Catalonia

 

Sergi Roberto (FC Barcelona)
vs. Cape Verde (4:1) | Friendly | 2013 in Catalonia

Whenever I tell anyone about non-FIFA football the first time, I always get the same reply: "Does Catalonia have a team?". As long as I was part of CONIFA, that was always followed with "Are they in CONIFA". Yes, they have a team, but they never were part of CONIFA. Catalonia, arguably, is the oldest non-FIFA side, having played their first ever match in 1910, just 6 years after FIFA was actually founded. Two years later, they played their first friendlies against FIFA member France. Ever since, Catalonia has an active national team, which usually plays a single festive match around Christmas to not intervene with the Spanish football calendar.

In 2013, the team, which is usally filled with top-flight professionals, played against the Cape Verde island in a friendly match in Barcelona, beating them comfortably. As so often, Bojan Krkic, one of those wonderkids that never quite made it, scored a goal in that match. During the match, they wore this Astore shirt that resembles the official Catalonia flag, which is red and yellow striped and does not contain the blue corner with the white star you would see above on this post. That flag with the white star, instead, is the independence movement flag, which you will see flying in almost every village in Catalonia these days.

I really do like flag shirts and this one certainly is no exception. A simple, but very striking design. Just right for a very special and a welcome addition to my collection, which dearly missed a Catalonia shirt.