The Marshall Islands Soccer Federation announced the 20 members of its first national men's team on Monday, including two players from Arkansas. Matt John, who is Marshallese and lives in Springdale, was selected as a forward for the team and said being chosen for the inaugural squad was overwhelming.
“It was kind of surreal. Um, whenever they came in, uh, they did the filming, I was I still hadn't like completely processed the, the fact that I got selected. But when they delivered that letter – that's hanging on my fridge – I look at it before I start my day every day, remind myself to keep going. Like, it's hard, but gotta keep going. Um, but it was just surreal for them to hand over that letter that said that I was selected to defend our country's badge for the first time.”
The other Arkansas-based player is 17-year-old Vinay Kumar. They are two of nine players who live in the United States. The other 11 are based in the Marshall Islands, and John said that means he still hasn't met many of his new teammates.
“I've been talking to some of the guys separately on Instagram and like Facebook, but it's been nice getting to know them over social media. But I just can't wait to meet everyone in person.”
Nearly half of all Marshallese people live outside of the islands because of the fallout from nuclear tests the U.S. military carried out on the islands during the 1940s. An estimated 47,000 Marshallese people live in the U.S., with the majority residing in Arkansas, and head coach Lloyd Owers said that has made putting together a national team more difficult.
“It's going to be an interesting dynamic – obviously getting everyone together from different corners of the globe and actually, yeah, actually putting together a squad from it. But no, it's a good challenge to have.”
During the live stream announcement on Monday, Owers explained that eligibility for the team is extended to Marshallese citizens, those of Marshallese descent, or people who have lived in the islands at least two years if under 18, and five years for those 18 and older.
“So we try to make sure it's as closely linked to it as possible, and being able to have as much of a clear link to FIFA rules as possible with the whole squad. And the good thing about the Marshall Islands is that we have a real opportunity to have players from all around the world, and as Matt would know, being in Springdale, Arkansas, there's a massive Marshallese community that allows us to have players who are U.S.-based.
"But then the other aspect of it as well is we have eligibility opportunities to have players from Kwajalein, which is the Marshallese island in the Marshall Islands but hosts the U.S. military base. Because of that, we've got a lot of people that are Americans – mostly Americans – that have lived in Kwajalein for, you know, most of their lives or at least a long, long time.”
The Marshall Islands is the last internationally recognized country in the world without a national soccer team. That will all change in just a few weeks, when the newly formed team plays its first match against the U.S. Virgin Islands in the Outrigger Challenge Cup.
The tournament is the first step to being recognized by FIFA, soccer's international governing body. The tournament, which takes place Aug. 13-16 at Gerald Williams Bulldog Stadium at Springdale High School, also includes teams from Turks and Caicos and the Rogers-based under-19 Ozark United.
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