Nauru
Nauru is one of the last officially recognised countries in the world to have never played a football international, but not for long
Measuring just 21 square kilometres, only the Vatican and Monaco are smaller than Nauru, which has a population of around 10,000 that mainly plays Australian Rules football and rugby league. But that is set to change since the formation of the Nauru Soccer Federation (NSF) and with Kaz Cain installed as president.
The catalyst for the NSF’s emergence lies in a meeting in 2019 between Cain and Gareth Johnson, an English travel agent based in Cambodia who runs Young Pioneer Tours.
“We run a least visited countries trip that started in 2017 and top of that list was Nauru,” explains Johnson. “Everything in the Pacific needs to be done face to face and I met Kaz in 2019. Then COVID struck. We met again in January [2024] and he’s given me the opportunity to promote this.”
That meeting led to the appointment as coach of Charlie Pomroy, an English coach based in Cambodia, where he was previously in charge of Keisuke Honda’s local side, Soltilo Angkor. Now running his own club there, Angkor City FC, Pomroy says: “They’ve beaten a number of other countries at Aussie Rules. That leads me to believe there are athletes there that can run, throw and kick.
“The most important thing is not to go there as white saviours. We want to develop a Nauru style of play. It’s about getting a team on the field.”
To raise money, the NSF has agreed a deal with shirt supplier Stingz and Hong Kong-based fashion brand Giordano, which will produce Nauru soccer gear. In March 2024, former Reading striker Dave Kitson agreed to be national team manager and will go to Nauru in July with Pomroy for a training camp with a view to playing a game in August.
Nauru’s only field is the Linkbelt Oval, which hosts Aussie Rul
