From Greenland to Gibraltar : the position of non-sovereign nations in international football

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Cairns, Roddy (2025) From Greenland to Gibraltar : the position of non-sovereign nations in international football. The International Sports Law Journal. ISSN 2213-5154 (https://doi.org/10.1007/s40318-025-00318-8)

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Abstract

The position of non-sovereign nations in international sport has long been of interest to both scholars and fans, with a clear disparity existing between the number of nations which are United Nations-recognised states (193) as compared to the number of National Olympic Committees recognised by the International Olympic Committee (“IOC”) (206) or the number of member associations recognised by individual sports’ governing International Sports Federations (“ISFs”) (for example, FIFA, the ISF of world football, has 211 members ). There was a renewed interest in this topic in May 2024, when it was widely reported that Greenland’s football association (the “KAK”) had made an application to join CONCACAF , the continental ISF governing football/soccer in North/Central America and the Caribbean. The move came as a surprise to many observers, given Greenland’s status as a Danish territory and its associated links to Europe. However, changes to the membership rules of UEFA and FIFA since the turn of the millennium make it increasingly difficult, if not impossible, for a non-sovereign nation such as Greenland to become a member of either organisation, leaving CONCACAF as potentially its only viable route to playing international football. The purpose of this article is to explore the position of non-sovereign states in international football, and how it has evolved over time. Greenland will be used as a case study, examining its eligibility for membership of UEFA/FIFA under both current and (relatively recent) former rules, as well as the merits of its application to CONCACAF. The article will then explore examples of other non-sovereign nations which have successfully obtained UEFA/FIFA membership in the past, with a particular focus on Gibraltar’s protracted application process, and explain points of difference with Greenland’s application. Finally, the prospects for any future non-sovereign state seeking international footballing recognition will be considered, with the article seeking to reach a conclusion for how much the prevailing political reality impacts on the rules to be applied. Whilst there are a number of additional case studies which could be found in other sports (particularly in the case of new and non-sovereign states seeking recognition by the International Olympic Committee), for clarity the article will primarily focus on football and the evolution of the membership rules of UEFA and FIFA.

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