Tuvalu Football Association
| OFC | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Founded | 1979 |
| FIFA affiliation | not affiliated |
| OFC affiliation | 2006 (Associate member) |
| President | Toakai Puapua |
| Website | tnfa.tv |
The Tuvalu National Football Association is the governing body of association football in Tuvalu. The Association is responsible for the Tuvalu national football team and the Tuvalu national futsal team.
Football in Tuvalu is played at club and national team level. The association is a member of the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) but not affiliated to FIFA. The association has been wanting to be a member of FIFA since 1987. However the lack of football facilities in Tuvalu is a major obstacle membership of FIFA. Tuvalu does not have a stadium, or training grounds or hotels for visiting teams and supporters.
History was made in 2007 when Tuvalu became the first non FIFA member to participate in an official World cup qualifying match. The situation arose when the regional governing body used the 2007 South Pacific Games, as the first stage of the qualification tournament for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and qualification tournament for the 2008 OFC Nations Cup. Tuvalu performed with great credit, earning a remarkable 1–1 draw with Tahiti in which Viliamu Sekifu became as the first World cup scorer for his country. The other three fixtures in the tournament ended in defeat and Tuvalu failed to progress from their five team group.
The TNFA has been wanting to be a member of FIFA since 1987. In September 2008, Tuvaluan Prime Minister Apisai Ielemia and the President of the Tuvalu Football Association, Tapugao Falefou, visited the headquarters of FIFA in Zurich, hoping to gain full membership in the organisation. The Dutch Support Tuvalu Foundation is working with the TNFA to advance Tuvalu's FIFA application and with the development of football in Tuvalu. The Tuvalu team and the activities of the Dutch Support Tuvalu Foundation are the focus of Mission Tuvalu (Missie Tuvalu) (2013) a feature documentary directed by Jeroen van den Kroonenberg.
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