Last November in San Marino, the world’s fifth-smallest country, the National Museum opened a new exhibition showcasing the country’s football heritage, titled “Challenging the Impossible”.
Within a week, the staff was already planning an expansion when the lowest of all FIFA’s 210-ranked nations met that challenge a little faster than anyone expected.
On 18 November, San Marino secured promotion from the fourth and bottom tier of the Nations League with a 3–1 win in Liechtenstein, piqued the interest of visitors not only to the Titanus Museum, but from most of Europe.
Part-time footballers, full-time plumbers, shop workers – and graphic designers, in the case of the most capped player Matteo Vittaioli – were making national news across the continent. Move over Spain, it’s San Marino’s moment.
A country that had spent 20 years waiting to register a win, recorded two wins in just over a month to win their group ahead of Liechtenstein and Gibraltar, who have taken over Romania and Wales respectively in early 2024. Had taken.
Not everyone needed to be alerted to San Marino’s astonishing ascent. The micro-state had already become a cult figure, with increasing numbers of spectators reveling in the fortunes of a country where even scoring a goal remained a novelty, of which they managed only 33 goals in their entire history. Were.
The majority of their growing casual following was nurtured by the ‘San Marino Fan Account’, which has garnered almost 200,000 followers on Let’s post. Sports, always adamant that San Marino’s next opponents would make their latest defeat pay.
“We write history by scoring in three consecutive matches,” was one particularly enthusiastic example in November 2023 and was viewed more than two million times after San Marino ended its Euro 2024 qualifying group by losing every game.
Well, the mysterious anonymous person behind the account was inspired to set it up because he couldn’t find anywhere else to post English updates on the fate of San Marino.
“I’m interested in micro-state football, but San Marino has always had a special place in my heart,” he explains. sky sports“When San Marino scores, I usually get about 5,000 extra followers.
“It doesn’t get much if any recognition from within the country. But that’s OK, the players have to focus on making the country proud. The X isn’t really a thing in Italy or San Marino, so “I think they barely realize it, they love being online.”
While those consolation goals were usually accompanied by keyboard-mashing tweets of joy, or the occasional goalless draw if they were very lucky, no one inside or outside the country was prepared for any real success.
In four matches between September and November, San Marino won competitively for the first time, followed up their second win with their first ever victory, and enjoyed their finest hour in Liechtenstein in November, coming from behind to win 3–1. And gave the biggest blow. You can enter a country slightly larger than Middlesbrough.
“It’s a beautiful feeling after so many years of losing,” explains veteran Vittaioli. sky sportsAlmost a month later, I am still emotional. “We were welcomed like heroes in San Marino. It was incredible.”
At the age of 17, he became San Marino’s youngest-ever player in 2007 and is now 35, after 103 caps, 97 losses, five draws and a five-minute cameo at the end of that Liechtenstein game, a win. He is the eldest statesman of the team in age – having built almost an entire career.
He adds, “It’s such a big deal to us that we probably still don’t understand what really happened.” “This is a reward for all the sacrifices we have made all these years.
“We knew we were playing well, but to get promoted to the next league – it still feels like a dream. But sometimes, dreams do come true, especially if you never give up.”
All the manifestations in San Marino could not in themselves realize the dream of a nation. Two hundred and fifty miles from the Pope’s home, divine intervention felt more realistically supported. Or, as it turned out, UEFA.
The governing body’s brainchild, the Nations League, has leveled the playing field for smaller countries, and not before time.
In the two qualifying tournaments before the inaugural competition, launched in 2018, Sammarinese had conceded 90 goals and scored three times in 20 matches, the only draw coming against Estonia.
But that new platform alone can’t explain their rise. Four years ago San Marino’s Nations League group also included Liechtenstein and Gibraltar, and they finished bottom with two draws and two losses. He conceded goals only three times, but could not score a single goal himself.
The main roots of their moment extend to UEFA-funded investments in infrastructure a decade ago, including a generational revamp of the national stadium and a new center for the San Marino Academy, which runs youth sides up to U19 level. Does. There are seven graduates from the most recent San Marino squad.
“UEFA’s support has been vital,” San Marino FA president Marco Tura said after the Nations League victory. “It changed our mentality and approach to football.
“UEFA guided us at every stage of our organizational and technical development, enabling us to raise the level of football not only economically but also structurally and technically.”
The one thing UEFA could not provide was the right manager to take advantage of the most talented young players ever produced in the country.
Fabrizio Costantini laid the groundwork after making the move from the U21s to the national team in 2022, significantly reducing the team’s average age and scoring a late equalizer against Denmark in October last year, before Joseph Poulsen scored the winner. Defied all setbacks and mother of one. Broken cap lock.
His successor, Roberto Savoli, has taken things to new heights by naming the youngest-ever average international line-up across Europe in 2024.
The rewards were not long in coming, with 24-year-old Nicola Nanni, the standout star of this Nations League campaign, scoring a last-minute penalty to secure a draw in Gibraltar in his final match and then scoring in Vaduz to complete the turnaround. Last month.
“All credit goes to the manager’s approach,” says Vittaioli. “He has really been a breath of fresh air and has brought new inspiration to the team.”
In all likelihood it will be just as well for Sammarinese, given Albania, Finland and potentially Slovakia – all sides that have qualified for recent tournaments – await them in League C of the 2026/27 Nations League. Are.
Until then, the chances of making it to the 2026 World Cup are still slim, no matter the country.
The four Nations League group winners who finish outside the top two in their World Cup qualifying group will be paired in a play-off next November for one of the four spots in the finals.
There is a real possibility that San Marino could be one of them, although winning two more games to make it to the United States, Canada and Mexico seems like nothing more than a dream. But then again – that’s how they got here in the first place.
