Football in Libya
Encyclopedia
Football is the most popular sport in Libya, the North African country with a population of around 6,000,000. The governing body is the Libyan Football Federation
, which was founded in 1962.
. (see Libyan Premier League 1963-64
) Al Ittihad have won the most championships, with 14, including the last 4 titles.
The league is ranked as the 56th best league in the world for 2009, according to IFFHS.
There are two other divisions, the Libyan Second Division
, and the Libyan Third Division
.
and Al Ittihad Tripoli are the joint record winners, with 5 titles each. The holders are Khaleej Sirte, who beat Al Madina Tripoli
1-0 in a tense final (see 2008 Libyan Al-Fatih Cup Final
)
, Iceland
, Togo
and Qatar
. They had their most successful period in the 1980s, when such players as Salim Abu Jarrad, Fawzi al Issawi and Ali al Beshari almost led the side to silverware. In 1982, Libya
hosted the 1982 African Cup of Nations
, a competition in which they came second, losing 7-6 to Ghana
on penalty kicks. The team was also very close to qualifying for the 1986 FIFA World Cup
, where they lost 3-1 to Morocco over two legs.
The 1990s was a poor period for the national team. Libya was disqualified from qualifying for the 1994 FIFA World Cup
due to UN sanctions, and the team withdrew from qualifying for the 1990 competition. They did not enter the qualification process for the 1998 edition. They did do better in UAFA competitions, bowing out in the semi finals of the 1999 Pan Arab Games
, and
The 2000s were better for the nation, and with players such as Tarik El Taib
, Nader Kara
and Ahmad Saad
coming through, the national team grew in strength, and did get to the final round of qualifying for the 2002 FIFA World Cup
. Although they finished bottom of the group with two points from 8 games, the country did have a sense of pride, and came back stronger, coming within a point of qualification for the 2004 African Cup of Nations
. Two years later, the side did get to its second Nations tournament, having finished fourth in their 2006 FIFA World Cup
qualification group. The side did well in their group, which did contain the two finalists, Ivory Coast and the winners Egypt
, as well as the 2004 African Cup of Nations runners-up Morocco
. A 3-0 defeat to Egypt crippled their chances, and the team got respectable results, including a 2-1 defeat against the Ivory Coast, and a 0-0 draw against Morocco. The team did suffer a setback in qualification for the African Cup Of Nations 2008 tournament. The side suffered disappointing away defeats against Ethiopia
and Namibia
, which ruined their chances of qualifying.
The club came very close to qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
. The team secured a famous victory against Ghana, with an 86th-minute goal from Ahmed Saad Osman
, but fell at the final hurdle, losing 1-0 to Gabon, which eliminated them on goal difference.
Libyan Football Federation
The Libyan Football Federation is the governing body of football in Libya. It was founded in 1962, affiliated to FIFA in 1963 and to CAF in 1965...
, which was founded in 1962.
National Championships
Prior to national championships, football was held at regional level. There were three regional leagues: West, East and South. The first regional championships were held in 1918.Libyan Premier League
This is the top flight of Libyan football. This is a semi-professional league, although some foreign players are professionals. The first championship was held in 1963, and was won by Al Ahly TripoliAl Ahly Tripoli
Al-Ahly Tripoli is a Libyan football club based in Tripoli, Libya. The club is the second most successful Libyan club in history, having won 10 Libyan Premier League titles, five Libyan Football Cups and a Libyan SuperCup. Al-Ahly is known as the leader of Libyan Football clubs and has the...
. (see Libyan Premier League 1963-64
Libyan Premier League 1963-64
The 1963–64 Libyan Premier League was the first edition of the competition, the first football competition at national level. The recently founded Libyan Football Federation organised the competition....
) Al Ittihad have won the most championships, with 14, including the last 4 titles.
The league is ranked as the 56th best league in the world for 2009, according to IFFHS.
There are two other divisions, the Libyan Second Division
Libyan Second Division
The Libyan Second Division is the second tier of Libyan football championship, organised by Libyan Football Federation.-Winners list:*2004-05 - Al Ahly *2005-06 - Al Nasr*2006-07 - Al Wahda*2007-08 - Al Hilal*2008-09 - Najma...
, and the Libyan Third Division
Libyan Third Division
The Libyan Third Division is the third tier of Libyan football, organised by the Libyan Football Federation.-System:The clubs are sorted into regional groups. The top team in each region is promoted to the Libyan Second Division. Some of the bigger regions The Libyan Third Division is the third...
.
Libyan Cup
This competition was first initiated in 1976, although only 5 editions of the competition were played in the following twenty years. In the past, the runners-up of the Libyan Premier League were named the domestic cup champions. Al Ahly TripoliAl Ahly Tripoli
Al-Ahly Tripoli is a Libyan football club based in Tripoli, Libya. The club is the second most successful Libyan club in history, having won 10 Libyan Premier League titles, five Libyan Football Cups and a Libyan SuperCup. Al-Ahly is known as the leader of Libyan Football clubs and has the...
and Al Ittihad Tripoli are the joint record winners, with 5 titles each. The holders are Khaleej Sirte, who beat Al Madina Tripoli
Al Madina Tripoli
-Honours:*Libyan Premier League: 6*Libyan Cup: 3*Libyan Super Cup: 1-Performance in CAF competitions:*CAF Champions League: 1 appearance...
1-0 in a tense final (see 2008 Libyan Al-Fatih Cup Final
2008 Libyan Al-Fatih Cup Final
The 2008 Al-Fatih cup final was an football match held at 11 June Stadium on July 26, 2008, and was the final match of the 2007-08 Libyan Cup. The match was contested by Khaleej Sirte and Al Madina. This was the first time in ten years that one of the Big Two of Libyan football, Al Ahly Tripoli and...
)
Libyan Trophy
This competition was initiated in 2007. It is contested by members of the Premier League only. Khaleej Sirte won the inaugural competition.National team
The national team, nicknamed The Greens, is currently ranked 78th in the world, above such sides as BelarusBelarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, Togo
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
and Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
. They had their most successful period in the 1980s, when such players as Salim Abu Jarrad, Fawzi al Issawi and Ali al Beshari almost led the side to silverware. In 1982, Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
hosted the 1982 African Cup of Nations
1982 African Cup of Nations
The 1982 African Cup of Nations was the 13th edition of the African Cup of Nations, the soccer championship of Africa . It was hosted by Libya. Just like in 1980, the field of eight teams was split into two groups of four...
, a competition in which they came second, losing 7-6 to Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
on penalty kicks. The team was also very close to qualifying for the 1986 FIFA World Cup
1986 FIFA World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...
, where they lost 3-1 to Morocco over two legs.
The 1990s was a poor period for the national team. Libya was disqualified from qualifying for the 1994 FIFA World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
due to UN sanctions, and the team withdrew from qualifying for the 1990 competition. They did not enter the qualification process for the 1998 edition. They did do better in UAFA competitions, bowing out in the semi finals of the 1999 Pan Arab Games
1999 Pan Arab Games
August 15 and August 31, 1999. 5504 athletes from 21 countries participated in events in 26 sports. the opening ceremony that took place in Al Hussein Youth City Stadium was officially opened by King Abdullah II.-Medals won by country:-Group A:--------...
, and
The 2000s were better for the nation, and with players such as Tarik El Taib
Tarik El Taib
Tariq Ibrahim Mohammad al Tayib, , also written as Tareq Al Tayeb, is a Libyan football midfielder. He currently plays for Kuwaiti Premier League Side Al Naser.-Club career:...
, Nader Kara
Nader Kara
Nader Mohammed Kara is a Libyan football attacker who, as of 2006/2007 season is playing for Al Ahly Tripoli. Having received offers to play abroad, by the Bahraini and Turkish national leagues, he decided instead to remain in Libya, instead moving to Al- Ahly Tripoli from Al Olympic Zaouia.He...
and Ahmad Saad
Ahmed Saad Osman
Ahmed Saad Soleiman Osman in Libya, is a Libyan football attacker who plays for Club Africain in the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1...
coming through, the national team grew in strength, and did get to the final round of qualifying for the 2002 FIFA World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
. Although they finished bottom of the group with two points from 8 games, the country did have a sense of pride, and came back stronger, coming within a point of qualification for the 2004 African Cup of Nations
2004 African Cup of Nations
The 2004 African Cup of Nations was the 24th edition of the African Cup of Nations, the soccer championship of Africa . It was hosted by Tunisia. Just like in 2002, the field of sixteen teams was split into four groups of four...
. Two years later, the side did get to its second Nations tournament, having finished fourth in their 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
qualification group. The side did well in their group, which did contain the two finalists, Ivory Coast and the winners Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, as well as the 2004 African Cup of Nations runners-up Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
. A 3-0 defeat to Egypt crippled their chances, and the team got respectable results, including a 2-1 defeat against the Ivory Coast, and a 0-0 draw against Morocco. The team did suffer a setback in qualification for the African Cup Of Nations 2008 tournament. The side suffered disappointing away defeats against Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
and Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
, which ruined their chances of qualifying.
The club came very close to qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
. The team secured a famous victory against Ghana, with an 86th-minute goal from Ahmed Saad Osman
Ahmed Saad Osman
Ahmed Saad Soleiman Osman in Libya, is a Libyan football attacker who plays for Club Africain in the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1...
, but fell at the final hurdle, losing 1-0 to Gabon, which eliminated them on goal difference.