The small island nation urgently looking for a shot at world football

A group of Pacific islands far from most civilizations, the Marshall Islands have been known for their location as a nuclear test sight and not for much else.

Now, 65 years after the last nuclear bomb was tested there, the islands hope to have their own independent football team, the last sovereign nation to create a football team!

The island wants to move away from its past with the US military, but the US culture on the islands has been one of the driving factors as to why football has become so popular.

The man leading the operation to help the Marshall Islands become an Oceania Football Confederation member and eventual FIFA member is Englishman Lloyd Owers.

Picture – X @Sanny_Rudra

Owers has coaching experience in the USA, Canada, and Sweden and has been tasked with building the general foundations to help the Marshall Islands become an international football team.

Picture – X @NunoANunes

According to bbc.co.uk, Owers said: "They don't just want to be playing against local countries, they want to be part of a bigger program."

Picture – X @SoccerFedMI

"We know we want to be part of World Cup qualifiers. We want to be part of the OFC Championship. We want to be part of mainstream football."

Picture – X @SoccerFedMI

The island has big plans to compete at the highest level of international football, even though the population is only 60,000.

In the capital, Majuro, a national stadium surrounded by sea defenses is under construction, but the World Bank predicts a one-meter sea level rise would flood 40% of buildings.

It is hoped that through the power of football, the island can draw greater attention to the issues of climate change, with the majority of the islands predicted to be gone by 2050.