Seychelles national football team: players, coach, world rankings, nickname

Seychelles national football team: players, coach, world rankings, nickname

Kevin Omuya
updated at April 12, 2023 at 7:55 PM

Football has drawn millions of fans to Seychelles in recent years as the sport has grown in popularity despite administration and management issues. Development programs have been structured to address the problems and bring football to its highest level. Since then, Seychelles national football team has been climbing the ranks.

Seychelles national football team
Photo: canva.com (modified by author)
Source: UGC

Pirates, the Seychelles national football team’s nickname, was given to them as an honour due to the island's hospitality and welcoming generosity. They participated in several football competitions on a volunteer basis until they were reformed and given the required equipment by a sponsor. Join us as we find out more about Seychelles national football team roster, background, accomplishments, and more.

Profile summary

  • Full name: Seychelles National Football Team
  • Nickname: The Pirates
  • Managed by: Seychelles Football Federation
  • Founded: 1979
  • Colours: Red, Blue and White.
  • Federation: CAF
  • FIFA code: SEY
  • Coach: Ralph Jean-Louis
  • Captain: Benoit Marie
  • Most caps: Benoit Marie (46)
  • Top Scorer: Philip Zialor (14)
  • FIFA ranking: 197 (as of December 2021)
  • CAF ranking: 53 (as of December 2021)
  • Stadium: Stade Linite

Seychelles national football team's history

Before the Seychelles government intervened with the Pirates' soccer sponsor, Adrian Fisher, the Pirates had to deal with adversity such as playing barefoot in the absence of good clothes and facilities. The newly constituted team competed in friendly tournaments against FIFA recognized teams for the first time in 1974.

Seychelles national football team in AFCON

Unfortunately, the Pirates have never qualified for the African Cup of Nations since its inception. Also, they have not been performing well in the African Cup of Nations qualifier games. Following Madagascar's withdrawal from the Afcon beach soccer competition in Senegal in May 2021, the Pirates qualified for the final stage for the second time.

As a result, the team was scheduled to face Madagascar twice, on May 1 and 8, 2021, with the victor advancing to the final stage as the eighth team. These two matches ended the qualifying round and advanced them to the finals in Senegal, where they lost a place to play in the Afcon.

Who are the current captain and coach for Seychelles national football team?

Seychelles national football team
The Seychelles national team faced a few hiccups as they prepare for their match today, in the CHAN tournament against Mozambique. Photo: @todayinsey
Source: Facebook

Here’s the current profile for The Pirates’ captain.

Benoit Marie profile summary

  • Full name: Benoit Marie
  • Date of birth: 26 December 1992
  • Age: 29 as of January 2022
  • Place of birth: Seychelles
  • Position(s): Defender
  • Current club: Cote d’Or FC

Here is the profile for the Pirates’ coach:

Ralph Jean- Louis profile summary

  • Full name: Ralph Jean- Louis
  • Date of birth: 11 September 1968
  • Age: 53 as of January 2022
  • Place of birth: Au Cap, Seychelles
  • Nationality: Seychelles

Who is the Seychelles national football team?

Seychelles Football Federation has been a FIFA and Confederation of African Football member since 1986. The Pirates consists of an entire squad representing the nation in minor and major competitions. Here is the list of the current team.

Goalkeepers

  • Ian Ah-Kong
  • Alvin Michel
  • Romeo Padayachy

Defenders

  • Benoit Marie
  • Gervais Waye-Hive
  • Warren Mellie
  • Don FanchetteDF
  • Juninho Mathiot
  • Stan Esther
  • Julio Brown
  • Sam Hallock
  • Helton Monnaie
  • Danny Madeleine

Midfielders

  • Jean-Yves Ernesta
  • Rundolf Elizabeth
  • Kenner Nourrice
  • Dean Balette

Forwards

  • Elijah Tamboo
  • Brandon Labrosse
  • Dean Moth
  • Hubert Jean
  • Josip Ravignia
  • Thierry Camille

Seychelles national football team trophies

The team have never qualified for the World Cup or Africa Cup of Nations tournaments. Their only silverware is the Indian Ocean Island Games trophy they won in 2011.

Seychelles national football team players
The Pirates celebrates Mahinda Majagaska Trophy after a win against Sri Lanka in the Four Nations Tournament in the penalty shoot out. Photo: @SychellesFootballFederation
Source: Facebook

Seychelles national football team world ranking

The Pirates' standing among the world's footballing countries has remained unchanged, ranking 197th in the latest FIFA world rankings. The Seychelles Football Federation oversees all football-related activities, including the national team, representing men's football internationally.

The Seychelles national football team ranked bottom in the Indian Ocean region, with 60 points. This could change depending on the squad's performance at the upcoming Council of Southern African Football Association Cup in May 2022 in South Africa. Despite all the adversities in the team's journey to participate in major tournaments, the team is set to come back to its best.

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Authors
Kevin Omuya photo
Kevin Omuya
Kevin Omuya is a Content Writer with 4 years of experience who joined Sports Brief in 2022. In 2019 he held a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism & Digital Media from KCA University.