View source for Gibraltar Football Association

{{Short description|Governing body of association football in Gibraltar}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{National football association
|Logo               = Gibraltar Football Association (2020).svg
|Badge size         = 145px
|Founded            = 1895
|Headquarters       = World Trade Center, [[Gibraltar]]
|FIFA affiliation   = 13 May 2016
|Region             = [[UEFA]]
|Region affiliation = 24 May 2013
|President          = Michael Llamas, [[King's Counsel|KC]]
|Website            = {{url|https://www.gibraltarfa.com/|gibraltarfa.com}}
}}
The '''Gibraltar Football Association''' or also '''Gibraltar FA''' ('''GFA''') is the [[sports governing body|governing body]] for [[Gibraltar]]ian [[association football|football]] and [[futsal]]. It was formed as the ''Gibraltar Civilian Football Association'' in 1895, changing to its current name in later years. It is [[List of football associations by date of foundation|one of the oldest football associations]] in the world{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}. From October 2012, the GFA were provisional members of [[UEFA]] and the [[Gibraltar national futsal team]], under-19 and under-17 representative teams participated in the 2013/14 UEFA season competitions. At the XXXVII [[UEFA Congress]] held in London on 24 May 2013, Gibraltar was accepted as a full member of UEFA. Gibraltar were admitted to FIFA as a full member on 13 May 2016 at the 66th FIFA Congress in Mexico.<ref>{{Cite web|title=FIFA welcomes Kosovo, Gibraltar as newest members|url=https://www.thestatesman.com/sports/fifa-welcomes-kosovo-gibraltar-as-newest-members-142366.html|date=2016-05-14|website=The Statesman|language=en-US|access-date=2020-05-12}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Gibraltar Football Club Merchants Cup Winners 1895.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Winning team of the 1895 Merchants Cup of the [[Gibraltar F.C.|Gibraltar Football Club]].]]
The GFA was formed as an increasing number of [[Association football|football]] clubs were coming into existence in [[Gibraltar]], and the association was designed to bring some form of organisation to the game there. Between the association's formation and 1907 the only football competition in Gibraltar was the ''Merchant's Cup''. However, in 1907 the GFA established a [[Gibraltar Football League|league]] to complement the existing cup competition.

By 1901 the GFA had established a representative [[Gibraltar national football team|national team]], competing against British military teams. This representative team continued to play down the years, their highlight probably being a draw against [[Real Madrid C.F.|Real Madrid]] in 1949.{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}

===UEFA/FIFA application===
The GFA affiliated with [[The Football Association]] in 1909, and became a full member of [[FIFA]] in 2016 allowing its national team to compete in all international competitions. This attempt was met with fierce opposition from the [[Royal Spanish Football Federation]]<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/internationals/6215286.stm|title=Gibraltar close in on Uefa place|access-date=22 September 2008|date=8 December 2006|publisher=[[BBC]]|quote=And in 2000, the Spanish Football Federation said it radically opposed Gibraltar's membership of the organisation and would refuse to take part in any competition which involved the colony.}}</ref> but was ratified on 13 May 2016 at the 66th FIFA Congress in Mexico.

The GFA's application to become a member of FIFA was filed in 1997. Two years later, FIFA confirmed the opening of the procedure and forwarded the GFA application to the appropriate continental confederation, UEFA, since according to FIFA statutes it is the responsibility of confederations to grant membership status to applicants. In 2000, a joint delegation of UEFA and FIFA conducted an inspection on the GFA's facilities and infrastructure. The Spanish FA strongly opposed the GFA's application.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Paradinas|first1=Juan Jose|title=El apoyo del Gobierno y de los partidos|url=https://elpais.com/diario/2000/08/25/deportes/967154402_850215.html|access-date=4 July 2015|work=[[El País]]|date=20 August 2000|language=es}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=BBC News {{!}} EUROPE {{!}} Spain warns UEFA on Gibraltar issue|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/894300.stm|website=news.bbc.co.uk|access-date=2020-05-12}}</ref> In 2001, UEFA changed its statutes so that only associations in a country "recognised by the United Nations as an independent State" could become members. On such grounds, UEFA denied the GFA's application.

Current FIFA and UEFA members include several federations which cannot be said to represent fully independent nations, such as the UK [[Home Nations]] ([[England]], [[Northern Ireland]], [[Scotland]] and [[Wales]]), [[Faroe Islands national football team|the Faroe Islands]], [[Guam national football team|Guam]], [[Hong Kong national football team|Hong Kong]], [[Macau national football team|Macau]], [[New Caledonia national football team|New Caledonia]], [[Puerto Rico national football team|Puerto Rico]] and [[Tahiti national football team|Tahiti]] (French Polynesia). Additionally, [[French Guiana national football team|French Guiana]], [[Guadeloupe national football team|Guadeloupe]], [[Martinique national football team|Martinique]] and [[Saint Martin national football team|Saint Martin]] each have national teams which, despite not being FIFA members, are allowed to compete at the [[CONCACAF]] confederation level. FIFA has also accepted members from other British overseas territories who compete in FIFA World Cup qualification tournaments despite not being sovereign states, including [[Anguilla national football team|Anguilla]], [[Bermuda national football team|Bermuda]], [[British Virgin Islands national football team|British Virgin Islands]], [[Cayman Islands national football team|Cayman Islands]], [[Montserrat national football team|Montserrat]] and [[Turks and Caicos Islands national football team|Turks and Caicos Islands]].

The GFA appealed to the world's highest sporting court, the [[Court of Arbitration for Sport]] (CAS), which in 2003 ruled that the GFA application should be handled according to the old statute.<ref>[http://jurisprudence.tas-cas.org/sites/CaseLaw/Shared%20Documents/410.pdf Arbitration CAS 2002/O/410 The Gibraltar Football Association (GFA)/Union des Associations Européennes de Football (UEFA), award of 7 October 2003] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090107050722/http://jurisprudence.tas-cas.org/sites/CaseLaw/Shared%20Documents/410.pdf |date=7 January 2009 }}</ref> However, UEFA continued to refuse accepting the GFA as member. In August 2006, the CAS ruled again that Gibraltar had to be allowed as a full UEFA and FIFA member, and on 8 December 2006, it was announced that Gibraltar had become a provisional member of UEFA.

However, full membership required a vote of the UEFA membership. Leading up to this vote, the Spanish football federation lobbied against Gibraltar's membership. The Federation's president [[Ángel María Villar]] attributed Spain's opposition to [[Disputed status of Gibraltar|the Spanish claim over Gibraltar]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://playthegame.org/News/Up_To_Date/Gibraltar_to_become_member_of_UEFA_despite_Spanish_resistance.aspx |title=Gibraltar to become member of UEFA despite Spanish resistance |access-date=22 September 2008 |last=Sparre |first=Kirsten |date=8 September 2006 |publisher=playthegame.org |quote=This happened after pressure from Spain which still claims sovereignty over Gibraltar after it was ceded to Britain under the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht. It refuses to recognise Gibraltar and there is an edict from the [[Consejo Superior de Deportes]] to all sports federations in Spain that they should block any membership application from organisations in Gibraltar. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071026144741/http://www.playthegame.org/News/Up_To_Date/Gibraltar_to_become_member_of_UEFA_despite_Spanish_resistance.aspx |archive-date=26 October 2007 }}</ref> He also claimed it was a political issue and referred to the [[Treaty of Utrecht]] of 1713.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gibraltar.gi/locals/news.php?action=view_article&article=1910|title=Gibraltar's bid fails 'through political pressure from Spain'|access-date=22 September 2008|date=26 January 2007|publisher=Panorama|quote=Villar said that "it is a political issue and since 1713 we have not found a political solution to this situation, because it is so difficult to resolve."|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303225414/http://www.gibraltar.gi/locals/news.php?action=view_article&article=1910|archive-date=3 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> On 26 January 2007 at the [[UEFA Congress]] held in [[Düsseldorf]] ([[Germany]]), Gibraltar's application to become a full member of UEFA was rejected,<ref>{{Cite news|date=2007-01-26|title=Platini wins tight UEFA ballot|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-soccer-uefa-idUKL2691322220070126|access-date=2020-05-12}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> with 45 votes against, 3 in favour (namely, [[The Football Association|England]], [[Scottish Football Association|Scotland]] and [[Football Association of Wales|Wales]]), and 4 undecided.

===UEFA and FIFA membership approved===
[[File:GFA pillar box 1.jpg|thumb|A [[Royal Gibraltar Post Office]] [[pillar box]] is painted as a tribute to the GFA's success in becoming a full member of [[UEFA]] on 24 May 2013]]
On 21 March 2012 the request for full UEFA membership by Gibraltar was discussed again, and a road map which includes financial and educational support from UEFA was agreed. This road map was to run until the Ordinary [[UEFA Congress]] in 2013, when member associations would vote on the request for admission.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bidding process for UEFA EURO 2020 decided|url=https://www.uefa.com/news-media/news/0253-0d7dcd2ea999-cb28ab918136-1000--bidding-process-for-uefa-euro-2020-decided/|date=21 March 2012|website=UEFA|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130913115342/http://www.uefa.com/uefa/aboutuefa/organisation/executivecommittee/news/newsid=1772206.html|archive-date=13 September 2013|access-date=12 May 2020}}</ref> UEFA's Executive Committee admitted the GFA as a provisional member as of 1 October 2012, pending a vote at its Congress in May 2013 to make it a full member.<ref name="provisional2012">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2012/oct/01/gibraltar-football-uefa-provisional-member |title=Gibraltar national team made provisional member of Uefa |work=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=2012-10-01 |location=London |first=Gregg |last=Bakowski |date=1 October 2012}}</ref>

After the vote at the [[UEFA Congress]] held in London on 24 May 2013, Gibraltar was accepted as a full UEFA member. A vote was carried out, a clear majority was found to have voted to admit Gibraltar to UEFA. Two national associations; Belarus and Spain voted against the proposal.<ref>{{cite news|last=Lafuente|first=Javier|title=Gibraltar mete gol a España (Gibraltar scores a goal against Spain)|url=https://deportes.elpais.com/deportes/2013/05/24/actualidad/1369397401_770521.html|access-date=25 May 2013|newspaper=[[El País]]|date=24 May 2013|language=es}}</ref>

Gibraltar became the smallest UEFA member by population, behind [[San Marino]], then [[Liechtenstein]] and the [[Faroe Islands]]. Following the example of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Russia and Georgia, it was confirmed that Gibraltar and Spain would be kept apart in qualifying groups in all major tournaments such as the [[FIFA World Cup]] and the [[UEFA European Football Championship|European Championship]] (the Euros).<ref name="Gibraltar given full Uefa membership at London Congress">{{cite news|title=Gibraltar given full Uefa membership at London Congress|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/22657481|publisher=BBC Sport|access-date=24 May 2013}}</ref>

As part of the celebrations for the GFA's achievement, a 54p stamp was issued by the [[Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau]] commemorating the association becoming the 54th member of UEFA.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gibraltar-stamps.com/index.php?controller=stamps&action=stampdetails&id=1277|title=Gibraltar, 54th Member of UEFA Set - Stamps - 2013 - Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau|website=www.gibraltar-stamps.com}}</ref>

On 13 May 2016, Gibraltar was accepted as a member of FIFA with a vote of 172 to 12 in favour. Gibraltar became FIFA's 211th member immediately after the Football Federation of Kosovo was voted member 210.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/36290169|title=Fifa: Kosovo and Gibraltar become members of world governing body|date=2016-05-13|work=BBC Sport|access-date=2018-01-19|language=en-GB}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Football in Gibraltar]]
* [[Gibraltar national football team]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Gibraltar Football Association}}
*[https://www.gibraltarfa.com/ GFA website]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20061128205508/http://www.uefa.com/uefa/Keytopics/kind%3D64/newsId%3D464331.html Spanish Football Federation interfering at UEFA] 
*[[BBC]] [https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/internationals/6215286.stm report on GFA's provisional status entry] [[UEFA]]

{{Gibraltar national football team}}
{{UEFA associations}}
{{Football in Gibraltar}}
{{British Football Associations}}
{{Gibraltar topics}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sports governing bodies in Gibraltar|Football]]
[[Category:Football in Gibraltar|Association, Gibratar Football]]
[[Category:National members of UEFA]]
[[Category:1895 establishments in Gibraltar]]
[[Category:Sports organizations established in 1895]]
[[Category:Association football governing bodies in Europe]]