Solomon Islands national football team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Solomon Islands women's national football team.

Solomon Islands

Nickname(s)	Bonitos
Association	Solomon Islands Football Federation
Confederation	OFC (Oceania)
Head coach	Josh Smith
Captain	Joses Nawo
Most caps	Henry Fa'arodo (64)
Top scorer	Commins Menapi (34)
Home stadium	National Stadium, Lawson Tama Stadium
FIFA code	SOL
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	147 1 (19 December 2024) [1]
Highest	120 (October 2007, April 2008)
Lowest	200 (January–March 2016)
First international
Solomon Islands 6–3 New Hebrides   (Suva, Fiji; 30 August 1963)
Biggest win
Solomon Islands 16–0 Cook Islands   (Papeete, Tahiti; 21 August 1995)
Biggest defeat
Tahiti 18–0 Solomon Islands   (Suva, Fiji; 8 December 1963)
OFC Nations Cup
Appearances	8 (first in 1980 )
Best result	Runners-up (2004)
Melanesia Cup/MSG Prime Minister's Cup
Appearances	9 (first in 1988 )
Best result	Melanesia Cup: Champions (1994) MSG Prime Minister's Cup: Champions (2023)

The Solomon Islands men's national football team is the national football team of Solomon Islands, administered by the Solomon Islands Football Federation. The Solomon Islands national football team was founded in 1978. They were officially recognised by FIFA a decade later, in 1988. ^[2]

History

During the 2004 Oceania World Cup qualification/Oceania Cup the team drew 2–2 with Australia and qualified for the second leg. In the second leg, the Solomon Islands national men's team were thrashed by Australia 5–1 and 6–0 in the two matches, with Australia qualifying for the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup.

The Solomons got a second chance against the Socceroos in a two-legged series in September 2005, this time with the winner advancing to a two-legged series against CONMEBOL's fifth-place finisher for a berth in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and the team was thrashed by Australia 7–0 on the first leg and 2–1 in the second played at home.

The Solomons were knocked out of the 2010 FIFA World Cup – having got off to a good start winning every game in their qualifying group and comfortably progressing to the knockout rounds, defeats to New Caledonia and then to Vanuatu saw them knocked out of the competition.

In 2012, the Solomon Islands held the 2012 OFC Nations Cup which was also the second round of World Cup qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup where they finished in fourth place after qualifying through to the knockout stage by defeating Papua New Guinea and having draws against Fiji and New Zealand. They lost in the semi-final after they lost to the champions Tahiti after Jonathan Tehau scored the only goal. They later lost to New Zealand in the third-place playoff. The third round of World Cup qualifying saw the team finish bottom of the group after only taking one win against Tahiti.

After first taking charge of the team in 2017, Spaniard Felipe Vega-Arango was appointed for his second stint in June 2021. ^[3]

In 2019, they went on a three-week training tour in Netherlands. ^[4]

In June 2023, Solomon Islands played their friendly match against Southeast Asia countries, Singapore and Malaysia. Solomon Island won the 2023 MSG Prime Minister's Cup after winning against Papua New Guinea (3–1), Vanuatu (1–0) and New Caledonia (1–0) as Raphael Lea'i clinch the golden boots as the tournament top scorer with four goals.

Team image

Kit sponsorship

Kit lier	Period
Lotto	2004–2012
Pasifika	2013–2016
Veto	2016–2021
UCAN	2022–

Sponsors

• Lotto
• Telekom
• Capo Apparel

Results and fixtures

Main articles: Solomon Islands national football team results (1963–1999) and Solomon Islands national football team results (2000–present)

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win  Draw  Loss  Fixture

2024

Solomon Islands   v   Fiji

18 March Friendly	Solomon Islands	2–1	Fiji	Honiara, Solomon Islands
15:00  UTC+11	Molea 77' Hou 90'	Report	Raheem 14'	Stadium: Lawson Tama Stadium

Solomon Islands   v   Fiji

21 March Friendly	Solomon Islands	0–2	Fiji	Honiara, Solomon Islands
			Raheem 45' Krishna 64'	Stadium: Lawson Tama Stadium

Solomon Islands   v   Vanuatu

15 June 2024 OFC Nations Cup	Solomon Islands	0–1	Vanuatu	Port Vila, Vanuatu
15:00  UTC+11		Report	Tangis 72'	Stadium: Freshwater Stadium Attendance: 5,000 Referee: Veer Singh (Fiji)

New Zealand   v   Solomon Islands

18 June 2024 OFC Nations Cup	New Zealand	3–0	Solomon Islands	Port Vila, Vanuatu
12:00  UTC+11	Waine 6', 11' Barbarouses 45+4'	Report		Stadium: Freshwater Stadium Attendance: 3,000 Referee: David Yareboinen (Papua New Guinea)

New Caledonia   v   Solomon Islands

21 June 2024 OFC Nations Cup	New Caledonia	Cancelled	Solomon Islands	Port Vila, Vanuatu
12:00  UTC+11				Stadium: Freshwater Stadium
Note: On 5 June 2024, New Caledonia withdrew from the 2024 OFC Nations Cup due to the serious crisis in the country. [5]

Fiji   v   Solomon Islands

2 September Friendly	Fiji	1–0	Solomon Islands	Suva, Fiji
19:00  UTC+12	Warainivalu 81' (pen.)			Stadium: HFC Bank Stadium

Solomon Islands   v   Hong Kong

5 September Friendly	Solomon Islands	0–3	Hong Kong	Suva, Fiji
19:00  UTC+12			Juninho 22' Matt Orr 45+1' (pen.) Wong Wai 47' (pen.)	Stadium: HFC Bank Stadium Referee: Torika Delai (Fiji)

Solomon Islands   v   Fiji

10 October 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification	Solomon Islands	0–1	Fiji	Suva, Fiji
19:00  UTC+12		Report	Krishna 13'	Stadium: HFC Bank Stadium Attendance: 2,000 [6] Referee: Norbert Hauata (Tahiti)

Solomon Islands   v   New Caledonia

14 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification	Solomon Islands	2–3	New Caledonia	Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
13:00  UTC+10	Lea'i 9' Wae 39'	Report	Athale 6' (pen.), 59' (pen.) Waia 69'	Stadium: PNG Football Stadium Referee: Calvin Berg (New Zealand)

Papua New Guinea   v   Solomon Islands

17 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification	Papua New Guinea	1–2	Solomon Islands	Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
16:00  UTC+10		Report		Stadium: PNG Football Stadium

Solomon Islands   v   Vanuatu

9 December 2024 MSG Prime Minister's Cup	Solomon Islands	4–1	Vanuatu	Honiara, Solomon Islands
15:00  UTC+11	Boyers 22' (pen.), 48.' Keana 30', 79'		Nicolas King 52'	Stadium: Lawson Tama Stadium

Solomon Islands B   v   Solomon Islands

12 December 2024 MSG Prime Minister's Cup	Solomon Islands B	v	Solomon Islands	Honiara, Solomon Islands
15:00  UTC+11				Stadium: Lawson Tama Stadium

Papua New Guinea   v   Solomon Islands

18 December 2024 MSG Prime Minister's Cup	Papua New Guinea	v	Solomon Islands	Honiara, Solomon Islands
16:00  UTC+11				Stadium: Lawson Tama Stadium

Solomon Islands   v   Fiji

21 December 2024 MSG Prime Minister's Cup	Solomon Islands	v	Fiji	Honiara, Solomon Islands
18:00  UTC+11				Stadium: Lawson Tama Stadium

Coaching staff

Position
Head coach	Jacob Moli [7]
Assistant coach	Stanley Waita [7]
Goalkeeper coach	Tibon Oge
Kit Manager	Augustine Hou
Team Manager	Dixion Lauia Anga

Coaching history

Wim Rijsbergen became the manager of the Solomon Islands in 2019

Caretaker managers are listed in italics.

• Edward Ngara (1995–1996)
• Wilson Maelaua (1996)
• George Cowie (2000–2003)
• Alan Gillett (2004–2005)
• Airton Andrioli (2006–2009)
• Jacob Moli (2010–2014) ^[8]
• Moses Toata (2015–2016) ^[9]
• Felipe Vega-Arango (2017–2018)
• Moses Toata (2018–2019)
• Wim Rijsbergen (2019)
• Stanley Waita (2020–2021)
• Felipe Vega-Arango (2021–2024)
• Eddie Marahare (2024) ^[7]
• Jacob Moli (2024–) ^[7]

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification against   Fiji on 10 October 2024. ^[10]

Caps and goals correct as of 10 October 2024, after the match against   Fiji .

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1 GK	Philip Mango	(1995-08-28) August 28, 1995 (age 29)	45	0	Central Coast
	1 GK	Michael Laulae	(2002-05-20) May 20, 2002 (age 22)	4	0	Henderson Eels
	1 GK	Harold Nauania	(1997-10-10) October 10, 1997 (age 27)	2	0	Real Kakamora
	2 DF	Javin Wae	(2002-11-17) November 17, 2002 (age 22)	20	0	Campbelltown City
	2 DF	Leon Kofana	(2002-06-22) June 22, 2002 (age 22)	21	0	Rewa
	2 DF	David Supa	(2000-12-21) December 21, 2000 (age 24)	14	0	Central Coast
	2 DF	Calvin Ohasio	(2000-04-05) April 5, 2000 (age 24)	12	0	Central Coast
	2 DF	Junior David	(2001-09-22) September 22, 2001 (age 23)	10	0	Central Coast
	2 DF	Alick Stanton	(1998-05-25) May 25, 1998 (age 26)	9	0	Central Coast
	3 MF	Atkin Kaua	(1996-04-04) April 4, 1996 (age 28)	40	5	Laugu United
	3 MF	William Komasi	(2000-06-10) June 10, 2000 (age 24)	21	1	Adelaide Omonia Cobras
	3 MF	Don Keana	(2000-09-09) September 9, 2000 (age 24)	6	0	Waneagu United
	3 MF	Carlos Liomasia	(1994-09-17) September 17, 1994 (age 30)	2	0	Tailevu
	3 MF	Ben Fox	(2001-07-06) July 6, 2001 (age 23)	1	0	Marist
	3 MF	Jared Rongosulia	(1995-11-06) November 6, 1995 (age 29)	0	0	Navua
	3 MF	Paul Francis	(2004-09-05) September 5, 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Real Kakamora
	4 FW	Micah Lea'alafa	(1991-06-01) June 1, 1991 (age 33)	28	8	Vipers FC
	4 FW	Alvin Hou	(1996-09-18) September 18, 1996 (age 28)	25	7	Solomon Warriors
	4 FW	Raphael Lea'i	(2003-09-09) September 9, 2003 (age 21)	22	11	Wollongong Wolves
	4 FW	Bobby Leslie	(2000-03-03) March 3, 2000 (age 25)	12	2	Central Coast
	4 FW	Mohammad Mekawir	(2000-07-27) July 27, 2000 (age 24)	7	0	Navua

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up within the last twelve months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Junior Petua	(2003-12-30) December 30, 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Honiara City	v.   Fiji , 20 March 2024
GK	Timothy Mae'arasia	(1995-06-19) June 19, 1995 (age 29)	2	0	Solomon Warriors	2023 Pacific Games
DF	Prince Tahanipue	(1995-01-13) January 13, 1995 (age 30)	10	0	Central Coast	v.   Hong Kong , 5 September 2024
DF	Loea Taisara	(1989-06-02) June 2, 1989 (age 35)	3	0	Solomon Warriors	v.   Hong Kong , 5 September 2024
DF	Allen Peter	(1995-09-11) September 11, 1995 (age 29)	18	0	Solomon Warriors	2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup
DF	Steven Koti	(2000-06-10) June 10, 2000 (age 24)	0	0	Kossa	2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup
DF	Hadisi Aengari	(1988-10-23) October 23, 1988 (age 36)	44	0	Solomon Warriors	v.   Fiji , 20 March 2024
MF	Tigi Molea	(1992-09-24) September 24, 1992 (age 32)	11	3	Solomon Warriors	v.   Hong Kong , 5 September 2024
MF	Marlon Tahioa	(1998-11-28) November 28, 1998 (age 26)	9	0	Central Coast	v.   Hong Kong , 5 September 2024
MF	Hudson Oreinima	(1988-07-24) July 24, 1988 (age 36)	2	0	Central Coast	2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup
MF	Hadyn Irodao	(2002-10-29) October 29, 2002 (age 22)	0	0	Central Coast	2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup
MF	Molis Gagame	(1989-09-21) September 21, 1989 (age 35)	14	0	Kossa	v.   Fiji , 20 March 2024
FW	Joses Nawo	(1988-05-03) May 3, 1988 (age 36)	55	8	Real Kakamora	v.   Hong Kong , 5 September 2024
FW	Dalton Saeni	(2002-10-14) October 14, 2002 (age 22)	0	0	Marist	v.   Hong Kong , 5 September 2024
FW	Gagame Feni	(1992-08-21) August 21, 1992 (age 32)	35	19	Kossa	2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup
FW	Junior Fordney	(1999-11-26) November 26, 1999 (age 25)	1	0	Central Coast	2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup
FW	Norman Ngafu	(1997-07-16) July 16, 1997 (age 27)	1	0	Marist	2023 Pacific Games PRE

Player records

As of 21 December 2024 ^[11]

Players in bold are still active with Solomon Islands.

Most appearances

Henry Fa'arodo is the Solomon Islands' most-capped player with 64 appearances.

Rank	Name	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Henry Fa'arodo	64	20	2002–2017
2	Joses Nawo	56	8	2011–present
3	Benjamin Totori	52	29	2007–2019
4	Atkin Kaua	46	6	2016–present
5	Philip Mango	45	0	2016–present
6	Hadisi Aengari	44	0	2011–present
7	Nelson Sale Kilifa	37	0	2004–2017
8	Commins Menapi	36	34	2000–2007
	Batram Suri	36	14	1995–2005
10	Gagame Feni	35	19	2012–present

Top goalscorers

Rank	Name	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Commins Menapi	34	36	0.94	2000–2007
2	Benjamin Totori	29	52	0.56	2007–2019
3	Henry Fa'arodo	20	64	0.31	2002–2017
4	Gagame Feni	19	35	0.54	2012–present
5	Batram Suri	14	36	0.39	1995–2005
6	Raphael Lea'i	12	27	0.44	2022–present
7	Noel Berry	10	15	0.67	1995–2000
8	Micah Lea'alafa	9	30	0.28	2016–present
9	John Orobulu	8	16	0.5	2018–present
	Joses Nawo	8	56	0.14	2011–present

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup										FIFA World Cup qualification
Year	Host	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA		Pos	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 1986		Not a FIFA member								Not a FIFA member
1990	Italy	Did not enter								Did not enter
1994	United States	Did not qualify								Group stage	4	0	1	3	5	13
1998	France									Group stage	8	3	3	2	22	23
2002	South Korea   Japan									Group stage	4	2	0	2	17	10
2006	Germany									2nd	11	6	2	3	24	16
2010	South Africa									Knockout stage	6	4	0	2	23	6
2014	Brazil									4th	9	2	2	5	7	22
2018	Russia									2nd	9	4	1	4	10	16
2022	Qatar									2nd	3	2	0	1	6	8
2026	Canada   Mexico   United States									Group stage	3	1	0	2	4	5
2030	Morocco   Portugal   Spain	To be determined								To be determined
2034	Saudi Arabia
Total		—	–	–	–	–	–	–		0/9	60	24	9	27	122	126

OFC Nations Cup

Oceania Cup / OFC Nations Cup record											Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1973	Did not enter										Did not enter
1980	Group stage	8th	3	0	0	3	3	21	—		No qualification
1996	Semi-finals	3rd	2	0	0	2	1	3	Squad		4	4	0	0	10	1
1998	Did not qualify										4	2	1	1	8	7
2000	Third place	3rd	4	2	0	2	7	10	Squad		4	2	1	1	10	9
2002	Group stage	6th	3	0	1	2	3	9	Squad		Qualified automatically
2004	Runners-up	2nd	7	3	1	3	10	17	Squad		4	3	1	0	14	1
2008	Did not qualify										6	4	0	2	23	6
2012	Fourth place	4th	5	1	2	2	5	6	Squad		Qualified automatically
2016	Semi-finals	3rd	4	1	0	3	2	4	Squad
2024	Group stage	6th	2	0	0	2	0	4	Squad
Total	Runners-up	8/11	30	7	4	19	31	74	—		22	15	3	4	65	24

Pacific Games

Pacific Games record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1963	Fourth place	4th	3	1	0	2	6	26
1966	Group stage	6th	2	0	1	1	4	12
1969	Sixth place	6th	5	0	1	4	8	19
1971	did not enter
1975	Bronze medal	3rd	4	2	1	1	9	8
1979	Bronze medal	3rd	5	4	0	1	24	5
1983	Group stage	10th	3	1	0	2	0	11
1987	did not enter
1991	Silver medal	2nd	5	4	1	0	12	3
1995	Silver medal	2nd	6	4	0	2	34	10
2003	Group stage	5th	4	2	1	1	14	4
2007	Fourth place	4th	6	4	0	2	23	6
2011	Silver medal	2nd	7	5	0	2	21	6
2015	See Solomon Islands national under-23 football team
2019	Group stage	7th	5	2	1	2	30	9
Total	Runners-up	12/15	55	29	6	20	185	119

Wantok Cup

• 2008 (July, 1st edition)  – First place

Head-to-head record

As of 17 November 2024

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	WPCT
American Samoa	4	4	0	0	40	1	+39	100.00
Australia	10	0	1	9	8	55	−47	0.00
Chinese Taipei	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	100.00
Cook Islands	5	5	0	0	37	2	+35	100.00
Fiji	43	8	16	19	46	76	−30	18.60
Guam	3	3	0	0	24	2	+22	100.00
Hong Kong	1	0	0	1	0	3	−3	0.00
Kiribati	1	1	0	0	7	0	+7	100.00
Macau	1	1	0	0	4	1	+3	100.00
Malaysia	1	0	0	1	1	4	−3	0.00
New Caledonia	29	11	3	15	35	58	−23	37.93
New Zealand	14	0	2	12	11	52	−41	0.00
Papua New Guinea	24	15	4	5	42	30	+12	62.50
Samoa [a]	4	4	0	0	21	0	+21	100.00
Singapore	2	0	1	1	4	5	−1	0.00
Tahiti	24	5	3	16	26	76	−50	20.83
Tonga	5	5	0	0	31	0	+31	100.00
Tuvalu	4	4	0	0	29	1	+28	100.00
Vanuatu [b]	35	22	7	6	77	37	+40	62.86
Wallis and Futuna	3	3	0	0	23	1	+22	100.00
Total	214	92	37	85	467	404	+63	42.99

Source: 1963–99 results and 2000–present results
Notes:

1. Includes results as Western Samoa.
2. Includes results as New Hebrides.

Honours

Major competitions

• OFC Nations Cup
  • Runners-up (1): 2004
  • Third place (1): 2000
  • Semi-finals (2): 1996, 2016

Regional

• Pacific Games
  • Silver medal (4): 1991, 1995, 2011, 2023
  • Bronze medal (2): 1975, 1979
• Melanesia Cup
  • Champions (2): 1994, 2023
  • Runners-up (2): 1988, 2000
  • Third place (3): 1989, 1992, 1998

Awards

• OFC Nations Cup Fair Play Award : 2012

References

1. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 19 December 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
2. "Member Association – Solomon Islands". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 23 June 2007. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
3. "Solomon Islands appoint new coach". 23 June 2021. Archived from the original on 23 June 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
4. "Historic training camp in Netherlands wrap-up". siff.com.sb. 5 June 2019. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
5. "La Fédération se résout à la "NON-PARTICIPATION" des cagous". New Caledonian Football Federation. 5 June 2024.
6. "Solomon Islands vs Fiji". Oceania Football Confedetation. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
7. "MOLI APPOINTED FOR NATIONS CUP 2024". SIFF . Retrieved 28 June 2024.
8. "FIFA.com". 23 June 2007. Archived from the original on 23 June 2007.
9. "Solomons search for new coach". Oceania Football Confederation. 29 July 2016. Archived from the original on 29 July 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
10. "Squad Announcement". Facebook. Solomon Islands Football Federation. 3 October 2024.
11. "Solomon Islands". National Football Teams. Archived from the original on 2 April 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2021.

Further reading

• Sarkar, Uttiyo (4 June 2023). "Hero Intercontinental Cup Rival Watch: Vanuatu". khelnow.com. Khel Now India. Archived from the original on 4 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.

External links

• Solomon Islands Football Federation official website
• Solomon Islands at OFC
• Solomon Islands at FIFA