Geography of association football
The following article gives a list of association football confederations, sub-confederations and associations around the world. The sport's international governing body is FIFA, but those associations not affiliated with FIFA are also included in this article.
Most European, African, and Asian countries have two principal competitions: a more prestigious league which is typically a double round-robin tournament restricted to the elite clubs, and a cup which is a single-elimination tournament open to both the elite and lesser clubs.
In the Americas, leagues are often organised as either multi-stage tournaments or separate Apertura and Clausura stages.
By continent
Affiliated with FIFA
There are currently 211 national associations which are members of FIFA. An additional 11 associations are full or associate members of a FIFA intercontinental confederation, but not members of FIFA.
| Continent | Governing body | Abbr. | No. | FIFA members | Main international competition(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club competition(s) | National competition(s) | |||||
| Africa | Confederation of African Football | CAF | 56 | 54 | Champions League | Africa Cup of Nations |
| Confederation Cup | Nations Championship | |||||
| Super Cup | N/A | |||||
| Asia | Asian Football Confederation | AFC | 47 | 46 | Champions League | Asian Cup |
| AFC Cup | Solidarity Cup | |||||
| Europe | Union of European Football Associations | UEFA | 55 | 55 | Champions League | European Championship |
| Europa League | Nations League | |||||
| Europa Conference League | Regions' Cup | |||||
| Super Cup | N/A | |||||
| North, Central America and the Caribbean |
Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football | CONCACAF | 41 | 35 | Champions League | Gold Cup |
| CONCACAF League | Nations League | |||||
| Oceania | Oceania Football Confederation | OFC | 13 | 11 | Champions League | Nations Cup |
| South America | Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol | CONMEBOL | 10 | 10 | Copa Libertadores | Copa América |
| Copa Sudamericana | ||||||
| Recopa Sudamericana | ||||||
Other governing bodies
| Governing body | Full name | Member associations | Main international competition(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| ConIFA | Confederation of Independent Football Associations | 54 | ConIFA World Football Cup |
| IGA | International Island Games Association | 24 | Island Games |
By sub-region
Africa
| Sub-region | Governing body | Abbr. | No. | Main international competition(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club competition(s) | National competition(s) | ||||
| North Africa | Union of North African Football | UNAF | 5 | UNAF Nessma Cup | N/A |
| West Africa | West African Football Union | WAFU-UFOA | 16 | West African Club Championship | WAFU Nations Cup |
| Central Africa | Central African Football Federations' Union | UNIFFAC | 8 | N/A | CEMAC Cup |
| East Africa | Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations | CECAFA | 12 | CECAFA Club Cup | CECAFA Cup |
| Southern Africa | Council of Southern Africa Football Associations | COSAFA | 14 | N/A | COSAFA Senior Challenge Cup |
| Arab World | Union of Arab Football Associations | UAFA | 10 | Arab Club Champions Cup | FIFA Arab Cup |
Asia
| Sub-region | Governing body | Abbr. | No. | Main international competition(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club competition(s) | National competition(s) | ||||
| West Asia | West Asian Football Federation | WAFF | 12 | WAFF Champions League | WAFF Championship |
| Central Asia | Central Asian Football Association | CAFA | 6 | N/A | CAFA Championship |
| South Asia | South Asian Football Federation | SAFF | 7 | Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup, SAFF Club Cup (proposed) | SAFF Championship |
| East Asia | East Asian Football Federation | EAFF | 10 | N/A | EAFF E-1 Football Championship |
| South-East Asia | ASEAN Football Federation | AFF | 12 | ASEAN Club Championship (defunct)¹, Mekong Club Championship for Mekong clubs, and AFF Futsal Club Championship for futsal. | ASEAN Football Championship |
¹It may be revived in 2022 – see 2022 ASEAN Club Championship.
North America, Central America and the Caribbean
| Sub-region | Governing body | Abbr. | No. | International club competition(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | North American Football Union | NAFU | 3 | Campeones Cup |
| Leagues Cup | ||||
| Central America | Central American Football Union | UNCAF | 7 | N/A |
| Caribbean | Caribbean Football Union | CFU | 31 | Caribbean Club Championship |
| Caribbean Club Shield |
By country
The football associations listed in this section are members of FIFA-affiliated confederations. They are listed by their official names registered with FIFA.
Africa
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Asia
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Europe
All UEFA associations are affiliated with FIFA.
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North America, Central America and the Caribbean
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Oceania
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South America
All CONMEBOL associations are affiliated with FIFA.
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Non-FIFA associations
The football associations in this section represent fully and partially recognized sovereign states, dependent territories, and stateless nations that are not members of FIFA or a FIFA confederation.
Several of these non-FIFA associations are included in the World Football Elo Ratings, which ranks all national association football teams from FIFA-affiliated confederations, in addition to some unaffiliated teams. Several of these associations are also members of the Confederation of Independent Football Associations and/or the International Island Games Association.
Africa
| Territory | Country | National association | Elo Ratings | ConIFA | IGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Chagos Islands |
 United Kingdom |
Chagos Football Association |  | |  |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Mayotte |
 France |
Ligue de Football de Mayotte | | | |
 Saint Helena |
United Kingdom |
Saint Helena Football Association | | | |
 Somaliland |
 Somalia |
Somaliland Football Association | | | |
 Western Sahara |
 Morocco |
Sahrawi Football Federation | | | |
Asia
| Territory | Country | National association | Elo Ratings | ConIFA | IGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Christmas Island |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Australia |
Christmas Island Soccer Association | | | |
_Islands.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
Australia |
Cocos (Keeling) Islands Soccer Association | | | |
 Kurdistan |
 Iraq |
Kurdistan Football Association | | | |
 Tibet |
 China |
Tibetan National Football Association | | | |
Europe
| Territory | Country | National association | Elo Ratings | ConIFA | IGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Abkhazia |
 Georgia |
Football Federation of Abkhazia | | | |
 Åland Islands |
 Finland |
Åland Football Association | | | |
 Artsakh |
 Azerbaijan |
Artsakh Football Association | | | |
 Guernsey |
United Kingdom |
Guernsey Football Association | | | |
 Isle of Man |
United Kingdom |
Isle of Man Football Association | | | |
 Jersey |
United Kingdom |
Jersey Football Association | | | |
 Monaco |
Monaco |
Monégasque Football Federation | | | |
 Northern Cyprus |
 Cyprus |
Cyprus Turkish Football Association | | | |
 South Ossetia |
Georgia |
Football Federation of the Republic of South Ossetia | | | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=spacer} Transnistria |
 Moldova |
Football Federation of Pridnestrovie | | | |
 Vatican City |
Vatican City |
Vatican City national football team | | | |
- Akrotiri and Dhekelia and
Svalbard do not have a Football Association.
North America, Central America and the Caribbean
| Territory | Country | National association | Elo Ratings | ConIFA | IGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Greenland |
 Denmark |
Football Association of Greenland | | | |
 Saba |
 Netherlands |
Federation of Saba | | | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Saint Barthélemy |
France |
Saint Barthélemy Football Association | | | |
 Saint Pierre and Miquelon |
France |
Football Federation of Saint Pierre and Miquelon | | | |
 Sint Eustatius |
Netherlands |
Statia Football Association | | | |
Oceania
| Territory | Country | National association | Elo Ratings | ConIFA | IGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bougainville |
 Papua New Guinea |
Football Federation of Bougainville | | | |
 Marshall Islands |
Marshall Islands |
Marshall Islands Soccer Association | | | |
 Micronesia, Federated States of |
Micronesia, F.S. |
Federated States of Micronesia Football Association | | | |
 Nauru |
Nauru |
Nauru Amateur Soccer Association | | | |
 Niue |
Niue |
Niue Island Soccer Association | | | |
 Norfolk Island |
Australia |
Norfolk Island Soccer Federation | | | |
 Palau |
Palau |
Palau Football Association | | | |
 Tokelau |
 New Zealand |
Tokelau Amateur Soccer Association | | | |
 Wallis and Futuna |
France |
Wallis and Futuna Soccer Federation | | | |
Pitcairn Islands does not have a Football Association.
South America
| Territory | Country | National association | Elo Ratings | ConIFA | IGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Falkland Islands |
United Kingdom |
Falkland Islands Football League | | | |
Regional
Beneath the national level, governance of football may be divided up into regional or territorial associations. Other non-national associations represent stateless populations, diasporas or micronations. Details of these are listed at non-FIFA international football.
See also
- Domestic association football season
- List of national football teams
- List of association football clubs
- List of association football competitions
- List of sports attendance figures — Attendances of many domestic and international competitions, compared with those of other sports around the world
- List of FIFA country codes
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| Rules |
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| Equipment | |||||||
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International association football | ||
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| Africa | | |
| Asia | ||
| Europe | ||
| North & Central America and the Caribbean | ||
| Oceania | ||
| South America | ||
| Non-FIFA | ||
| Games | ||