South Yemen national football team

The South Yemen national football team (Arabic: منتخب اليمن الجنوبي الوطني لكرة القدم‎) was the national team of South Yemen between 1965 and 1989. The team took part in the Asian Cup finals in 1976, losing 0–8 to Iran and 0–1 to Iraq. They entered their only World Cup qualification campaign, for the 1986 FIFA World Cup, and were knocked out in the first round by Bahrain.

South Yemen

1965–1989
Nickname(s)	Soqoor Al-Janoub (The South Falcons) (صقور الجنوب)
Association	PDR Yemen Football Federation
Most caps	Abubakar Al-Mass
Top scorer	Abubakar Al-Mass
Home stadium	22 May Stadium
FIFA code	YMD
First colours Second colours Third colours
First international
UAR 14–0 South Yemen (Egypt, 2 September 1965)
Last international
South Yemen 1–0 Guinea (Kuwait City, Kuwait; 5 November 1989)
Biggest win
South Yemen 2–0 Iraq  (Aden, South Yemen; 2 May 1974) South Yemen 2–0 Mauritania  (Damascus, Syria; 12 October 1976)[1]
Biggest defeat
Algeria 15–1 South Yemen (Tripoli, Libya; 17 August 1973) UAR 14–0 South Yemen (Egypt, 2 September 1965)
AFC Asian Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 1976)
Best result	Group stage, 1976

The team ceased to exist in 1990, when South Yemen united with North Yemen to form Yemen. See the article Yemen national football team for details after 1990.

Debut

South Yemen made its international football debut on 2 September 1965 at the 1965 Pan Arab Games in Cairo, Egypt. They played the hosts (who played as the United Arab Republic) in the first game and lost, 14–0. This was their largest defeat without scoring a goal in reply. South Yemen lost all three other games in the group: 1–0 to Palestine and then 4–3 to Lebanon. South Yemen did not play another game until 10 January 1972 when they lost a home friendly, 4–1, to Algeria.[1]

World Cup record

• 1930 to 1962 – Did not exist
• 1966 to 1982 – Did not enter
• 1986 – Did not qualify
• 1990 – Withdrew

Asian Cup record

• 1956 to 1972 – Did not enter
• 1976 – Round 1
• 1980 to 1984 – Withdrew
• 1988 – Did not qualify

Asian Games

Football at the Asian Games has been an under-23 tournament since 2002.

Asian Games record
Year	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1951	Did not participate
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978
1982	Group stage	3	0	0	3	+1	–8
1986	Did not participate
Total	1/10	3	0	0	3	+1	–8

Pan Arab Games

Pan Arab Games record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1953	Did not enter
1957
1961
1965
1976	4th	6	3	1	2	7	8
1985	Did not enter
Total	1/6	6	3	1	2	7	8

1986 World Cup qualification

South Yemen competed in qualification for the only time for the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. They were placed in Group 4 of Zone A in the First Round against Iran and Bahrain. Iran was disqualified before the games were played, due to refusal to move their games to neutral grounds away from the Iran–Iraq War. South Yemen hosted Bahrain on 12 March 1985 and lost 4–1 in Mortayer Yard (now 22 May Stadium), Aden. On 12 April they drew, 3–3, at the Bahrain National Stadium in Manama after leading 3–1. This saw Bahrain advance through.

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Bahrain	2	1	1	0	7	4	+3	3
South Yemen	2	0	1	1	4	7	−3	1
Iran	Disqualified

Coaches

• Nasr Chadli (1972)[2]
• Ali Mohsen Al-Moraisi (1975–1976)
• Abbas Ghulam (1982–?)
• Timur Segizbaev (1982–1985)[3]
• Azzam Khalifa (? – March 1985) [4]
• Abdullah Saleh Khobani(April 1985–?) [5]
• Awad Awadan (1986–?)
• Abbas Ghulam (1988)
• Mubarak Qadhi (1989)[6]

References

1. "South Yemen - List of International Matches". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
2. "الرياضة في عدن". aden7hurra.blogspot.com. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
4. FIFA.com. "1986 FIFA World Cup Mexico ™ - Matches - Yemen PDR-Bahrain". FIFA.com. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
5. FIFA.com. "1986 FIFA World Cup Mexico ™ - Matches - Bahrain-Yemen PDR". FIFA.com. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
6. "Statistics: Iran [ Team Melli]". www.teammelli.com. Retrieved 28 January 2019.