Timor-Leste national under-23 football team
Nickname(s) | O Sol Nascente (The Rising Sun) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Association | Federação de Futebol de Timor-Leste | ||
Confederation | AFC (Asia) | ||
Sub-confederation | AFF (Southeast Asia) | ||
Head coach | Simón Elissetche | ||
Captain | Filomeno Junior | ||
Most caps | Ramos Maxanches Nilo Soares (18) | ||
Top scorer | Murilo de Almeida Henrique Cruz Mouzinho (3) | ||
Home stadium | Timor-Leste National Stadium | ||
FIFA code | TLS | ||
| |||
First international | |||
Malaysia 3–0 (Bangkok, Thailand; 30 August 2005) | |||
Biggest win | |||
7–1 Macau (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; 23 July 2017) | |||
Biggest defeat | |||
Malaysia 11–0 (Vientiane, Laos; 2 December 2009) | |||
Asian Games | |||
Appearances | 2 (first in 2014) | ||
Best result | Group Stage (2014, 2018) | ||
Southeast Asian Games | |||
Appearances | 8 (first in 2009) | ||
Best result | Group Stage (8 times) | ||
ASEAN U-23 Championship | |||
Appearances | 4 (first in 2005) | ||
Best result | Third place (2022) |
The Timor-Leste national Under-23 football team (Portuguese: Seleção Timorense de Futebol Sub-23) represents Timor-Leste (formerly known as East Timor) in international football competitions in the Olympic Games, Asian Games, Southeast Asian Games and any other under-23 international football tournaments. It is controlled by the Federação de Futebol de Timor-Leste, the governing body of football in the country. Timor-Leste is currently one of the weakest teams in the world. They won their first match on 5 November 2011 against Brunei, scoring 2–1.[1]
History
Football was firstly introduced during Portuguese Timor era where many local and the Portuguese colonial official played the sport for enjoyment. After the Portuguese leave the eastern part of the island of Timor, neighbouring Indonesia invaded and change their culture and identity. Timor-Leste gained full independence in 2002 after more than 20 years of occupation which resulted in a long running battle against Jakarta-led forces. The Timor-Leste U-23 team was invited to the 2005 AFF U-23 Youth Championship without any success, which is the first time that the team played in an international tournament. In 2009, the team entered the first Southeast Asian Games. Once again, they lost every match, including a 0–11 loss to Malaysia. Timor-Leste had major improvements at the 2011 SEA Games, when they used overseas players of Timorese descent from Brazil and Australia. These players contributed a lot to their successful run; especially from Murilo de Almeida who managed to score three goals. The team finished third in their group by recording their first win in their history, finishing above Laos, Brunei and the Philippines and had a goal difference of –4, which was a big improvement compared to their previous participation where the team finished last in their group with no wins from four games, scoring only once and having a goal difference of –28.
Kits
Timor-Leste's traditional home kit includes a red shirt, black shorts and red or black socks. The away kits feature white or yellow shirts. At the 2009 SEA Games, their home kit resemble the one worn by the Belgium national team.
Kit evolution
Home Kit 2009–2010 |
Away Kit 2009–2010 |
Alternative Kit 2011 |
Stadium
- Timor-Leste National Stadium (2002–present)
Competitive record
Olympic Games
Olympic Games record | Qualification record | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | TQ | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
1992 | Part of Indonesia | Part of Indonesia | ||||||||||||||
1996 | ||||||||||||||||
2000 | ||||||||||||||||
2004 | did not enter | did not enter | ||||||||||||||
2008 | ||||||||||||||||
2012 | ||||||||||||||||
2016 | did not qualify | 2016 AFC U-23 Championship qualification | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 8 | ||||||||
2020 | 2020 AFC U-23 Championship qualification | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 16 | |||||||||
2024 | 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 10 | |||||||||
2028 | To be determined | To be determined | ||||||||||||||
Total | — | 0/8 | – | – | – | – | – | – | AFC U-23 Asian Cup (From 2016) | 9 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 34 |
Asian Games Record
(Under-23 Team since 2002)
Asian Games | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Result | Position | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA |
did not enter
| ||||||||
Group stage |
28th |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
2 |
13
| |
24th |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
3 |
15
| ||
did not enter | ||||||||
Total |
Group stage |
2/5 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
5 |
28
|
AFC U-23 Asian Cup Record
AFC U-23 Championship | Qualification record | ||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
did not qualify | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 9 | |||||||||
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 8 | ||||||||||
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | ||||||||||
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 16 | ||||||||||
2022 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | |||||||||
2024 | did not qualify | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 10 | ||||||||
2026 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
Total |
– | 0/7 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0
|
20 | 6 | 2 | 12 | 28 | 56 |
SEA Games Record
(Under-23 Team since 2001)
Southeast Asian Games | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Result | Position | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA |
Did not enter | ||||||||
Group stage | 9th | 4 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
1 |
28
| |
6th | 5 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
4 |
8
| ||
7th | 4 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
5 |
8
| ||
9th | 5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
4 |
10
| ||
9th | 5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
2 |
8
| ||
10th | 4 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
2 |
18
| ||
2021 | 10th | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 13 | |
2023 | 7th | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 | |
Total |
Group stage |
8/10 | 35 |
6 |
1 |
28 |
24 |
101
|
ASEAN U-23 Championship record
ASEAN U-23 Championship | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Round | Position | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA |
Group stage |
8th | 3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
1 |
14
| |
6th | 3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
5
| ||
Third place |
3rd | 4 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
7 |
3
| |
Group stage |
9th | 2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
4
| |
Total |
Third Place |
4/4 | 12 |
3 |
2 |
7 |
10 |
26
|
Coaching staff
Position | Name |
---|---|
Head coach | Simón Elissetche |
Assistant coach | Miro Baldo Bento |
Goalkeeping coach | Derson Gusmão |
Physiotherapist | Adou Costa |
Media Officer | Mario Filipe Belo |
Administrator | Hasan Cesario |
Official | Adou Marques |
Kitman | Fablo Freitas |
Players
Current squad
The following 23 players were called up for the 2025 ASEAN U-23 Championship.[2]
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Club | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GK | Pablo de Jesus | 19 September 2005 | Ponta Leste | |||
GK | Filonito Nogueira | 16 November 2004 | SLB Laulara | |||
GK | Egidio Luro | Emmanuel | ||||
DF | Sandro Rivaldo | 1 January 2003 | Emmanuel | |||
DF | Liam Farrugia | 13 January 2003 | Manningham United | |||
DF | Aidan da Costa | Trofense | ||||
DF | Anizo Correia | 23 May 2003 | Ponta Leste | |||
DF | Mário Quintão | 18 February 2004 | Emmanuel | |||
DF | Jackson Fowler | 3 September 2004 | Sydney Olympic | |||
DF | Ricardo Bianco | 15 January 2006 | Ponta Leste | |||
MF | Leonio Freitas | Ponta Leste | ||||
MF | Palomito Ribeiro | Emmanuel | ||||
MF | Freteliano | 9 August 2004 | Emmanuel | |||
MF | Luís Figo | 17 April 2005 | Ponta Leste | |||
MF | Oatnasio Da Silva | 11 June 2006 | Loughgall | |||
MF | Serafin da Costa | DIT | ||||
MF | Jorge Casimiro | Caboolture Sports | ||||
MF | Zenivio | 22 April 2005 | Tanjong Pagar United | |||
FW | Olagar Xavier | 18 May 2003 | Karketu Dili | |||
FW | Alexandro Bakhito | 1 June 2006 | SLB Laulara | |||
FW | Nicholas Fowler | 31 May 2007 | Sydney Olympic | |||
FW | Vabio Canavaro | 25 January 2007 | SLB Laulara | |||
FW | Kenny Ximenes | 4 April 2005 | Dollingstown |
Recent call-ups
Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
Win Draw Loss
2025
16 July 2025 ASEAN U-23 Championship | Myanmar | v | Bekasi, Indonesia | |
20:00 UTC+7 | Stadium: Patriot Stadium |
19 July 2025 ASEAN U-23 Championship | v | Thailand | Bekasi, Indonesia | |
20:00 UTC+7 | Stadium: Patriot Stadium |
3 September 2026 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification | China | v | Xi'an, China | |
19:35 UTC+8 | Stadium: Xi'an International Football Centre |
6 September 2026 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification | v | Australia | Xi'an, China | |
15:30 UTC+8 | Stadium: Fengdong Football Park East Stadium |
9 September 2026 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification | v | Northern Mariana Islands | Xi'an, China | |
15:30 UTC+8 | Stadium: Fengdong Football Park East Stadium |
List of coaches
Coach | Coaching period | Pld | W | D | L | Achievements |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
José Luís | 2005 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2005 AFF U-23 Youth Championship – Round 1 (First Time) |
Manuel da Costa Soares | 2009–2010 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2009 Southeast Asian Games – Round 1 (First Time) |
Antonio Carlos Vieira | 2011–2012 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2011 Southeast Asian Games – First Win with Brunei |
Norio Tsukitate | 2012 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2013 AFC U-22 Championship qualification – Did not qualify |
Emerson Alcântara | 2013–2014 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2013 Southeast Asian Games – First Draw with Indonesia |
Takuma Koga | 2014 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2014 Asian Games – Round 1 (First Time) |
Fábio Magrão | 2015–2016 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2016 AFC U-23 Championship qualification – Did not qualify 2015 Southeast Asian Games – Round 1 |
Kim Shin-hwan | 2017–2018 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2018 AFC U-23 Championship qualification – Did not qualify |
Norio Tsukitate | 2018–2019 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2018 Asian Games – Group stage |