Togo women's national football team

 Togo
Association Fédération Togolaise de Football
Sub-confederation WAFU (West Africa)
Confederation CAF (Africa)
FIFA code TOG
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current unranked
First international
 São Tomé and Príncipe 0 − 3  Togo
(São Tomé and Príncipe; 19 February 2006)
Biggest win
 Togo 6 − 0  São Tomé and Príncipe
(Togo; 26 February 2006)
Biggest defeat
 Congo 9 − 0  Togo
(Brazzaville; 19 February 2006)

The Togo women's national football team is a FIFA-recognised team that represents Togo in international football competition. Togo have played five FIFA-recognised matches, all in 2006, and are currently unranked. They have not competed in major regional and international tournaments. While the country has under-17 and under-20 national sides, further development of the team and the sport in Togo faces challenges common to African countries, as well as country-specific problems such as the sport's lack of domestic popularity.

Team

In 1985, few countries had women's national football teams.[1] While the sport's popularity grew worldwide in the ensuing years, Togo did not compete in their first FIFA-sanctioned match until 2006, when they played five games.[2][3] In their first game, on 19 February, Togo beat São Tomé and Príncipe 3–0.[3][4][5] The team beat São Tomé and Príncipe again by a score of 6–0 on 26 February 2006 in Togo.[3][4] In its next three games, Togo lost 0–9 to Congo, 1–3 to Congo and 2–5 to Mali.[3] Togo tied the following game 3–3 against Côte d'Ivoire in Dakar.[3] Togo then beat Guinea 4–1 on 21 May 2006.[3] Togo has since played just one match. In 2007, the team competed at the Tournoi de Cinq Nations held in Ouagadougou. There, Togo lost 0–5 to Côte d'Ivoire before being disqualified for bringing a club team, MBA Lomé, to the competition in violation of tournament rules.[5][6]

Togo has not participated in most regional and international competitions, including the Women's World Cup, the 2010 African Women's Championship, and the 2011 All-Africa Games.[7][8][9] The team was expected to participate in the 2010 African Women's Championships and were scheduled to play against Mali but withdrew before the competition started.[10] As of March 2012, the team was not ranked by FIFA.[11]

The country has a national under-17 side and an under-20 side.[12][13][14] The Togo women's national under-17 football team was active by 2010, when they competed in the African Women's U-17 Qualifying Tournament. Togo moved past the preliminary round after their opponents, Sierra Leone, withdrew from the tournament. In the first round, Togo was set to play Nigeria but withdrew from the competition.[12][13] The Togo women's national under-20 football team was also active by 2010, when they competed in the African Women's U-20 World Cup qualifying. In the first round, they had a walkover win against the Sierra Leone, but did not participate in rounds two or three.[14]

Background and development

The development of women's football in Africa faces several challenges, including limited access to education, poverty amongst women, inequalities and human rights abuses targeting women.[15][16][17][18] Funding also in an impediment. Most support for women's football in Africa comes from FIFA rather than national football associations.[19] Many quality female footballers leave the continent seeking greater opportunity in northern Europe or the United States.[19]

The national football association, the Fédération Togolaise de Football, was founded in 1960 and became affiliated with FIFA in 1964.[2][20] The organisation has fifteen staff members focusing on women's football.[2] Football is the fourth-most-popular women's sport in Togo, trailing basketball, handball and volleyball.[2] Football's popularity is growing, however. The country had 380 registered players in 2006, up from 180 in 2000.[2] Women's football was first organised in the country in 2000.[21] By 2006, there were 105 football clubs in Togo, 11 of which were for women only.[2] A national women's competition was created by 2006 and was still operating in 2009.[2][21] While there are no school, university or regional competitions for women's football, there was an active under-17 women's league in 2009.[21][22] In 2010, a women's football competition involving 50 women's teams was organised by the German embassy, which provided teams with football kits and footballs.[23][24][25]

References

  1. ↑ Chrös McDougall (1 January 2012). Soccer. ABDO. p. 45. ISBN 978-1-61783-146-1. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 FIFA (2006). "Women's Football Today" (PDF): 195. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Togo: Fixtures and Results". FIFA. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Sao Tome e Principe: Fixtures and Results". FIFA. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  5. 1 2 "Togo : Calendrier et résultats". fifa.com. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
  6. ↑ "Tournoi de Cinq Nations (Women) 2007". Rsssf. 6 March 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  7. ↑ Ballard, John; Suff, Paul (1999). The dictionary of football : the complete A-Z of international football from Ajax to Zinedine Zidane. London: Boxtree. ISBN 0752224344. OCLC 59442612.
  8. ↑ "Fixtures — African Women Championship 2010 – CAF". Cafonline.com. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  9. ↑ "Groups & standings — All Africa Games women 2011 – CAF". Cafonline.com. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  10. ↑ "Africa — Women's Championship 2010". Rsssf.com. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  11. ↑ "The FIFA Women's World Ranking". FIFA.com. 25 September 2009. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  12. 1 2 "African Women U-17 Qualifying Tournament 2010". Rsssf.com. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  13. 1 2 "Regulations — CAN U-17 women 2010 – CAF". Cafonline.com. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
  14. 1 2 "African Women U-20 World Cup 2010 Qualifying". Rsssf.com. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  15. ↑ Jean Williams (15 December 2007). A Beautiful Game: International Perspectives on Women's Football. Berg. p. 186. ISBN 978-1-84520-674-1. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  16. ↑ Richard Giulianotti; David McArdle (2006). Sport, Civil Liberties and Human Rights. Routledge. p. 77. ISBN 978-0-7146-5344-0. Retrieved 28 June 2012.
  17. ↑ Chris Hallinan; Steven J. Jackson (31 August 2008). Social And Cultural Diversity In A Sporting World. Emerald Group Publishing. pp. 40–41. ISBN 978-0-7623-1456-0. Retrieved 28 June 2012.
  18. ↑ Jean Williams (18 December 2003). A Game for Rough Girls?: A History of Women's Football in Britain. Routledge. pp. 173–175. ISBN 978-0-415-26338-2. Retrieved 28 June 2012.
  19. 1 2 Gabriel Kuhn (24 February 2011). Soccer Vs. the State: Tackling Football and Radical Politics. PM Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-60486-053-5. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  20. ↑ Tom Dunmore (16 September 2011). Historical Dictionary of Soccer. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-7188-5. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
  21. 1 2 3 "Goal! Football: Togo" (PDF). FIFA. 21 April 2009. p. 2. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  22. ↑ "Goal! Football: Togo" (PDF). FIFA. 21 April 2009. p. 1. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  23. ↑ "Signature de convention avec PLAN Togo, remise de diplôme d'entraineur" (in French). Togo: de l'Ambassade d'Allemagne au Togo. Retrieved 29 June 2012. Environ une cinquantaine d'équipes prendront part à cette compétition. La première phase de ce tournoi verra la participation de douze (12) équipes féminines. La subvention de l'Ambassade est constituée d'une assistance financière et matérielle: un lot de 300 tricots et de 50 ballons de football. Notons que ce même projet bénéficie de l'appui de l'Institut Goethe qui apporte l'aide technique, logistique et culturelle. M. Coulibaly, le Représentant du PLAN Togo s'est réjoui du geste des autorités allemandes et a souhaité que cette collaboration soit maintenu pour le bien de la promotion de la jeune togolaise.
  24. ↑ "Les femmes feront-elles mieux que les hommes ?". Togo: République Togolaise. 10 May 2010. Retrieved 29 June 2012. Le Comité national olympique togolais (CNOT) et la Confédération olympique allemande souhaitent conjuguer leurs efforts pour développer le foot féminin au Togo.
  25. ↑ Palmer (17 September 2010). "L’Association WOFUT ou le football féminin au chevet d’Obilale" (in French). Togo: TogoZine. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
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