American Samoa’s national team had never played outside of Oceania in the 42 years since their federation was formed, but while their two games in the FIFA Series™ in Puerto Rico ended in defeat, they viewed the experience gained as invaluable. The FIFA Series offers countries the chance to play teams from outside of their confederation in mini-tournaments, gaining greater international exposure and the opportunity to learn from different styles of play. American Samoa played Guam and the US Virgin Islands in their FIFA Series event and national team head coach Diego Gómez highlighted the developmental benefits of the fixtures.

“For us, it means a very important opportunity to grow, to accumulate experience – for the players and the staff, to get to know the group we have better, and to be able to train for more time with them,” he said. “We spent 10 days in Orlando preparing for this tournament and now we have been here eight days in Puerto Rico to prepare for the FIFA Series. “Being able to come here, play against the Virgin Islands, who are from Concacaf, play against Guam, from Asia now, I think it is an opportunity to face teams from other countries with a different footballing culture, and who pose a greater challenge for the national team,” added the Spaniard.

Team captain Ali'i Mitchell, who scored twice in the 5-2 loss to the US Virgin Islands, said the opportunity to play in the FIFA Series event had been vital to the players. “These FIFA Series matches are extremely important to American Samoa because they allow us to play against high-calibre players outside of the OFC (Oceania Football Confederation). And, coming from a small island nation, we don’t see as many highly competitive games. This is very crucial to the development of soccer in American Samoa,” he said.

Mitchell said that as well as the need for competition, the games had also been a chance to showcase the sporting culture of the country. “Football back home in American Samoa, I believe, is more than just a game. It represents pride and unity. Soccer really brings people together. Whether it’s supporting the local league matches back home or supporting the national teams. It’s a way to represent our culture on the international stage,” he said. Beyond the pitch, the FIFA Forward Programme is playing a fundamental role in the growth of the game in American Samoa.

Gómez noted the significance of this support: “I think the FIFA Forward Funds are key for the development of football in American Samoa, as a new stadium will be built, which will feature an artificial turf pitch, a capacity of up to 10,000 people and improved facilities to develop the future generations, and hopefully, we can bring the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers to the country for the first time ever.” While the focus of the world will soon be on the FIFA World Cup 2026™, for American Samoa this year has been about stepping out onto their own global stage for the first time. “Ultimately, the FIFA Series gives a chance to many national teams like ours to travel here and play against one another, something which wouldn’t normally happen unless they qualify for a FIFA World Cup,” said Gomez.