National Team in Cyprus for World Cup 2026 Qualifiers Debut

The San Marino National Team is starting again from Cyprus. The Biancazzurri’s first away trip of the year got underway this morning, heading to Forlì airport from where the charter flight departed for the Mediterranean island. Tomorrow evening, at the AEK Arena in Larnaca, comes the debut match in the Qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States. The group that achieved the historic promotion to League C of the UEFA Nations League has been confirmed almost in its entirety. A muscle problem is keeping Lorenzo Lazzari on the sidelines, while Contadini has recovered in time for the match in Larnaca. First official call-up for Alberto Riccardi, who so far has enjoyed an excellent season, first with San Marino Academy U22 and then with La Fiorita.

In the afternoon there was a press conference with Roberto Cevoli and Tommaso Benvenuti, held before the official 19:00 training session at the venue that will tomorrow host the meeting between Cyprus and San Marino. “The enthusiasm of the youngsters and their freedom from pressure has been the key behind the performances and results we have recently achieved. We have gained great awareness of our abilities and, even though the test we now face is of a different calibre, we are convinced that we can still do well,” Cevoli confides. “Being part of the youngest National Team in Europe is a fact, but it’s not so much about age as it is about the chance to represent your country. That is a source of immense pride, something we must and want to earn every single day,” assures Tommaso Benvenuti.

The most recent meeting between the two sides came in June last year, when the Cypriots won in Serravalle (4-1) in a friendly. A misleading scoreline, given a first half in which it was the Titans who went closest to scoring, which eventually came thanks to a gem from then debutant Simone Giocondi. “We played a very good match, despite losing also because of more than one lapse of our own. In the meantime, Cyprus have changed coaches twice, renewing themselves also in terms of mentality. They are indeed playing a more attacking brand of football than in the recent past, increasing their level of aggression to exploit the speed of their forwards,” warns Cevoli. “It will be important to have an offensive mindset and to limit their most talented players, such as Kastanos who, not by chance, plays in Serie A. They have many options out wide; we will need to do well to curb their exuberance and make sure we are ready when it comes to our attacking play,” adds Tommaso Benvenuti.

Tomorrow’s match, which will see the first points in the World Cup qualifying group up for grabs, will kick off at 18:00 Italian time. Coverage will begin a few minutes earlier on San Marino RTV and Titani.tv, offering, respectively, live television commentary and free live web radio from Larnaca.