The Spanish FA have said before that they would leave UEFA if UEFA accepted the Gibraltar FA as a member. Imagine Gibraltar were allowed to join - that would really throw a spanner in the works - we could see Lithuania in the world cup.
Caller to Radio 5 phone-in: There are too many foreign players in the league.
Mark Lawrenson: Why do you think that is?
Caller: Because there are a lot of them.
spain are hypoctirtical in the whole gibraltar sense.
the situation is in revers wher spain control moroccan territory in the cities of ceuta ,melilla,and islands of perejil, chafurinas and penon de la velez de la gomera and penon de la alhucemas-islands off moroccos coast.if spain want gibraltar they should have to return these african spanish enclaves to morocco
I reckon the ISle of Man should try fielding a side or what about Rockall ?
Gibraltar has an organised FA and league, they should be allowed in as they meet the criteria. If Spain doesn't like them, they're free to leave. Another insult to the pure game that FIFA rather breaks the rules and satisfy the rich and the famous, rather than to follow its self-created rules and allow a nation to play. Sometimes football really sickens me...
As for the enclaves... Many people in Ceuta and Melilla are very happy to be Spanish, and quite much Moroccons benefit of the situation as well. Many who wanted to live a more western life found a resort in these towns, while drug shippers have it lot easier to take their stuff into Europe thanks to the sometimes sh!tty border controls when entering Ceuta...
AD Ceuta and Melilla play in the Spanish leagues, obviously because of political reasons. Reason and finances would say it were much more logical for them to join the Moroccan league and have cheaper/shorter travels to Rabat and Marrakech.
Hi;
My name is Miguel and I am from Spain. I find this issue very interesting because i live in La linea, the Spanish city situated just on the board with Gibraltar, so i know Spanish-Gibraltarian-British problems very well.
Despite I am Spanish, I must tell you that the point of view of a Spaniard from madrid is very different that the opinion of Spanish of this area next to Gibraltar. The local people here have normally good relations with Gibraltarians and they don´t usually claim in favour of a Gibraltar Spanish or British. In fact,some people here take up smuggling because it´s a tax free place in a lot of products, mainly in tobocco. Other people work in Gibraltar and they earn more with pounds that with euros in spain.
I am not in any of these situations but for that reasons and for others, people here have a different point of view that a Madrid person. The cuestion for the rest of the country is reivindicate Gibraltar just for "pride".But you have to live here to have a based opinion of this and not from Madrid. In regions of Spain they don´t reivindicate Gibraltar as a Spanish colony because they also want to be another "Gibraltar" (Vasque Country or Catalonya for example).So it´s a chaos, just political interest for all parts !!
But I agree that we have Ceuta and Melilla, cities which Morocco wants since a lot of years, but ironically politics tell that it´s not the same case. I disagree cos it´s all hipocresy...I agree that most of Ceutis and Melillenses who are catholic and not Arabs, want to be Spanish, but Gibraltarians want to be British and we should respect it.
About sports, I don´t see Gibraltar playing in UEFA competitions...I can´t imagine, though Andorra or San Marino are playing ...but not Monaco. Monaco play in French league...I can´t understand....The case of Gibraltar is worst because they can´t play in spain, but the don´t play in UK competitions...so they only play in local games in a town of 30,000 inhabitants !!
Even I remember a Gibraltarian footballer, Colin Ramirez, who played in Nothern Ireland Premier league (maybe Glenavon or Glentoran??) and when he started playing in Gibraltar he had a lot of problems to play in my city´s team because he was considered as foreign when Gibraltar is of UK, and UK is European Union !! My city´s stadium is just on the border (ironically) Finally he played in my city´s team in Spanish Second division but with that burocratic problems which I have mentioned.
For all of this,I hate politics !! I would like to see Gibraltar playing in UEFA competitions, mainly because I could see big countries as Italy, England...and Ireland playing in their "Victoria Stadium", where is 4 kms from my house
I must say that I support the Eircom League from Spain since 6 years ago, I know it´s mad but football shouldn´t have borders ! Not only in Gibraltar !
1: is it actually a nation though,or a territroy/dominion/enclave or whatever? becuase by your logic then if gibraltar can apply to uefa then so can the Aran Islands apply for uefa membership!Originally Posted by Gerrit
2: well 80% of the population of both Ceuta and Melilla (perejil etc are uninhabitated afaik) are actually spaniards.so id imagine they are "happy to be Spanish"
c.20% of the population is moroccan.they have emigrated there as its a higher standard of living and has better work chances,and also an oportunity to cross to the mainland EU,where work and money is easier to come by compared to poor towns in north africa.Morocco want these enclaves back.they even occupied Perejil for a while last year.Spain sent a navy warship to the area to flex its military muscle and reinforce their ownership of the enclaves
andorra have a club team that plays in the spanish league (division 4 or 5) and san marino play in serie C2 in italy. as well they have national teams.
teh only difference is monaco do not compete at international level as well as club.which is strange.
slightly off-topic but another oddity about monaco is that if the monarchy fails to produce a male heir to the thrown,it will become part of France as a result of some early 20th century treaty
Monaco has its own amateur league and their national team will participate in the new alternative tournament for non-FIFA-affiliated countries (they will play TR Northern Cyprus, Falklands, Tibet, Greenland, Vatican City, Lapland, ...)
So they do have an own league (of which the only professional club plays in France) and FA.
About Gibraltar: situation is different from the Aran Islands.
- Aran Islands are 30 minutes sailing from the mainland, while Gibraltar is a few hours flying from the nearest British town
- Gibraltar has its own structured FA and league, which is not the case in Aran Islands
- Aran Islands feel Irish, whereas Gibraltar has its own identity next to the British one
- Gibraltar has its own stadium
anto eile:
Sorry, but I must correct something: the Spanish team called Andorra (former Endesa Andorra) is from a small town in the north of Spain with the same name, but it isn´t any relationship with Andorra country.
Gibraltar has the status of "British colony" and despite they have their own laws and local goverment the important political decisions are taken by Tony Blair´s Goverment in London, and they celebrate most British days, their money has Queen Elizabeth, and so on... So they are British but with similar "independence" of Scotland or Wales...I don´t know the status of Aran Islands to have an opinion...
It´s true, they have their own stadium but you should see it: artificial grass, and with a capacity of 5,000 with not all seats, so I think they should re-build it to have UEFA license.
I am Spanish but linked with Gibraltar for geographical reasons, so I tell you that there are a great hypocresy with this issue...Spanish in this area next to gibraltar don´t think as "radical" as the rest of Spanish...I understand them...Maybe I would prefer to be British or just Gibraltarian if I were born 5 kms from i was...)
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