GFA – A Footballing History – now available to view online

GBC’s hour long special on the history of the Gibraltar Football Association, aired last night, is now available to watch online.

 

The programme can be viewed here and takes a look through the complete 118 year history of football on the Rock.  Numerous interviews, from key figures of the past and present of the game in Gibraltar, are combined with pictures and video footage of Gibraltarian football, with John Shephard, GBC sports journalist and the GFA’s head of performance analysis department talking us through the detailed and colourful history of football in Gibraltar.

 

Tonight, GBC’s Viewpoint show discusses the upcoming UEFA decision, from 9:30pm, and tomorrow, from 1pm, Radio Gibraltar are airing live from Champions Planet as information on the decision comes in thick and fast.

Gib U19′s to face off against Cuba U20′s in Marbella

Gibraltar Under 19′s will face off against the Cuba Under 20′s in a friendly match at the Marbella Football Centre, on 16th June.

 

Cuba, who after the friendly will head to Turkey for the FIFA Under 20 World Cup, where they are in a group with Portugal, South Korea and Nigeria, will provide very tough opposition for Gibraltar, who will be looking for a win after the narrow loss to Republic of Ireland Under 19′s in March.

 

The game kicks off at 5pm, and more information on the Marbella Football Centre can be found here.

Podcast of Steve Menary talking to US Radio about Gibraltar’s UEFA bid

On Sunday night, Philadelphia based radio station WWDB-AM, as part of their ‘Vuvuzela’ football radio show, had Steve Menary on to talk about Gibraltar’s UEFA bid.

 

The podcast of the show, for those who couldn’t listen to it live, is here (from 1:33:30 onwards) and goes into depth about the history behind Gibraltar’s struggles to join UEFA, from both a sporting and political perspective.

GBC and Radio Gibraltar airing number of shows on ‘UEFA week’

With the UEFA Congress in London, which decides on whether Gibraltar becomes the organisations 54th member being this week, both GBC and Radio Gibraltar are airing shows dedicated to both the journey, and the eventual decision on Friday.

 

On Wednesday 22nd, GBC are airing a show on the history of the GFA, at 9pm.  The following evening, GBC’s Viewpoint show will look at the GFA’s campaign and journey in trying to secure UEFA membership, from 9:30pm

 

On the day of the decision, Friday 24th, Radio Gibraltar will be airing its Lunchtime show from Champions Planet from 1pm, where presenter James Neish will be bringing the latest news on whether Gibraltar has been successful in its bid to join UEFA.

 

GBC can be watched online here, whilst Radio Gibraltar can be listened to here, as well as most radio applications on smartphones.

Gibraltar’s UEFA bid to be covered on US Radio; also covered in UAE media

Philadelphia based radio station WWDB-AM are tonight hosting respected journalist Steve Menary on their Vuvuzela: The World Soccer Show to talk about Gibraltar’s UEFA bid.

 

The show, which airs between 9pm and 11pm Gibraltarian time, can be streamed here. It is not known when in the time slot that Gibraltar will be discussed.

 

Additionally, the topic is covered by Steve Menary in UAE based website The National, looking at the financial benefits of Gibraltar joining UEFA.  The article can be read here.

Gibraltar’s UEFA bid covered on BBC Football Focus

The popular BBC football show, Football Focus, covered Gibraltar’s UEFA bid on it’s online show.

 

The show, which can be viewed here covers Gibraltar from 16:16 on, and largely consists of footage from the videos compiled by Maverick.  After that, presenters Dan Walker, and former Scottish international Pat Nevin, discussed the bid.

Gibraltar to face Charlton in July

Charlton have announced through their official website that they will face a ‘Gibraltar XI’ on July 10.

 

No location has been confirmed, although it is like that the Victoria Stadium will again be the host to a ‘club vs country’ friendly.

 

Charlton will be a step up compared to previous friendlies, as they play in the nPower Championship, England’s second tier.  They finished 9th in the league this season, only three points off the playoffs.

 

Ticket prices and other info will be confirmed in due course.

Gib Ladies U21′s win 3-0 in first competitive match

Gibraltar Ladies Under 21′s beat La Cala ‘B’ 3-0 on Saturday, to register a strong victory in their first competitve match.

 

The ’9-a-side’ encounter on the Victoria Stadium’s 2nd pitch saw goals from Karima Gracia (x2) and Jyanne Victor ensured that the Under 21s got off on a winning start, in a match which should serve as a good experience for the challenges potentially ahead.

 

La Cala (who also name themselves Studs and Stilettos LFC) have statements from both their team and the GFA on their website that seems to indicate that a return fixture will be held in Mijas in June.

 

Amongst the spectators in attendance were National Mens Manager, Allen Bula, and Shadow Sports Minister, Edwin Reyes.

Faroe Islands state their support for Gibraltar’s UEFA bid

In an interview on Faroese radio station Ras 2, Faroe Islands FA General Secretary,Virgar Hvidbro, stated that the Faroe Islands will vote for Gibraltar to join UEFA at the Ordinary Congress on 24th May,

 

The Faroe Islands have a good relationship with Gibraltar, which helped secure the 2011 friendly between the two nations, where Gibraltar won 3-0 on a night where what can only be described as monsoon rain hit the Victoria Stadium.

 

The comments are notable as they were in a general interview on local video, and not in an interview with Gibraltarian press, where the cynical viewpoint of ‘saying what the viewer wants to hear’ would play a part in comments made.

 

Nevertheless, it is nice to see a member nation of UEFA publicly state their desire for Gibraltar to become Team 54 of UEFA.

Team 54: Backing Gibraltar’s UEFA bid

May 24th 2013 is arguably the most important day in the long history of Gibraltarian football so far.  UEFA’s Ordinary Congress meet in London, England, to decide, amongst other things, whether Gibraltar are accepted as the 54th member of their vast footballing family.

Most people who follow Gibraltarian football will already be aware of what Team 54 has done so far, but for those that don’t, checking out the Team 54 website is as good a place to start as any.  The site has a number of images and videos to show the footballing world just what Gibraltar would bring to the UEFA table if they are to be accepted.  The website also has functioning Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Italian, French and German websites, allowing visitors from a number of countries to be able to read what Team 54 is all about.

Social networking is an important aspect of any football team or nation, and Team 54 are no different.  They have a Twitter page which gives you the information and links you need in 140 characters or less.  Additionally, their Facebook page allows fans to join in the discussion, as well as utilising the apps section to look at both the men’s and women’s national teams, amongst other features.

A Youtube page is also available, where you can watch the videos made by Maverick and the GFA, and share them easily around the internet.

The GFA have put in an exceptional amount of good work since Gibraltar were made provisional members, clocking up substantial air miles to travel to almost every country in Europe explaining the bid and in some cases who Gibraltar are, as well as what they will bring to the footballing table.  This work lead to the recent Under 19 match against Republic of Ireland; the 1-0 defeat a small taster of what will be regular doses of high class football coming to the Rock if the GFA are accepted by the 53 other UEFA nations.

Gibraltar’s UEFA membership can be seen as being long overdue, and Team 54 is going some way to helping Gibraltar get the ‘golden ticket’ into the European footballing scene.