaca.

The team's first match took place on 23 July 1949, one year after becoming a member of the world governing body FIFA: a friendly against Maccabi Tel Aviv in Tel Aviv, ending in a 3–3 draw. Seven days later, the team had its first international game: a 3–1 defeat by Israel in the same city.

In November 1960, following independence from British rule, Cyprus drew its first post-independence official match 1–1 against Israel, as part of the 1962 FIFA World Cup qualifying tournament. Cyprus' first international victory was a 3–1 win over Greece on 27 November 1963 in a friendly. On 17 February 1968, Cyprus recorded their first competitive win, beating Switzerland 2–1 in a European Championship qualifying match in Old GSP Stadium in Nicosia.

In 1974, the national team enjoyed one of their most famous victories when they beat Northern Ireland 1–0 in Nicosia. On 12 February 1983, as part of the Euro 1984 qualifiers, Cyprus held world champions Italy to a 1–1 draw in Tsirio Stadium in Limassol, followed a month later by the same result against Czechoslovakia. Four years later, in the Euro 1988 qualification, Cyprus recorded their first ever point achieved in an away match, against Poland. In 1989 they drew 1–1 with France in the World Cup qualifying match. Despite a number of triumphs on home soil, Cyprus had to wait until 1992 to record their first away win: a 2–0 victory against the Faroe Islands.

Results in qualifying tournaments had improved considerably in the following years; In the qualifying stages for the 1996 UEFA European Championship, Cyprus drew 1–1 with holders Denmark. Four years later, they missed out on a place in the UEFA Euro 2000 despite 3–2 victories against both Spain and Israel and a 4–0 win over San Marino.

On 15 November 2000, Cyprus scored their biggest win in history by beating Andorra in Limassol 5–0 in the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification. On 7 October 2006, as part of the Euro 2008 qualifiers, Cyprus caused a major upset by beating the Republic of Ireland 5–2 at GSP Stadium in Nicosia, with Michalis Konstantinou and Constantinos Charalambidis each scoring two goals and Alexandros Garpozis finishing off the match. Just one month later, on 15 November 2006, they caused another surprise by holding the previous World Cup's hosts Germany to a 1–1 draw at home. On 13 October 2007, they beat Wales 3–1 in Nicosia. On 17 October 2007, Cyprus came close to a historic away victory in Dublin against the Republic of Ireland, but the hosts equalised in the last minute of the game and the match ended 1–1.

On 3 September 2010, as part of the Euro 2012 qualifiers, Cyprus claimed a historic 4–4 draw against Portugal in Guimarães.

During the Euro 2016 qualification phase, managed by Pambos Christodoulou, Cyprus claimed one of their most historic victories by defeating 2014 World Cup participant Bosnia 2–1 in Zenica. In the last group match, the team faced Bosnia, needing a victory to finish 3rd and rely on Belgium to beat Israel in Brussels. As fate would have it, the Bosnians won the reverse leg 3–2 and qualified to the play-offs at the expense of the home team, who at one point took a 2–1 lead during the first half and for a number of minutes held onto 3rd place and a berth in the play-offs for the first time in history, as Belgium, a soon to be world number 1 side, were comfortably beating Israel at home.^[3]

Cyprus would finish behind Estonia and ahead of Gibraltar to place 5th of 6 teams in Group H in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.^[4] Their qualification run would include an impressive 3–2 home victory over Bosnia.^[5]

In the Euro 2020 qualifiers, Cyprus beat San Marino 5–0 but lost to Belgium and Scotland. Despite a 2–1 away win against Kazakhstan, they lost their last three games and finished 4th out of 6 teams in the group, just ahead of Kazakhstan and San Marino.

The 2020–21 UEFA Nations League ended a big disappointment for Cyprus. They lost their first three games against Montenegro, Azerbaijan, and Luxembourg, before drawing 0–0 with Azerbaijan in the fourth game. Even though they beat Luxembourg 2–1 at home, they were crushed 4–0 by Montenegro in the last game and finished last in their group. This meant that they had to face Estonia in the relegation play-offs, whom they defeated 2–0 on aggregate, with goals from Marinos Tzionis and Pieros Sotiriou. Results hardly improved in the next edition of the competition, as Cyprus finished last in their group with Greece, Kosovo, and Northern Ireland, earning five points (through a win against Greece and two draws against Northern Ireland).

Cyprus lost all eight of their games in the 2024 Euro qualifiers, finishing last in their group and marking their worst ever Euro qualification campaign in terms of points per game and goal difference.

On 7 October 2006, Diadora unveiled Cyprus' new kit. It outlines a map of Cyprus in amber from the shoulder to the sleeve, with a green line running down the middle to indicate the division of the island. This controversial kit was used for the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying phase. Adidas then made Cyprus' kits for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification, the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying, and the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification phases. In 2018, Macron replaced Adidas as part of UEFA's Kit Assistance Scheme.

Kit provider	Period
Lotto	0000–2000
Errea	2000–2002
Umbro	2002–2006
Diadora	2006–2008
Adidas	2008–2018
Macron	2018–2022
Errea	2022–present

Since late 2021, Cyprus have played their home matches at the Georgios Karapatakis AEK Arena in Larnaca.

Home matches had previously been staged at different stadiums all around the country. Until 1974, Cyprus used either the old GSP Stadium in central Nicosia or the GSE Stadium in Famagusta. After the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, some matches were played at the Tsirion Stadium in Limassol and the Makario Stadium in Nicosia. In 1999, the building of the New GSP Stadium in Nicosia provided a new home for the national team but in 2008, a change of sponsorship forced home fixtures of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification phase to be played at the Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium in Larnaca. However, Cyprus returned to the GSP Stadium for the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying phase however have not played there since September 2021.

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

Manager	Sofronis Avgousti
Assistant Manager	Christos Panteli
Assistant Manager	Panayiotis Engomitis
Goalkeeping Coach	Nicos Constantinidis
Physical Trainer	Panicos Sakki
Physical Trainer	Ioakim Ioakim
Match Analyst	Giorgos Christodoulou

As of 7 Oct 2024.^[6][7]

This article needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (June 2024)

The following players were called up for the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League matches against  Romania and  Kosovo on 12 and 15 October 2024, respectively.^[8]

Caps and goals updated as of 8 October 2024.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
22	1GK	Joël Mall	(1991-04-05) 5 April 1991 (age 33)	13	0	Servette
22	1GK	Neofytos Michail	(1993-12-16) 16 December 1993 (age 30)	15	0	Pafos
13	1GK	Demetris Demetriou	(1999-01-15) 15 January 1999 (age 25)	9	0	Apollon Limassol
2	2DF	Andreas Karo	(1996-09-09) 9 September 1996 (age 28)	25	1	Maccabi Petah Tikva
4	2DF	Nicholas Ioannou	(1995-11-10) 10 November 1995 (age 29)	48	2	Como
14	2DF	Kostas Pileas	(1998-12-11) 11 December 1998 (age 26)	8	1	Pafos FC
16	2DF	Stelios Andreou	(2002-07-24) 24 July 2002 (age 22)	21	0	Charleroi
18	2DF	Nikolas Panayiotou	(2000-05-12) 12 May 2000 (age 24)	13	0	Omonia
19	2DF	Konstantinos Laifis	(1993-05-19) 19 May 1993 (age 31)	60	3	APOEL FC
18	2DF	Minas Antoniou	(1994-02-22) 22 February 1994 (age 30)	20	0	Karmiotissa FC
7	2DF	Marios Stylianou	(1993-09-23) 23 September 1993 (age 31)	6	0	Ethnikos Achna FC
5	3MF	Charalampos Charalampous	(2002-04-04) 4 April 2002 (age 22)	15	1	Omonia
6	3MF	Alex Gogić	(1994-04-13) 13 April 1994 (age 30)	33	0	St Mirren
8	3MF	Ioannis Kousoulos	(1996-06-14) 14 June 1996 (age 28)	41	4	Omonia
20	3MF	Grigoris Kastanos	(1998-01-30) 30 January 1998 (age 26)	64	6	Hellas Verona
18	3MF	Kostakis Artymatas	(1993-04-15) 15 April 1993 (age 31)	71	1	Anorthosis Famagusta FC
18	3MF	Rafail Mamas	(2001-03-04) 4 March 2001 (age 23)	2	0	AEL Limassol
12	3MF	Andreas Chrysostomou	(2001-01-14) 14 January 2001 (age 23)	4	0	Anorthosis Famagusta FC
9	4FW	Ioannis Pittas	(1996-07-10) 10 July 1996 (age 28)	43	7	AIK
10	4FW	Loizos Loizou	(2003-07-18) 18 July 2003 (age 21)	32	1	Omonia
11	4FW	Andronikos Kakoullis	(2001-05-03) 3 May 2001 (age 23)	22	4	Omonia
21	4FW	Stavros Gavriel	(2002-01-29) 29 January 2002 (age 22)	3	0	S.V. Zulte Waregem
23	4FW	Marios Ilia	(1996-05-19) 19 May 1996 (age 28)	14	1	Pafos FC
10	4FW	Pieros Sotiriou	(1993-01-13) 13 January 1993 (age 31)	60	12	Sanfrecce Hiroshima
21	4FW	Marinos Tzionis	(2001-07-16) 16 July 2001 (age 23)	27	2	Čukarički

The following players have also been called up to the Cyprus squad within the last 12 months and are still available for selection.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Konstantinos Panagi	(1994-10-08) 8 October 1994 (age 30)	28	0	AC Omonia	v.  San Marino, 11 June 2024
DF	Andreas Panayiotou Filiotis	(1995-05-31) 31 May 1995 (age 29)	7	0	Apollon Limassol	v.  Moldova, 8 June 2024
DF	Marios Antoniades	(1990-05-14) 14 May 1990 (age 34)	25	0	Doxa Katokopias	v.  Serbia, 25 March 2024
DF	Pavlos Korrea	(1998-07-14) 14 July 1998 (age 26)	4	0	Volos	v.  San Marino, 11 June 2024
DF	Giorgos Malekkidis	(1997-07-14) 14 July 1997 (age 27)	4	0	Apollon Limassol FC	v.  Kosovo, 9 September 2024
DF	Anderson Correia	(1991-05-06) 6 May 1991 (age 33)	11	0	Aris Limassol FC	v.  Kosovo, 9 September 2024
MF	Hector Kyprianou	(2001-05-27) 27 May 2001 (age 23)	10	0	Peterborough United F.C.	v.  Kosovo, 9 September 2024
MF	Danilo Špoljarić	(1999-07-14) 14 July 1999 (age 25)	16	1	Apollon Limassol FC	v.  Kosovo, 9 September 2024
FW	Andreas Katsantonis	(2000-02-16) 16 February 2000 (age 24)	1	0	Piast Gliwice	v.  Kosovo, 9 September 2024
FW	Ruel Sotiriou	(2000-08-24) 24 August 2000 (age 24)	1	0	Bristol Rovers F.C.	v.  Serbia, 25 March 2024
INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury. PRE Preliminary squad. RET Retired from international football. SUS Suspended

As of 19 November 2023^[9]

Players in bold are still active with Cyprus.

Rank	Name	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Ioannis Okkas	103	27	1997–2011
2	Constantinos Charalambidis	93	12	2003–2017
3	Michalis Konstantinou	84	32	1997–2012
4	Pambos Pittas	82	7	1987–1999
5	Constantinos Makrides	77	5	2004–2016
6	Nicos Panayiotou	74	0	1994–2006
7	Demetris Christofi	72	9	2008–present
8	Elias Charalambous	69	0	2002–2017
	Chrysis Michael	69	7	2000–2017
	Giorgos Theodotou	69	0	1996–2008

Rank	Name	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Michalis Konstantinou	32	86	0.37	1997–2012
2	Ioannis Okkas	27	103	0.26	1997–2011
3	Pieros Sotiriou	12	60	0.2	2012–present
	Constantinos Charalambidis	12	93	0.13	2003–2017
5	Efstathios Aloneftis	10	62	0.11	2005–2017
6	Marios Agathokleous	9	38	0.24	1994–2003
	Demetris Christofi	9	72	0.13	2008–present
8	Fivos Vrahimis	8	18	0.44	1977–1982
	Milenko Špoljarić	8	21	0.38	1997–2001
	Siniša Gogić	8	37	0.22	1994–1999
	Andreas Sotiriou	8	39	0.21	1991–1999

As of 18 November 2024

Competition	Played	Won	Draw	Lost	GF	GA
FIFA World Cup qualification	124	16	15	93	91	320
European Championship qualification	122	19	15	88	101	316
Friendly matches	137	38	34	65	147	206
UEFA Nations League	26	6	6	14	17	46
Total	409	79	70	261	356	888

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1934
1938
1950	Did not enter									Did not enter
1954
1958	Withdrew									Withdrew
1962	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	2	7
1966										4	0	0	4	0	19
1970										6	0	0	6	2	35
1974										6	1	0	5	1	14
1978										6	0	0	6	3	24
1982										8	0	0	8	4	29
1986										6	0	0	6	3	18
1990										8	0	1	7	6	20
1994										10	2	1	7	8	18
1998										8	3	1	4	10	15
2002										10	2	2	6	13	31
2006										10	1	1	8	8	20
2010										10	2	3	5	14	16
2014										10	1	2	7	4	15
2018										10	3	1	6	9	18
2022										10	1	2	7	4	21
2026	To be determined									To be determined
2030
2034
Total		0/19								124	16	15	93	91	320

UEFA European Championship record										Qualifying record
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1960	Not a UEFA member									Not a UEFA member
1964	Did not enter									Did not enter
1968	Did not qualify									6	1	0	5	3	25
1972										6	0	0	6	2	26
1976										6	0	0	6	0	16
1980										6	0	1	5	2	19
1984										8	0	2	6	4	21
1988										8	0	1	7	3	16
1992										8	0	0	8	2	25
1996										10	1	4	5	6	20
2000										8	4	0	4	12	21
2004										8	2	2	4	9	18
2008										12	4	2	6	17	24
2012										8	0	2	6	7	20
2016										10	4	0	6	16	17
2020										10	3	1	6	15	20
2024										8	0	0	8	3	28
2028	To be determined									To be determined
2032
Total		0/16								122	19	15	88	101	316

UEFA Nations League record
Season	Division	Group	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	P/R	Rank
2018–19	C	3	6	1	2	3	5	9		36th
2020–21	C	1	8	2	2	4	4	10		46th
2022–23	C	2	6	1	2	3	4	12		45th
2024–25	C	2	To be determined
Total			20	4	6	10	13	31	36th

As of 18 November 2024.

  Positive record   Neutral record   Negative record

Opponent	P	W	D	L
Albania	6	2	2	2
Andorra	5	5	0	0
Armenia	7	4	2	1
Austria	7	0	1	6
Azerbaijan	2	0	1	1
Belarus	2	1	0	1
Belgium	13	0	1	12
Bosnia and Herzegovina	4	2	0	2
Bulgaria	16	1	1	14
Canada	2	0	1	1
Croatia	3	0	0	3
Czech Republic	4	0	0	4
Czechoslovakia	6	0	2	4
Denmark	6	0	1	5
England	2	0	0	2
Estonia	10	4	4	2
Faroe Islands	4	3	1	0
Finland	4	1	1	2
France	8	0	1	7
Georgia	8	3	1	4
Germany	6	0	1	5
Gibraltar	2	2	0	0
Greece	29	4	6	19
Hungary	8	1	0	7
Iceland	7	1	3	3
Iran	1	0	1	0
Iraq	1	1	0	0
Israel	16	4	3	9
Italy	8	0	1	7
Japan	1	0	0	1
Jordan	5	1	2	2
Kazakhstan	4	3	1	0
Kosovo	4	0	0	4
Kuwait	1	0	1	0
Latvia	3	2	1	0
Lebanon	2	1	0	1
Lithuania	6	5	0	1
Luxembourg	5	4	0	1
North Macedonia	2	0	1	1
Malta	8	3	3	2
Moldova	2	1	0	1
Montenegro	5	0	3	2
Netherlands	8	0	0	8
Northern Ireland	8	1	4	3
Norway	13	0	0	13
Poland	7	0	3	4
Portugal	11	0	1	10
Republic of Ireland	10	1	1	8
Romania	15	1	3	11
Russia	7	0	1	6
San Marino	7	7	0	0
Saudi Arabia	1	0	1	0
Scotland	9	0	0	9
Serbia	5	0	1	4
Slovakia	6	1	1	4
Slovenia	12	3	3	6
Soviet Union	4	0	0	4
Spain	10	1	0	9
Sweden	6	0	1	5
Switzerland	8	1	2	5
Syria	1	1	0	0
Ukraine	4	1	1	2
Wales	7	2	0	5
Yugoslavia	4	0	0	4
Zambia	3	0	0	3

• Cyprus International Football Tournament
  • Champions (2): 1998, 2000

Notes

Citation

• Official website
• Cyprus at UEFA
• Cyprus at FIFA
• RSSSF archive of results 1949–
• RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers
• RSSSF archive of coaches 1929–