The Tuvalu A-Division or The National Provident Fund Championship League (NPF) is the top football division in Tuvalu. The league is organised by the Tuvalu National Football Association. Eight of the nine islands in Tuvalu are represented in the league. Niulakita is the only island that has no football club. Matches are held at the 1,500-capacity Tuvalu Sports Ground in Funafuti,[1] the only football field on the main island.[2]
 | |
| Founded | 1980 |
|---|---|
| Country | Tuvalu |
| Confederation | OFC |
| Number of teams | 8 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Domestic cup(s) | NBT Cup Independence Cup Christmas Cup Tuvalu Games |
| Current champions | Nauti FC (2023) |
| Most championships | Nauti FC (26) |
| Current: 2023 Tuvalu A-Division | |
The league was founded in 2001. There is also the Tuvalu B-Division which is composed of reserve squads from each of the A-Division teams as well as several other teams.[3]
A C-Division has also featured occasionally though have only competed in secondary leagues or knockout competitions such as the NBT cup or MEYS (Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports) Cup and mostly featured B and C teams of A-Division sides.[4][5][6]
The major titles in Tuvalu are the Independence Cup (held to recognise the independence of Tuvalu), the NBT Cup (sponsored by The National Bank of Tuvalu), the Christmas Cup, and the football competition at the Tuvalu Games.[7]
Taganoa Cup
editTeams in the A-division also compete for the Taganoa Cup. No separate matches are played for this trophy. Instead teams compete concurrently for the trophy during their league matches. For a team to take ownership of the cup, they must defeat the present holders during a league game. They then become the defending holders until they lose a league match themselves. Whichever team is in possession of the trophy at the end of the season is crowned champions. The first Taganoa Cup competition was held in 2021 and was won by FC Tofaga.[7]
Clubs
edit
As well as having squads in the Tuvalu B-Division, many A-Division teams also have a women's team which play in the A-Division Women's League[8] and other competitions.[9] In 2019, FC Tofaga and Nauti FC entered an 'A1 and 'A2' team into the A-Division league.[10] Nauti did this again in 2020.[11]
| Club | Island |
|---|---|
| Lakena United | Nanumea |
| Manu Laeva | Nukulaelae |
| Nanumaga | Nanumanga |
| Nauti | Funafuti |
| Tamanuku | Nukufetau |
| Tofaga | Vaitupu |
| Nui | Nui |
| Niutao | Niutao |
Previous winners
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|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Number of wins
edit| Wins | Club | Winning Year(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 26 | Nauti FC | 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 |
| 3 | FC Niutao | 2001, 2002, 2003 |
| 2 | Lakena United | 2004, 2006 |
| 2 | FC Manu Laeva | 2017 |
| 1 | F.C. Tofaga | 2021 |
Source[12]
Goalscorer statistics
editTop goalscorers
edit| Pos. | Player | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  James Lepaio
|
30 |
| 2 | Alopua Petoa
|
19 |
Top goalscorers by season
edit| Season | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Starzle
|
Manu Laeva | 6 |
| Siopepa Tailolo
|
Lakena United | ||
| Lutelu Tiute
|
Tofaga | ||
| 2012 | Alopua Petoa
|
Tofaga | 10 |
| 2013 | Mase Tumua
|
Nauti | 4 |
| 2019 | James Lepaio
|
Tofaga | 15 |
| 2020 | Hosea Sente
|
Nauti | 8 |
| 2021 | Alopua Petoa
|
Tofaga | 5 |
| James Lepaio
|
Multiple hat-tricks
edit| Key | |
|---|---|
| (4) | Player scored 4 goals |
| (5) | Player scored 5 goals |
| (6) | Player scored 6 goals |
Note: The source of the following information (rsssf.com) does not state goalscorers in some seasons. Therefore, this list is almost certainly not exhaustive.
| Player | For | Against | Score | Date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matakai Alesana(4) | Tofaga | Nui | 4–1 | 4 February 2012 | [citation needed] |
| Alopua Petoa(4) | Tofaga | Lakena United | 6–0 | 3 March 2012 | |
| Alopua Petoa(6) | Tofaga | Niutao | 7–1 | 17 March 2012 | |
| Tupou | Manu Laeva | Nauti A2 | 4-1 | 20 April 2019 | [10] |
| Meauma Petaia(4) | Tamanuku | Niutao | 5-3 | ||
| Eliata | Lakena United | Tofaga A2 | 1-13 | ||
| Alopua Petoa(4) | Tofaga | Nui | 0–24 | 9 May 2020 | [11] |
| Eric Tealofi | |||||
| Sueni Founuku(4) | |||||
| James Lepaio(5) | |||||
| Fata Filemoni | |||||
| Katepu Iosua | |||||
| Felo Feoto | Tamanuku | Nanumaga | 2–6 | 16 May 2020 | |
| Nathan Josh | Nauti | Nui FC | 10–0 | 16 May 2020 | |
| Hosea Sente(4) | |||||
| Alopua Petoa(5) | Tofaga | Niutao | 16-0 | 3 April 2021 | [4] |
| James Lepaio(5) |
External links
editReferences
edit- ^ "Tuvalu - Stadiums". Prepared and maintained by Carlos Santos for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "Passion and commitment drive football in tiny Tuvalu". www.fifa.com. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ "Football in Tuvalu". Young Pioneer Tours. 2020-05-18. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ a b "Tuvalu 2021". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ "Tuvalu 2022". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ "Tuvalu 2023". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ a b "Tuvalu - List of Cup Winners". Prepared and maintained by Carlos Santos for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 14 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "Tuvalu A-Division (women)", Wikipedia, 2024-02-26, retrieved 2024-03-07
- ^ "Tuvalu - List of Women Cup Winners". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ a b "Tuvalu 2019". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ a b "Tuvalu 2020". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
- ^ "Tuvalu - List of Champions". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
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