Watch FIFA World Cup 2026™

LIVE, FREE and EXCLUSIVE

Gibraltar enjoy historic first win after anthem blunder

YEREVAN (Reuters) - Gibraltar won a competitive international for the first time with a 1-0 Nations League victory over Armenia in Yerevan on Saturday -- after being mistaken for Liechtenstein.

The tiny British overseas territory beat an Armenia team including Arsenal's Henrikh Mkhitaryan thanks to Joseph Chipolina's 50th-minute penalty.

It was the first time they had won a match other than a friendly since joining UEFA in 2013 and their players danced with joy at the final whistle.

Yet the night had begun badly for the visitors when the national anthem of Liechtenstein was played before kickoff, prompting a disgruntled tweet from Gibraltar's FA.

"The Gibraltar FA is very disappointed to note that, prior to tonight’s UEFA Nations League match versus Armenia, the national anthem of Liechtenstein was played," it said.

News that makes sense

Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

"The Armenian FA has apologised to the Head of Delegation representing the Gibraltar FA in Yerevan for this oversight and an announcement has been made at the national stadium apologising for the error."

The blunder appeared to motivate the Gibraltar players as they held out against the hosts -- whose best achievement was just missing out on qualification for Euro 2012 -- for the last 40 minutes having had only 28 percent possession and mustering two attempts on target.

Armenia, captained by Mkhitaryan, had 35 shots -- 10 of them on target.

Gibraltar's shock win took them level with Armenia on three points in League D Group 4, six behind leaders Macedonia.

Liechtenstein also have three points.

(Reporting by Neville Dalton, editing by Ed Osmond)


2 min read

Published

Source: Reuters



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News straight to your inbox

Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Stream now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world