1978 CFU Championship
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Dates | 22–29 October 1978 |
| Teams | 4 |
| Venues | 2 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Suriname (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Trinidad and Tobago |
| Third place |  Haiti |
| Fourth place |  Antigua and Barbuda |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 6 |
| Goals scored | 17 (2.83 per match) |
1979 → | |
The 1978 CFU Championship was the inaugural international association football championship for members of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU). Hosted by Trinidad and Tobago, the competition ran from 22–29 October 1978 and was contested by the national teams of Antigua and Barbuda, Haiti, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.
In the penultimate match of the round-robin tournament, Suriname were crowned champions as they completed a clean sweep by defeating Antigua and Barbuda 4–0.
Background
[edit]The Caribbean Football Union (CFU) was founded in January 1978 as a sub-confederation of the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF).[1] Later the same year, the first CFU Championship was organised in Trinidad and Tobago.[2]
Haiti did not send a full international team and were instead represented by Aigle Noir AC.[3]
Format
[edit]Three qualifying rounds were held to determine the four teams that would participate in the final tournament. For both rounds, teams were drawn into two-legged ties. The team scoring more goals on aggregate in each tie would advance to the next stage.[3]
The final tournament was played as a single round-robin where each team would play all of the others once. The winner would be decided by the total number of points obtained across all matches played.[3]
Participants
[edit]
Qualification
[edit]The qualification stage ran from July to October 1978. Some match results are unknown. It is also unclear whether Antigua and Barbuda, the Netherlands Antilles and French Guiana received a bye in the first round or if they contested an unknown tie. A match between Trinidad and Tobago and Grenada which finished 1–1 on 30 July may have been the second leg of a first round tie but it is unknown whether the match was part of the competition as it is unknown if there was a first leg.[3]
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round | ||||
Puerto Rico  | 1–2 | Haiti | 1–1 | 0–1 |
Martinique  | w/o[a] |  Dominican Republic | — | — |
Guadeloupe  | 3–1 |  Jamaica | 2–1 | 1–0 |
Guyana  | 1–4 | Suriname | 1–2 | 0–2 |
| Second round | ||||
| Antigua and Barbuda | draw[b] | Guadeloupe | — | — |
Netherlands Antilles  | 0–5 | Suriname | 0–2 | 0–3 |
| Trinidad and Tobago | 6–5 |  French Guiana | 2–4 | 4–1 (a.e.t.) |
| Haiti | 5–3 | Martinique | 1–1 | 4–2 |
First round
[edit]In the first round, Haiti defeated Puerto Rico 2–1 on aggregate, Guadeloupe defeated Jamaica 3–1 on aggregate and Suriname defeated Guyana 4–1 on aggregate. The Dominican Republic withdrew from the competition and Martinique received a walkover to the second round.[3]
Results
[edit]Haiti won 2–1 on aggregate.
| Martinique | Cancelled | Dominican Republic |
|---|---|---|
| [3] |
| Dominican Republic | Cancelled | Martinique |
|---|---|---|
| [3] |
Dominican Republic withdrew, Martinique advanced.
| Jamaica | 1–2 | Guadeloupe |
|---|---|---|
|
[3] |
Guadaeloupe won 3–1 on aggregate.
Suriname won 4–1 on aggregate.
Second round
[edit]In the second round, Suriname defeated the Netherlands Antilles 5–0 on aggregate, Trinidad and Tobago defeated French Guiana 6–5 on aggregate and Haiti defeated Martinique 5–3 on aggregate. The results of the Antigua and Barbuda v Guadeloupe tie are unknown but Antigua and Barbuda won on penalties. Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti and Antigua and Barbuda qualified for the final tournament.[3]
Results
[edit]Tied on aggregate. Antigua and Barbuda won on penalties.
Suriname won 5–0 on aggregate.
| Trinidad and Tobago | 2–4 | French Guiana |
|---|---|---|
| [3] |
|
| French Guiana | 1–4 (a.e.t.) | Trinidad and Tobago |
|---|---|---|
 |
[3] |
|
Trinidad and Tobago won 6–5 on aggregate.
Haiti won 5–3 on aggregate.
Final tournament
[edit]The final tournament was held from 22–29 October 1978. After winning their opening two matches, Suriname were crowned champions of the inaugural competition when they defeated Antigua and Barbuda 4–0 in their final match.[3]
Table
[edit]| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suriname |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | +8 | 6 |
| 2 | Trinidad and Tobago |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 3 |
| 3 | Haiti |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 3 |
| 4 | Antigua and Barbuda |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 8 | −7 | 0 |
Results
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ "About Us". Caribbean Football Union. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ McKain, Chris J.; Cruickshank, Mark (19 September 2019). "CFU Championship". RSSSF. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Cruickshank, Mark; Courtney, Barrie; Garin, Erik (4 January 2013). "CFU Championship 1978". RSSSF. Retrieved 5 May 2026.