Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan

The Turkmenistan national football team represents the Central Asian nation and competes under the Football Federation of Turkmenistan, a FIFA and AFC member. Since gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Turkmenistan has competed in AFC Asian Cup qualifiers and FIFA World Cup qualifying rounds. The team has remained in the lower tiers of Asian football but has shown improvement in recent years. The domestic Yokary Liga is the top professional league, and several Turkmen players compete abroad, primarily in neighbouring Central Asian leagues and Russia. Home matches are played at the Ashgabat Stadium. Football development in Turkmenistan has been aided by government investment in sports infrastructure as the country looks to raise its profile in international sport, including football.