Watching football matches can be an exhilarating experience, especially in international competitions like the World Cup. But, following the 3-digit FIFA country codes can be distracting when you’re trying to keep your eye on the ball. Read on for a list of the FIFA abbreviations that represent the 223 countries organized by regional conferences.
FIFA Details
FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) is the governing body of international football, fútsal, beach soccer, and efootball men’s teams. It oversees 211 men’s teams from national organizations, 129 of which include women’s teams. Additionally, 12 teams are affiliated with the six football confederations, but not the larger body of FIFA.
AFC - Asian Football Confederation
There are 47 countries in the AFC. They are mainly located on the Asian continent with the exception of Australia, which joined the AFC from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) in 2006. There are five separate federations within the AFC, primarily organized by geographical location.
WAFF - West Asian Football Federation
The West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) was founded in 2001 and includes countries in western Asia. Iran used to be a member of the WAFF before becoming a founding member of the CAFA in 2014. The main competition of the WAFF is the West Asian Football Federation Championship.
- BHR - Bahrain
- IRQ - Iraq
- JOR - Jordan
- KUW - Kuwait
- LIB - Lebanon
- OMA - Oman
- PLE - Palestine
- QAT - Qatar
- KSA - Saudi Arabia
- SYR - Syria
- UAE - United Arab Emirates
- YEM - Yemen
CAFA - Central Asian Football Association
The six current countries of the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) are its founding members. It includes four women’s teams (Afghanistan, Iran, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan). Iran is its highest-ranked member of FIFA as of 2020.
- AFG - Afghanistan
- IRN - Iran
- KGZ - Kyrgyzstan
- TJK - Tajikistan
- TKM - Turkmenistan
- UZB - Uzbekistan
SAFF - South Asian Football Federation
The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) used to include eight members before Afghanistan joined the new CAFA in 2015. Each country in the SAFF includes both a men’s and a women’s ranked team.
- BAN - Bangladesh
- BHU - Bhutan
- IND - India
- MDV - Maldives
- NEP - Nepal
- PAK - Pakistan
- SRI - Sri Lanka
AFF - ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Football Federation
The ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) is composed of countries in Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands. Australia is its top-rated team as of 2020.
- AUS - Australia
- BRU - Brunei
- CAM - Cambodia
- IDN - Indonesia
- LAO - Laos
- MAS - Malaysia
- MYA - Myanmar
- PHI - Philippines
- SIN - Singapore
- THA - Thailand
- TLS - Timor-Leste (East Timor)
- VIE - Vietnam
EAFF - East Asian Football Federation
The East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) includes nine countries that are FIFA members and one association that is not (Northern Mariana Islands). Each country has both a men’s and women’s team, with the exception of Hong Kong.
- CHN - China
- GUM - Guam
- HKG - Hong Kong
- JPN - Japan
- PRK - North Korea
- KOR - South Korea
- MAC - Macau
- MNG - Mongolia
- NMI - Northern Mariana Islands (not a FIFA member)
- TPE - Chinese Taipei (Taiwan)
CAF – Confederation of African Football
The biggest continental confederation of FIFA is the Confederation of African Football. The CAF oversees football for the entire continent of Africa. It includes 56 countries, 54 of which are FIFA members (excluding Réunion and Zanzibar), divided into five regional zones.
UNAF - Union of North African Football Federations
Headquartered in Tunisia, the Union of North African Football Federations (UNAF) includes the northern African countries. All five football associations are also affiliated with the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA).
- ALG - Algeria
- EGY - Egypt
- LBY - Libya
- MAR - Morocco
- TUN - Tunisia
WAFU-UFOA - West African Football Union
The West African Football Union was split into two manageable zones in 2011. Senegal is the highest ranked team in the WAFU-UFOA as of 2020.
Zone A countries include:
- CPV - Cape Verde
- GAM - Gambia
- GUI - Guinea
- GNB - Guinea-Bissau
- LBR - Liberia
- MAL - Mali
- MTN - Mauritania
- SEN - Senegal
- SLE - Sierra Leone
Zone B countries include:
- BEN - Benin
- BFA - Burkina Faso
- GHA - Ghana
- CIV - Ivory Coast
- NIG - Niger
- NGA - Nigeria
- TOG - Togo
UNIFFAC - Central African Football Federations' Union
Countries in Central Africa belong to the Central African Football Federations' Union (UNIFFAC). In 2020, the women’s team from Equatorial Guinea won the inaugural UNIFFAC Women’s Cup, defeating the Democratic Republic of Congo.
- CMR - Cameroon
- CTA - Central African Republic
- CHA - Chad
- CGO - Congo
- COD - Democratic Republic of the Congo
- EQG - Equatorial Guinea
- GAB - Gabon
- STP - São Tomé and Príncipe
CECAFA - Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations
One of the oldest football conferences in the world, the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) was founded in 1927 and officially formed in 1973. Three of its associations (Djibouti, Somalia, and Sudan) are also members of the Union of Arab Football Associations.
- BDI - Burundi
- DJI - Djibouti
- ERI - Eritrea
- ETH - Ethiopia
- KEN - Kenya
- RWA - Rwanda
- SOM - Somalia
- SSD - South Sudan
- SDN - Sudan
- TAN - Tanzania
- UGA - Uganda
- ZAN - Zanzibar (not a FIFA member)
COSAFA - Council of Southern Africa Football Associations
The headquarters for the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) is located in Botswana. Of the 15 countries in the association, one country is also in the UAFA (Comoros), and another is an associate member of COSAFA (Réunion).
- ANG - Angola
- BOT - Botswana
- COM - Comoros
- SWZ - Eswatini
- LES - Lesotho
- MAD - Madagascar
- MWI - Malawi
- MRI - Mauritus
- MOZ - Mozambique
- NAM - Namibia
- SEY - Seychelles
- REU - Réunion (non-regional; not a FIFA member)
- RSA - South Africa
- ZAM - Zambia
- ZIM - Zimbabwe
CONCACAF – Confederation of North & Central American and Caribbean Association Football
The Confederation of North & Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) oversees 41 football associations in North and Central America, as well as countries in the Caribbean. It includes some of FIFA’s most successful men’s teams, including Mexico, Costa Rica, and Panama, as well as the women’s team from the United States.
NAFU - North American Zone
The three North American countries make up the NAFU. Mexico’s men’s team is the highest-ranked in the association, while the US women’s team is ranked first, as of 2020.
- CAN - Canada
- MEX - Mexico
- USA - United States
UNCAF - Central American Zone
The Central American Zone (UNCAF) includes seven countries from Central America. Costa Rica and Honduras are tied with 11 CONCACAF Championship Gold Cups each, while Costa Rica has appeared in five World Cups.
- BLZ - Belize
- CRC - Costa Rica
- SLV - El Salvador
- GUA - Guatemala
- HON - Honduras
- NCA - Nicaragua
- PAN - Panama
CFU - Caribbean Zone
Twenty-five of the CONCACAF’s associations are a part of the Caribbean Zone (CFU). In addition to these countries, there are six associations that are not affiliated with FIFA.
- AIA - Anguilla
- ATG - Antigua and Barbuda
- ARU - Aruba
- BAH - Bahamas
- BRB - Barbados
- BER - Bermuda
- BOE - Bonaire (not a FIFA member)
- VGB - British Virgin Islands
- CAY - Cayman Islands
- CUB - Cuba
- CUW - Curaçao
- DMA - Dominica
- DOM - Dominican Republic
- GUF - French Guiana (not a FIFA member)
- GRN - Grenada
- GLP - Guadeloupe (not a FIFA member)
- GUY - Guyana
- HAI - Haiti
- JAM - Jamaica
- MTQ - Martinique (not a FIFA member)
- MSR - Montserrat
- PUR - Puerto Rico
- SKN - Saint Kitts and Nevis
- LCA - Saint Lucia
- SMN - Saint Martin (not a FIFA member)
- VIN - Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- SMA - Sint Maarten (not a FIFA member)
- SUR - Suriname
- TRI - Trinidad and Tobago
- TCA - Turks and Caicos Islands
- VIR - US Virgin Islands
CONMEBOL – South American Football Confederation
Although the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) includes fewer football associations than any other confederation, it holds nine World Cups – five of which belong to Brazil. Uruguay, Argentina, and Columbia join Brazil as four of the 10 highest-ranked countries in FIFA.
- ARG - Argentina
- BOL - Bolivia
- BRA - Brazil
- CHI - Chile
- COL - Colombia
- ECU - Ecuador
- PAR - Paraguay
- PER - Peru
- URU - Uruguay
- VEN - Venezuela
OFC – Oceania Football Confederation
The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) includes football associations from Pacific island nations. Both New Zealand’s men’s and women’s teams are the highest-ranked in the OFC, as of 2020.
- ASA - American Samoa
- COK - Cook Islands
- FIJ - Fiji
- KIR - Kiribati (not a FIFA member)
- NCL - New Caledonia
- NZL - New Zealand
- NIU - Niue (not a FIFA member)
- PNG - Papua New Guinea
- SAM - Samoa
- SOL - Solomon Islands
- TAH - Tahiti
- TGA - Tonga
- TUV - Tuvalu (not a FIFA member)
- VAN - Vanuatu
UEFA – Union of European Football Associations
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) consists of 55 members, including the 2018 World Cup winner (France), the #1 FIFA ranked men’s team (Belgium), and five more teams in the FIFA top 10 (France, England, Croatia, Portugal, and Spain). Fifty-one of these countries also include women’s teams.
- ALB - Albania
- AND - Andorra
- ARM - Armenia
- AUT - Austria
- AZE - Azerbaijan
- BLR - Belarus
- BEL - Belgium
- BIH - Bosnia and Herzegovina
- BUL - Bulgaria
- CRO - Croatia
- CYP - Cyprus
- CZE - Czech Republic
- DEN - Denmark
- ENG - England
- EST - Estonia
- FRO - Faroe Islands
- FIN - Finland
- FRA - France
- GEO - Georgia
- GER - Germany
- GIB - Gibraltar
- GRE - Greece
- HUN - Hungary
- ISL - Iceland
- ISR - Israel
- ITA - Italy
- KAZ - Kazakhstan
- KVX - Kosovo
- LVA - Latvia
- LIE - Liechtenstein
- LTU - Lithuania
- LUX - Luxembourg
- MLT - Malta
- MDA - Moldova
- MNE - Montenegro
- NED - Netherlands
- MKD - North Macedonia
- NIR - Northern Island
- NOR - Norway
- POL - Poland
- POR - Portugal
- IRL - Republic of Ireland
- ROU - Romania
- RUS - Russia
- SMR - San Marino
- SCO - Scotland
- SRB - Serbia
- SVK - Slovakia
- SVN - Slovenia
- ESP - Spain
- SWE - Sweden
- SUI - Switzerland
- TUR - Turkey
- UKR - Ukraine
- WAL - Wales
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