This is a list of international football governing bodies.
FIFA-member football associations are formed together into continental confederations, which organize continental national and club competitions.
Acronym | Name in full | No. of members | Founded | Continent(s) represented | Main tournament |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
AFC | Asian Football Confederation | 47 | 1954 | Asia | AFC Asian Cup |
CAF | Confederation of African Football | 54 F + 2 A | 1957 | Africa | African Cup of Nations |
CONCACAF | Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football | 41 | 1961 | North America Central America Caribbean | CONCACAF Gold Cup |
CONMEBOL | Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol | 10 | 1916 | South America | Copa América |
OFC | Oceania Football Confederation | 11 F + 2 A | 1966 | Oceania | OFC Nations Cup. |
UEFA | Union of European Football Associations | 55 | 1954 | Europe | UEFA European Championship (also known as UEFA Euro). |
F = full members; A = associate members.
The following confederations consist of FIFA member associations that cross continental boundaries.
Affiliated to CAF
Acronym | Name in full | No. of members | Founded | Nations represented | Main tournament |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CECAFA | Council of East and Central African Football Associations | 10 F + 1 A | 1927 | Those generally regarded as forming the regions of East Africa Some nations of Central Africa | CECAFA Cup |
COSAFA | Council of Southern Africa Football Associations | 14 F + 1 A | 1997 | Those generally regarded as forming Southern Africa Island states off the coast of Southern Africa | COSAFA Cup |
WAFU | Union of West African Football Associations | 8 | 1977 | Those in West Africa | WAFU Nations Cup |
UNAF | Union of North African Federations | 5 | 2005 | Those regarded as forming North Africa | |
UNIFFAC | Central African Football Federations' Union | 8 | Some of the nations that form Central Africa | CEMAC Cup |
Sub-Regions
Affiliated to AFC
Not affiliated to AFC
Affiliated to CONCACAF
RULES TO SOCCER
Soccer has changed the rules for over 120 years now. These rules include, holding/picking up the ball, In the 1880 and 1904 the rule of picking up the ball has changed from being able to pick up the ball and running to only being able to kick the ball. When the ball goes out on your side by your team, the opposing team gets to have a corner kick. When the ball goes out on the side lines, the opposing team must make a throw in by throwing the ball over their heads and their feet not lift off the ground.
The CONCACAF Gold Cup is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champions of North America. The Gold Cup is held every two years. The tournament succeeded the CONCACAF Championship (1963–1989), with its inaugural edition being held in 1991.
The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) is one of the six continental confederations of international association football. The OFC has 13 members, 11 of which are full members and two which are associate members not affiliated with FIFA. It promotes the game in Oceania and allows the member nations to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.
The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, abbreviated as CONCACAF, is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 41 member associations represent countries and territories mainly in North America, including the Caribbean and Central America, and, for geopolitical reasons, three nations from the Guianas subregion of South America-Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. The CONCACAF's primary functions are to organize competitions for national teams and clubs, and to conduct the World Cup and Women's World Cup qualifying tournaments.
The Mexican Football Federation, abbreviated as FMF is the official governing body of association football in Mexico. It administers the men's and women's national teams with all its youth teams, the national teams of futsal and beach soccer, the Liga MX with all its professional divisions, all affiliated amateur sectors, and controls promoting, organizing, directing, expanding, and supervising competitive football in Mexico. The FMF was established on August 23, 1927 to replace the Federación Central de Fútbol and its first president was Humberto Garza Ramos. It is an affiliate member of FIFA since 1929 and one of the founding members of CONCACAF since 1961. Subject to policies, statutes, objectives and ideals of those international governing bodies. Its headquarters are located in Toluca, State of Mexico.
The Caribbean Football Union (CFU) is the representative organization for football associations in the Caribbean. It represents 25 FIFA member nations, as well as 6 territories that are not affiliated with FIFA. The Union was established in January 1978 and its member associations compete in the CONCACAF region.
The Unión Centroamericana de Fútbol, more commonly known by the acronym UNCAF, represents the national football teams of Central America: Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. Its member associations are part of CONCACAF.
This page indexes the individual year in association football pages. Each year is annotated with one or more significant events as a reference point.
The Senegalese Football Federation is the governing body of football in Senegal. It is based in the capital of Senegal, Dakar, and was founded in 1960. The FSF aided in the development of football in Senegal, specifically for its professional and amateur leagues, youth and women's football and academies. Currently the FSF oversees the professional leagues, run by the Ligue Sénégalaise de Football Professionnel (LSFP) and fully organises the national teams, youth, women's and amateur football and all football administration.
Non-FIFA international football is the segment of international football that is not overseen by FIFA. FIFA is the international governing body of association football, overseeing football globally and with running international representative matches. However, some international football takes place outside its purview. This often consists of matches involving sub-national entities such as islands, colonies, or autonomous regions. Representative matches also occur involving states with limited international recognition who are unable to qualify for FIFA membership. There are also a limited number of states whose representative teams are not affiliated to FIFA. Historically, a number of competitions occurred outside FIFA's auspices. Member associations are national associations, usually affiliated to continental confederations which are subordinate to FIFA.
The North American Football Confederation (NAFC) and was founded in 1946 as the governing body of association football in Northern America, Mexico, and Cuba. The first president of the NAFC was Carlos Alonso who was elected on 19 December 1946 in Havana. In 1961 it merged with the Confederación Centroamericana y del Caribe de Fútbol (CCCF) to form CONCACAF.
The Confederación Centroamericana y del Caribe de Fútbol, also known by its initialism CCCF, was the governing body of association football in Central America and the Caribbean from 1938 to 1961.
The NAFC Championship was an official confederation competition for senior national teams of association football in the area of North America.
The Panamerican Championship was an official continental competition of Association football organized by the Panamerican Football Confederation (PFC) every four years for senior national teams, with three editions held from 1952 through 1960.
The North American Football Union is a regional grouping under CONCACAF of national football organizations in the North American Zone. The NAFU has no organizational structure. The statutes say "CONCACAF shall recognize ... The North American Football Union (NAFU)". The NAFU provide one of CONCACAF's representatives to the FIFA Executive Committee.
The West African Football Union, officially abbreviated as WAFU-UFOA and WAFU, is a sports governing body representing the football associations in West Africa that was founded in 1975 and is a subregional body of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
This page is a summary of the CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification, the process that CONCACAF-affiliated national association football teams go through in order to qualify for the CONCACAF Gold Cup.