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Belize national football team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Belize women's national football team.

Belize
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)The Jaguars
The Unbelizeables
AssociationFootball Federation of Belize (FFB)
ConfederationCONCACAF (North America)
Sub-confederationUNCAF (Central America)
Head coachCarlos Slusher
CaptainCharles Tillett
Most capsDeon McCaulay (63)
Top scorerDeon McCaulay (28)
Home stadiumFFB Stadium
FIFA codeBLZ
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 178 Increase 1 (28 November 2024)[1]
Highest114 (April–June 2016)
Lowest201 (November 2007 – January 2008)
First international
 British Honduras 1–0 Honduras 
(British Honduras; 19 February 1928)
as Belize
 El Salvador 3–0 Belize 
(San Salvador, El Salvador; 29 November 1995)
Biggest win
 Belize 7–1 Nicaragua 
(Belize City, Belize; 17 April 2002)
Biggest defeat
 Costa Rica 7–0 Belize 
(San José, Costa Rica; 17 March 1999)
 Mexico 7–0 Belize 
(Monterrey, Mexico; 21 June 2008)
Gold Cup
Appearances1 (first in 2013)
Best resultGroup stage (2013)

The Belize national football team represents Belize in international football and is controlled by the Football Federation of Belize, a member of the Central American Football Union of CONCACAF.

Although Belize has never qualified for a FIFA World Cup tournament, it has once qualified for a CONCACAF Gold Cup championship in 2013, in which they were eliminated in the group stage. Belize has also competed in the sub-regional Central American Cup championship in which their best result was fourth place in 2013. The nickname for the players of the national team is the "Jaguars".

History

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Overview

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Named British Honduras whilst under British colonial rule, the country's first international game came on February 19, 1928, beating Honduras 1–0. Following independence, Belize's first game came on December 8, 1983, in a 2–0 loss against Canada in Belize.[3] Although Belize gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1981 (and many of the UK's current colonies have international teams), Belize did not begin to regularly play international football until 1995. It made its debut at the 1995 UNCAF Nations Cup and was eliminated in the first round after losing to El Salvador and Costa Rica.

Belize has never qualified for the World Cup but finished fourth in the 2013 Copa Centroamericana. Their fourth-place finish in the 2013 Copa Centroamericana gave Belize its first qualification to a major international competition, that being the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

June 2011 suspension by FIFA

[edit]

On June 15, 2011, Belize kicked off its 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign against minnows Montserrat, winning 2–5 away in a match played in the Ato Boldon Stadium in Couva, Trinidad. However, the return which was scheduled for June 19 was postponed by FIFA when they suspended the FFB due to governmental interference.[4]

Team image

[edit]

In February 2023 the Football Federation of Belize unveiled a new logo that would represent Belize’s national teams. Created by Rolando Ramirez, the new logo prominently features a Jaguar, the nickname of the team. The FFB hoped that the new image would promote unity and pride in the Belize football community.[5]

Rivalries

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The Belizean footballers often say that their rivals is the Guatemalan national team

Stadium

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FFB Stadium in Belmopan is the home stadium for the Belize national football team. Prior to this stadium, Belize had no facilities that met FIFA specifications. Apart from this Belize has many fields to play on but with no facilities for the players.

Results and fixtures

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Main article: Belize national football team results

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

[edit]
21 March Friendly Belize  1–1  Puerto Rico Belmopan, Belize
19:30 UTC−6
Report
Stadium: FFB Stadium
24 March Friendly Belize  3–0  Puerto Rico Belmopan, Belize
18:00 UTC−6
Report Stadium: FFB Stadium
8 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Belize  0–4  Nicaragua Belmopan, Belize
20:00 UTC−6 Report
Stadium: FFB Field
Referee: Bryan López (Guatemala)
11 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Guyana  3–1  Belize Wildey, Barbados
18:00 UTC−4
Report
Stadium: Wildey Turf
Referee: Reon Radix (Grenada)
7 September 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League Turks and Caicos Islands  0–4  Belize Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
15:00 UTC−4 Report
Stadium: TCIFA National Academy
Referee: Cleon Culley (Barbados)
10 September 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League Belize  1–0  Anguilla Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
15:00 UTC−4 Polanco 27' Report Stadium: TCIFA National Academy
Referee: Steffon Dewar (Jamaica)
9 October 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League Anguilla  0–1  Belize Belmopan, Belize
20:00 UTC−6 Report
Stadium: FFB Stadium
Attendance: 522
Referee: Ray Torres (Puerto Rico)
15 October 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League Belize  3–0  Turks and Caicos Islands Belmopan, Belize
20:00 UTC−6
Report Stadium: FFB Stadium
Referee: Victor Rivas (United States)
14 November 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification play-in Belize  2–1  French Guiana Belmopan, Belize
19:00 UTC−6
Report
Stadium: FFB Stadium
Referee: Keylor Herrera (Costa Rica)
19 November 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification play-in French Guiana  v  Belize Paramaribo, Suriname
20:00 UTC−3 Stadium: Dr. Ir. Franklin Essed Stadion

2025

[edit]
March 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification Belize  v  Costa Rica Belize
--:-- UTC−6
March 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification Costa Rica  v  Belize Costa Rica
--:-- UTC−6
4 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Montserrat  v  Belize
Report
7 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Belize  v  Panama
Report

Coaching staff

[edit]
Name Nat Position
Carlos Slusher Belize Head coach
Horace Arboleda Belize Technical director
Jack Striders Belize Technical director
Peter Jones Belize Assistant Head coach
Kent Gabourel Sr. Belize Goalkeeping coach
Shaun Woodmac Belize Physical Trainer
Thomas Rivars Belize Physiotherapist

Coaching history

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Since the creation of the national team in 1995, several coaches have been in charge of managing Belize. From 1995 to 1996, Winston Michael was appointed as Belize's first ever manager. As of January 2012, the Belize national football team has had 11 managers.

Manager Period in charge Played Won Drawn Lost Win %
Belize Winston Michael 1995–1996 4 0 0 4 000.0
Argentina Manuel Bilches 1999–2000 6 0 1 5 000.0
Costa Rica Leroy Sherrier Lewis 2001 5 3 1 1 060.0
Brazil Eduardo Santana 2003 0 0 0 0 !—
Belize Anthony Adderly 2003–2006 5 0 0 5 000.0
Brazil Antonio Carlos Vieira 2006–2007 3 0 0 3 000.0
Guatemala Palmiro Salas 2008 2 1 0 1 050.0
United States Ian Mork 2008 4 0 1 3 000.0
Mexico Renan Couoh 2008–2009 3 0 1 2 000.0
Honduras José de la Paz Herrera 2010–2012 7 2 2 3 028.6
Costa Rica Leroy Sherrier Lewis 2012–2013 5 1 1 3 020.0
Belize Charlie Slusher 2013 1 0 1 0 000.0
United States Ian Mork 2013–2014 4 0 1 3 000.0
Costa Rica Leroy Sherrier Lewis 2014–2015 3 0 0 3 000.0
Brazil Jorge Nunez 2015–2016 4 2 2 0 050.0
Poland United States Richard Orlowski 2016–2018 5 0 1 4 000.0
Guatemala Palmiro Salas 2018–2019 6 3 1 2 050.0
Italy Vincenzo Alberto Annese 2019–2020 6 2 1 3 033.3
Belize Dale Pelayo Sr. 2020–2021 3 1 0 2 033.3
Spain David Perez Asensio 2022–2024 17 3 4 10 017.6
Belize Charlie Slusher 2024-Present 4 4 0 0 100.0

Players

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Current squad

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The following players were called up for the 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League C matches against Anguilla and Turks and Caicos Islands on 12 and 15 October 2024.[6]

Caps and goals correct as of 15 October 2024, after the match against  Turks and Caicos Islands.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Charles Tillett (2001-07-29) 29 July 2001 (age 23) 20 0 Belize Progresso
1GK Orlando Galdámez (1992-02-24) 24 February 1992 (age 32) 0 0 Belize Atletico Belize
2DF Jaylen Lennan (2002-06-17) 17 June 2002 (age 22) 6 0 Belize Verdes FC
2DF Brandon Jones (1993-07-03) 3 July 1993 (age 31) 4 0 Belize Verdes FC
2DF Harlan Casanova 2 0 Belize Progresso
2DF Jordan Casanova (2004-04-30) 30 April 2004 (age 20) 1 0 Unattached
2DF Brandon Rogers 0 0 Belize San Pedro Pirates
3MF Jordy Polanco (1996-06-08) 8 June 1996 (age 28) 30 6 Belize Verdes
3MF Darrel Myvette (1993-12-15) 15 December 1993 (age 30) 22 0 Belize Verdes
3MF Nahjib Guerra (1994-08-18) 18 August 1994 (age 30) 20 0 Belize Verdes
3MF Andir Chi (2000-11-17) 17 November 2000 (age 24) 10 0 Belize Progresso
3MF Gabriel Ramos (2000-01-19) 19 January 2000 (age 24) 6 0 Belize San Pedro Pirates
3MF Moisés Hernández (1998-05-26) 26 May 1998 (age 26) 3 1 Belize San Pedro Pirates
3MF Ramon Ramos (1994-11-23) 23 November 1994 (age 30) 3 0 Belize Progresso
3MF Naim Wilson (1997-08-05) 5 August 1997 (age 27) 3 0 Belize Port Layola
3MF Freybin Pagoada (2002-03-22) 22 March 2002 (age 22) 2 0 Belize CA Belize
4FW Krisean Lopez (1998-11-02) 2 November 1998 (age 26) 30 4 Belize Verdes
4FW Michael Palacio (2002-02-15) 15 February 2002 (age 22) 9 1 Belize Port Layola
4FW Orlando Velásquez (1998-12-18) 18 December 1998 (age 25) 4 2 Belize Port Layola
4FW Jardehl Muschamp (2002-11-03) 3 November 2002 (age 22) 4 0 Honduras Deportes Savio
4FW Rene Leslie (1999-12-12) 12 December 1999 (age 24) 2 0 Belize Port Layola
4FW Brian Chavez (2005-05-17) 17 May 2005 (age 19) 0 0 Belize San Pedro Pirates

Recent call-ups

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The following players have been called up within the past 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Woodrow West (1985-09-19) 19 September 1985 (age 39) 46 0 Belize Verdes v.  Guyana; 12 June, 2024
GK Earl Dyck (2003-10-21) 21 October 2003 (age 21) 0 0 Belize Rising Stars v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
DF Donell Arzú (1999-09-27) 27 September 1999 (age 25) 9 0 Belize Progresso v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
DF Ashley Torres (1985-09-15) 15 September 1985 (age 39) 6 0 Belize Altitude v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
DF Aldin Forman (1999-03-16) 16 March 1999 (age 25) 1 0 Belize San Pedro Pirates v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
DF Devin Garbutt (2007-05-05) 5 May 2007 (age 17) 1 0 Unattached v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
DF Richard Gillett 0 0 Belize Progresso v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
DF Everal Trapp (1987-01-22) 22 January 1987 (age 37) 55 0 Belize Verdes v.  Guyana; 12 June, 2024
DF Eugene Martínez (1997-10-20) 20 October 1997 (age 27) 15 2 United States LA 10 FC v.  Guyana; 12 June, 2024
DF Jahron Myvette (1995-05-09) 9 May 1995 (age 29) 7 0 Belize Verdes v.  Guyana; 12 June, 2024
DF Deshawon Nembhard (1994-10-08) 8 October 1994 (age 30) 12 1 United States Central Valley Fuego v.  Nicaragua; 9 June, 2024
MF Delone Torres (1994-06-14) 14 June 1994 (age 30) 6 0 Belize Altitude v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
MF Warren Moss (1999-10-13) 13 October 1999 (age 25) 13 1 United States Indiana Tech Warriors v.  Guyana; 12 June, 2024
MF Nana Mensah (1989-01-19) 19 January 1989 (age 35) 30 1 United States South Carolina United Heat v.  Nicaragua; 9 June, 2024
FW Jaheim Mena (2006-02-23) 23 February 2006 (age 18) 2 0 United States Legends FC v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
FW Latrell Middleton (1999-11-03) 3 November 1999 (age 25) 1 0 Belize Port Layola v.  Anguilla; 10 September, 2024
FW Carlos Bernárdez (1992-12-28) 28 December 1992 (age 31) 16 4 Honduras Real Sociedad v.  Guyana; 12 June, 2024
FW Horace Ávila (1999-09-18) 18 September 1999 (age 25) 11 1 Belize San Pedro Pirates v.  Guyana; 12 June, 2024
FW Michael Salazar (1992-11-15) 15 November 1992 (age 32) 23 3 United States Los Angeles Force v.  Nicaragua; 9 June, 2024
FW Félix Martínez (2005-07-09) 9 July 2005 (age 19) 1 1 Belize Verdes v.  Puerto Rico; 25 March, 2024

Records

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As of 19 November 2024[7]
Players in bold are still active with Belize.

Most appearances

[edit]
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Deon McCaulay 63 28 2007–2022
2 Elroy Smith 61 6 2004–2019
3 Ian Gaynair 57 2 2007–2022
4 Evral Trapp 55 0 2010–present
5 Woodrow West 46 0 2008–present
6 Dalton Eiley 41 0 2005–2019
Daniel Jiménez 41 2 2008–2019
8 Harrison Róchez 40 5 2004–2019
9 Trevor Lennan 37 1 2005–2019
10 Elroy Kuylen 33 6 2009–2019

Top goalscorers

[edit]
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Deon McCaulay 28 63 0.44 2007–2022
2 Carlos Bernárdez 6 18 0.33 2019–present
Jordy Polanco 6 32 0.19 2015–present
Elroy Kuylen 6 33 0.18 2009–2019
Elroy Smith 6 61 0.1 2004–2019
6 Dion Frazer 5 8 0.63 2000–2008
Krisean Lopez 5 32 0.16 2018–present
Harrison Róchez 5 40 0.13 2004–2019
9 Norman Nuñez 3 11 0.27 1995–2005
Vallan Symms 3 20 0.15 2000–2011
Michael Salazar 3 23 0.13 2013–present

Competitive record

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FIFA World Cup

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FIFA World Cup FIFA World Cup qualification
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 1978 Part of  United Kingdom Part of  United Kingdom
1982 and 1986 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
1990 and 1994 Did not enter Declined participation
France 1998 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 2 6
South Korea Japan 2002 4 0 1 3 2 10
Germany 2006 2 0 0 2 0 8
South Africa 2010 4 1 1 2 4 11
Brazil 2014 8 4 1 3 17 13
Russia 2018 6 2 3 1 7 6
Qatar 2022 3 1 0 2 5 5
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined 2 0 0 2 1 7
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total 0/9 31 8 6 17 38 66

CONCACAF Gold Cup

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Main article: Belize at the CONCACAF Gold Cup
CONCACAF Championship & CONCACAF Gold Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
El Salvador 1963 Part of  United Kingdom Part of  United Kingdom
Guatemala 1965
Honduras 1967
Costa Rica 1969
Trinidad and Tobago 1971
Haiti 1973
Mexico 1977
Honduras 1981
1985 Not a CONCACAF member Not a CONCACAF member
1989 Did not enter Did not enter
United States 1991
Mexico United States 1993
United States 1996 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 1 5
United States 1998 2 0 1 1 1 2
United States 2000 2 0 0 2 1 12
United States 2002 2 0 1 1 3 7
Mexico United States 2003 Did not enter Did not enter
United States 2005 Did not qualify 3 0 0 3 0 7
United States 2007 3 0 0 3 3 7
United States 2009 3 0 1 2 3 7
United States 2011 3 0 1 2 3 8
United States 2013 Group stage 12th 3 0 0 3 1 11 Squad 5 1 1 3 2 4
Canada United States 2015 Did not qualify 3 0 0 3 1 6
United States 2017 5 0 1 4 2 10
Costa Rica Jamaica United States 2019 4 2 0 2 6 3
United States 2021 6 2 0 4 6 12
Canada United States 2023 6 0 1 5 2 10
Total Group stage 1/18 3 0 0 3 1 11 — 49 5 5 39 34 100

CONCACAF Nations League

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CONCACAF Nations League record
League Finals
Season Division Group Pld W D L GF GA P/R Finals Result Pld W D L GF GA Squad
2019−20 B A 6 2 0 4 6 12 Same position United States 2020 Ineligible
2022–23 B D 6 0 1 5 2 10 Same position United States 2023
2023–24 B C 6 2 1 3 5 7 Fall United States 2024
2024–25 C B 4 4 0 0 9 0 Rise United States 2025
2026–27 B To be determined United States 2027
Total — — 22 8 2 12 22 29 — Total 0 Titles — — — — — — —

Copa Centroamericana

[edit]
Copa Centroamericana record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Costa Rica 1991 Did not enter
Honduras 1993
El Salvador 1995 Group stage 6th 2 0 0 2 1 5
Guatemala 1997 Preliminary round 7th 2 0 1 1 1 2
Costa Rica 1999 Group stage 6th 2 0 0 2 1 12
Honduras 2001 6th 2 0 1 1 3 7
Panama 2003 Did not enter
Guatemala 2005 Group stage 7th 3 0 0 3 0 7
El Salvador 2007 7th 3 0 0 3 3 7
Honduras 2009 7th 3 0 1 2 3 7
Panama 2011 7th 3 0 1 2 3 8
Costa Rica 2013 Fourth place 4th 5 1 1 3 2 4
United States 2014 Group stage 7th 3 0 0 3 1 6
Panama 2017 6th 5 0 1 4 2 10
Total Fourth place 10/13 30 1 6 23 19 69

The 1995 tournament in El Salvador saw Belize's international debut. They played the hosts in their first-ever international on November 29 in Group A. El Salvador won 3–0 with all goals coming in the second half.[8] On December 1, Belize scored their first-ever international goal as they lost 2–1 to Costa Rica and were eliminated from the tournament. Both other teams advanced to the semi-finals and were defeated there, Costa Rica's conqueror Honduras beat Guatemala in the final.

Head-to-head record

[edit]

Updated on 19 November 2024 after match against  French Guiana[9]

  Positive Record   Neutral Record   Negative Record

Opponent P W D L GF GA GF
 Anguilla 2 2 0 0 2 0 +2
 Bahamas 1 1 0 0 4 0 +4
 Barbados 2 1 1 0 1 0 +1
 Bermuda 2 0 1 1 1 2 −1
 Canada 5 0 1 4 1 14 −13
 Cayman Islands 2 0 2 0 1 1 0
 Costa Rica 6 0 0 6 1 18 −17
 Cuba 3 1 0 2 3 9 −6
 Dominican Republic 4 2 0 2 5 5 0
 El Salvador 10 0 0 10 6 29 −23
 French Guiana 8 4 2 2 10 7 +3
 Grenada 5 2 0 3 11 11 0
 Guatemala 13 0 4 9 10 23 −13
 Guyana 2 1 0 1 4 3 +1
 Haiti 1 0 0 1 0 2 –2
 Honduras 10 1 0 9 4 24 −20
 Jamaica 1 0 1 0 2 2 0
 Mexico 2 0 0 2 0 9 −9
 Montserrat 3 2 0 1 8 4 +4
 Nicaragua 13 4 3 6 19 25 –6
 Panama 6 0 2 4 3 10 −7
 Puerto Rico 3 2 1 0 5 1 +4
 Saint Kitts and Nevis 4 2 1 1 5 6 −1
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 6 2 2 2 6 7 –1
 Turks and Caicos Islands 3 3 0 0 12 0 +12
 Trinidad and Tobago 2 0 2 0 0 0 0
 United States 1 0 0 1 1 6 −5
Total 118 31 22 65 124 216 −92

References

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  1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. November 28, 2024. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  2. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. November 21, 2024. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
  3. ^ "World Football Elo Ratings: Belize". Elo Ratings. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved September 28, 2019.
  4. ^ Suspension of the Football Federation of Belize – FIFA
  5. ^ Iglesias, Rubén Morales. "Unleashing the power of The Jaguars: Football Federation of Belize reveals new Belize National Football Team logo by Rolando Ramirez". Breaking Belize News. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  6. ^ "Belize Senior Men's National Team". Instagram. Football Federation of Belize - FFB.
  7. ^ "Belize". National Football Teams. Archived from the original on April 19, 2023. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  8. ^ "Belize - List of International Matches". Archived from the original on April 20, 2009. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  9. ^ "World Football Elo Ratings: Belize". Elo Ratings. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
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