New Caledonia national football team

New Caledonia
Nickname(s)	Les Cagous (The Kagus)
Association	Fédération Calédonienne de Football
Confederation	OFC (Oceania)
Head coach	Thierry Sardo
Captain	Joël Wakanumuné
Most caps	Bertrand Kaï (41)
Top scorer	Bertrand Kaï (23)
Home stadium	Stade Numa-Daly Magenta
FIFA code	NCL
First colours	Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	153 (23 December 2021)
Highest	93 (August 2013)
Lowest	191 (April–May 2016)
First international
	New Caledonia 2–0 New Zealand ; (Nouméa, New Caledonia; 19 September 1951)
Biggest win
	New Caledonia 18–0 Guam ; (Lae, Papua New Guinea; 3 September 1991) ; New Caledonia 18–0 Micronesia ; (Suva, Fiji; 1 July 2003)
Biggest defeat
	Australia 11–0 New Caledonia ; (Auckland, New Zealand; 8 July 2002)
OFC Nations Cup
Appearances	6 (first in 1973)
Best result	Runners-up, 2008 and 2012

The New Caledonia national football team is the national team of New Caledonia and is controlled by the Fédération Calédonienne de Football. Although they were only admitted to FIFA in 2004, they have been participating in the OFC Nations Cup since its inception. They have been one of this relatively small region's strongest teams, finishing second in 2008 and 2012, and third in 1973 and 1980. They were the top ranked OFC nation at number 95 in September 2008,^[3] making them only the fourth country from the confederation to have reached the global top 100.

Competitive record[]

FIFA World Cup[]

FIFA World Cup record									FIFA World Cup Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 2002	Ineligible
2006	Did not qualify								6	2	1	1	16	2
2010									12	7	3	2	22	13
2014									5	3	0	2	19	7
2018									4	1	2	1	9	3
2022	To be determined								To be determined
2026	To be determined								To be determined
Total		0/21	–	–	–	–	–	–	27	13	6	6	66	25

FIFA World Cup Qualification History
Year	Round	H/A/N	Score	Result
2006	Group 1	N	New Caledonia 0 – 0 Tahiti	Draw
	Group 1	A	New Caledonia 0 – 2 Solomon Islands	Loss
	Group 1	N	New Caledonia 8 – 0 Cook Islands	Win
	Group 1	N	New Caledonia 8 – 0 Tonga	Win
2010	South Pacific Games	N	New Caledonia 1 – 0 Tahiti	Win
	South Pacific Games	N	New Caledonia 1 – 0 Tuvalu	Win
	South Pacific Games	N	New Caledonia 3 – 0 Cook Islands	Win
	South Pacific Games	N	New Caledonia 1 – 1 Fiji	Draw
	South Pacific Games	N	New Caledonia 3 – 2 Solomon Islands	Win
	South Pacific Games	N	New Caledonia 1 – 0 Fiji	Win
	OFC Nations Cup	A	New Caledonia 3 – 3 Fiji	Draw
	OFC Nations Cup	H	New Caledonia 4 – 0 Fiji	Win
	OFC Nations Cup	A	New Caledonia 1 – 1 Vanuatu	Draw
	OFC Nations Cup	H	New Caledonia 3 – 0 Vanuatu	Win
	OFC Nations Cup	H	New Caledonia 1 – 3 New Zealand	Loss
	OFC Nations Cup	A	New Caledonia 0 – 3 New Zealand	Loss
2014	OFC Nations Cup	N	New Caledonia 5 – 2 Vanuatu	Win
	OFC Nations Cup	N	New Caledonia 3 – 4 Tahiti	Loss
	OFC Nations Cup	N	New Caledonia 9 – 0 Samoa	Win
	Third Round	H	New Caledonia 0 – 2 New Zealand	Loss
	Third Round	A	New Caledonia 4 – 0 Tahiti	Win
	Third Round	A	New Caledonia 6 – 2 Solomon Islands	Win
	Third Round	H	New Caledonia 5 – 0 Solomon Islands	Win
	Third Round	A	New Caledonia 1 – 2 New Zealand	Loss
	Third Round	H	New Caledonia 1 – 0 Tahiti	Win
2018	OFC Nations Cup	N	New Caledonia 1 – 1 Papua New Guinea	Draw
	OFC Nations Cup	N	New Caledonia 7 – 0 Samoa	Win
	OFC Nations Cup	N	New Caledonia 1 – 1 Tahiti	Draw
	Third Round	A	New Caledonia 0 – 2 New Zealand	Loss
	Third Round	H	New Caledonia 0 – 0 New Zealand	Draw
	Third Round	A	New Caledonia 2 – 2 Fiji	Draw
	Third Round	H	New Caledonia 2 – 1 New Zealand	Draw

OFC Nations Cup[]

OFC Nations Cup Record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1973	Third place	3rd	5	3	0	2	10	6
1980	Third place	3rd	4	3	0	1	14	12
1996	Did Not Qualify
1998
2000
2002	Group stage	8th	3	0	0	3	1	14
2004	Did Not Qualify
2008	Runners-up	2nd	6	2	2	2	12	10
2012	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	0	2	19	7
2016	Third place	3rd	4	1	2	1	9	3
2020	Cancelled
Total	6/10	0 Titles	27	12	4	11	65	52

Pacific Games[]

Pacific Games Record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D *	L	GF	GA
1963	Champions	1st	2	2	0	0	10	3
1966	Runners-up	2nd	4	3	0	1	17	2
1969	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	20	3
1971	Champions	1st	4	3	1	0	12	2
1975	Runners-up	2nd	5	4	0	1	16	4
1979	Fourth place	4th	5	3	0	2	26	8
1983	Third place	3rd	6	4	0	2	16	11
1987	Champions	1st	6	5	0	1	26	4
1991	Third place	3rd	5	3	0	2	13	8
1995	Group stage	5th	4	2	0	2	19	3
2003	Runners-up	2nd	6	4	1	1	29	3
2007	Champions	1st	6	5	1	0	10	3
2011	Champions	1st	7	6	0	1	36	3
2015	See New Caledonia national under-23 football team
2019	Runners-up	2nd	6	5	0	1	23	2
Total	13/14	7 Titles	65	48	4	13	250	57

Coupe de l'Outre Mer[]

2008 – Group stage
2010 – Group stage

Results and fixtures[]

For all past match results of the national team, see the team's 1951–99 and 2000–present results pages.

In March 2022, New Caledonia will play their first matches since they took part in the 2019 Pacific Games.

Forthcoming fixtures[]

List of coaches[]

Coach	Nationality	Duration
Guy Elmour	France	1971–1973
	France	1977
Rudi Gutendorf	Germany	1981
Jacques Zimako	New Caledonia	1995
Michel Clarque	France	2002
Serge Martinengo de Novack	France	2002–2004
Didier Chambaron	France	2007–2010
Christophe Coursimault	France	2010–2012
Alain Moizan	France	2012–2015
Thierry Sardo	France	2015–

Current squad[]

The following players were called up for the 2019 Pacific Games from 7–20 July in Apia, Samoa
Caps and goals updated as of 20 July 2019 after the game against New Zealand U23.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Rocky Nyikeine	(1992-05-26) 26 May 1992 (age 29)	21	0	Hienghène Sport
16	1GK	Mickaël Ulile	(1997-07-16) 16 July 1997 (age 24)	9	0	Abbeville
20	1GK	Jean-Gilles Hnamuko	(1996-03-02) 2 March 1996 (age 25)	1	0

2	2DF	Jorys Mène	(1995-01-02) 2 January 1995 (age 27)	5	0
3	2DF	Joseph Tchako	(1993-03-30) 30 March 1993 (age 28)	11	0	Tiga Sport
4	2DF		(1989-02-03) 3 February 1989 (age 32)	5	0	Poitiers
5	2DF		(1992-04-03) 3 April 1992 (age 29)	6	0	Magenta
13	2DF		(1988-12-09) 9 December 1988 (age 33)	7	0	Mont-Dore
18	2DF	Emile Béaruné	(1990-02-07) 7 February 1990 (age 31)	39	0	Hienghène Sport
21	2DF		(1994-07-08) 8 July 1994 (age 27)	3	0	Ne Drehu
22	2DF	Stéphane Tein-Padom	(1994-06-08) 8 June 1994 (age 27)	3	1	Balagne

6	3MF	Cédric Sansot	(1989-04-13) 13 April 1989 (age 32)	17	0	Hienghène Sport
7	3MF	Joël Wakanumuné (captain)	(1986-09-30) 30 September 1986 (age 35)	37	1	Tiga Sport
10	3MF	César Zeoula	(1989-08-29) 29 August 1989 (age 32)	34	10	Cognac
12	3MF	Jekob Jeno	(2000-06-22) 22 June 2000 (age 21)	2	0	Amiens AC
14	3MF	Didier Simane	(1996-08-03) 3 August 1996 (age 25)	5	0	Magenta
15	3MF	Cédric Decoire	(1994-05-15) 15 May 1994 (age 27)	8	3	Mont-Dore
23	3MF	Geordy Gony	(1994-05-15) 15 May 1994 (age 27)	8	1	Hienghène Sport

8	4FW	Richard Sele	(1989-08-31) 31 August 1989 (age 32)	14	2	Magenta
9	4FW	Jean-Philippe Saïko	(1990-08-29) 29 August 1990 (age 31)	8	11	Tasman United
11	4FW	Bertrand Kaï	(1983-06-06) 6 June 1983 (age 38)	41	23	Hienghène Sport
17	4FW	Jean-Christ Wajoka	(1992-09-06) 6 September 1992 (age 29)	9	1	Magenta
19	4FW		(1993-08-04) 4 August 1993 (age 28)	10	4	Magenta

Player records[]

As of 20 July 2019^[4]

Players in bold are still active with New Caledonia.

Most capped players[]

Rank	Name	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Bertrand Kaï	41	23	2008–present
2	Emile Béaruné	39	0	2010–present
2	Pierre Wajoka	39	13	2003–2011
4	Joël Wakanumuné	37	1	2011–present
5	Iamel Kabeu	34	20	2002–2013
5	César Zeoula	34	10	2008–present
7	Roy Kayara	31	8	2008–present
8	Michel Hmaé	28	22	2003–2011
9	André Sinédo	27	1	2002–2011
10	Jean-Patrick Wakanumuné	25	0	2007–2013

Top goalscorers[]

Rank	Name	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Bertrand Kaï	23	41	0.56	2008–present
2	Michel Hmaé	22	28	0.79	2003–2011
3	Iamel Kabeu	20	34	0.59	2002–2013
4	Georges Gope-Fenepej	15	20	0.75	2011–present
5	Pierre Wajoka	13	39	0.33	2003–2011
6	Joris Pibke	11	5	2.2	2000–2002
6	Jean-Philippe Saiko	11	8	1.38	2016–present
8	Paul Poatinda	10	10	1	2003–2004
8	César Zeoula	10	34	0.29	2008–present
10	Jacques Haeko	9	13	0.69	2011–2012

Kit[]

Select are the current kit provider for the national team since 2020. As of 2012, the national team's home kit is a grey jersey with red shorts and red socks. The away kit is a red jersey with red shorts and white socks.

Kit sponsorship[]

Kit lier	Period
Puma	2004–2006^[5]
Nike	2010–2012
Erreà	2013–2017
Kappa	2017–2019
Select	2020-

Head-to-head record[]

Up to matches played on 20 July 2019.

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	WPCT
American Samoa	4	4	0	0	33	0	+33	100.00
Australia	4	0	0	4	1	23	−22	0.00
Bulgaria	1	0	0	1	3	5	−2	0.00
Cook Islands	4	4	0	0	32	0	+32	100.00
Estonia	1	0	1	0	1	1	0	0.00
Micronesia	1	1	0	0	18	0	+18	100.00
Fiji	36	12	5	19	67	72	−5	33.33
Guadeloupe	2	0	1	1	1	5	−4	0.00
Guam	3	3	0	0	37	1	+36	100.00
Malaysia	1	0	0	1	1	2	−1	0.00
Martinique	3	0	1	2	1	7	−6	0.00
Mauritius	1	0	0	1	1	3	−2	0.00
Mayotte	2	1	0	1	3	4	−1	50.00
New Zealand	32	11	2	19	45	64	−19	34.38
Papua New Guinea	17	12	2	3	49	15	+34	70.59
Réunion	2	0	0	2	3	7	−4	0.00
Saint Pierre and Miquelon	1	1	0	0	16	1	+15	100.00
Samoa^[a]	4	4	0	0	29	0	+29	100.00
Solomon Islands	25	14	2	9	53	29	+24	56.00
Tahiti	62	26	14	22	105	76	+29	41.94
Tonga	5	5	0	0	36	2	+34	100.00
Tuvalu	5	4	0	1	32	2	+30	80.00
Vanuatu^[b]	38	23	7	8	97	45	+52	60.53
Wallis and Futuna	3	3	0	0	19	1	+18	100.00
Total	257	128	35	94	683	365	+318	49.81

Source: 1951–99 results and 2000–present results
Notes:

^ Includes results as Western Samoa.
^ Includes results as New Hebrides.

References[]

^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 23 December 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 18 January 2022. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
^ FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking September 2008
^ "New Caledonia". National Football Teams.
^ "New Caledonia camisa de futebol 2004 - 2006". 8 May 2012.

External links[]

New Caledonian Football Federation

[table_note_SAM0.5234923998469-6] Includes results as Western Samoa.

[table_note_VAN0.5234923998469-7] Includes results as New Hebrides.

[FIFA_World_Rankings-1] "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 23 December 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.

[World_Football_Elo_Ratings-2] Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 18 January 2022. Retrieved 18 January 2022.

[3] FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking September 2008

[4] "New Caledonia". National Football Teams.

[5] "New Caledonia camisa de futebol 2004 - 2006". 8 May 2012.

[1]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[a]

[b]

v t National sports teams of New Caledonia
Men	Baseball Basketball U18 U16 Beach soccer Cricket Football U23 U20 U17 Futsal Rugby league Rugby union 7s
Women	Basketball U18 Cricket Football U20 U17 Handball Rugby sevens Volleyball
Mixed	Badminton

v t National football teams of Oceania (OFC)
Active	American Samoa Cook Islands FS Micronesia² Fiji Kiribati¹ New Caledonia New Zealand Niue² Palau² Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Tahiti Tonga Tuvalu¹ Vanuatu
Former	Australia (moved to AFC in 2006) Northern Mariana Islands³ (moved to AFC in 2009) Chinese Taipei⁴ (returned to AFC in 1989)
¹ Associate member of OFC - Not a member of FIFA ² Not a member of OFC and consequently not a member of FIFA ³ Northern Mariana Islands was only an associate member of OFC between 1998 and 2009 - Not a member of FIFA ⁴ Although not geographically in Oceania, Chinese Taipei was a member of the OFC between 1976–1978 and 1982–1989 Although not geographically in Oceania Israel entered OFC World Cup qualification in 1986 and 1990 due to political reasons, though it never became a formal OFC member.

v t Coupe de l'Outre-Mer
Eligible teams	French Guiana Guadeloupe Martinique Mayotte New Caledonia Réunion Saint Barthélemy* Saint Martin* Saint Pierre and Miquelon Tahiti Wallis and Futuna*
Editions	2008 2010 2012
* Not yet competed