SINGAPORE — Singapore does not rule out the possibility of turning to naturalised footballers for the national football team as it aims to enhance its competitiveness on the international stage. However, it is important to strike a balance between leveraging the skills and experience of naturalised players and nurturing local talent to ensure long-term development in Singapore football.
The Minister of Culture, Community and Youth was responding to a parliamentary question by member of parliament Yip Hon Weng, who asked, in light of other countries naturalising foreign players, whether SportSG is planning to work with the Football Association of Singapore to restart the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme its performance, and if so, will it consider implementing an accelerated process to citizenship for talented players to play for Singapore.
“Growing our pipeline of local talent is the key thrust to our long-term strategy to uplift Singapore football. We will, however, not rule out continuing to work with FAS to assess and naturalise foreign players who have both the talent and the heart to represent Singapore,” said the Ministry in a written reply to Yio Chu Kang MP Yip.
In the past, Singapore has witnessed several foreign players who have represented the national team. The first two notable players were strikers Mirko Grabovac and Egmar Goncalvez in the early 2000s. Although both players excelled at their respective clubs, they could not replicate their success with the national team. Grabovac eventually returned to Croatia in 2008, while Goncalves departed for his hometown in Brazil two years prior.
Despite the initial failure of Singapore’s first two naturalized Lions, FAS did not give up on the program. Instead, they introduced other foreign players who significantly impacted the national team. These players include Mustafic Fahrudin, Shi Jia Yi, Qui Li, Agu Casmir, Itimi Dickson, Precious Emuejeraye, and Daniel Bennett.
Although Aleksandar Duric was not part of the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme, his perseverance to play for the Lions eventually paid off as he debuted for the national team at 37 years old and played in Singapore’s professional league until his retirement at 44. Duric, now the principal of ActiveSg Football Academy, played 520 domestic matches and scored an impressive 376 goals. He played 53 times for the national team and has 24 goals with the Lions.
Singapore currently only has one naturalised footballer in the national team. South Korean-born Song Ui-young was granted a Singapore passport in August 2021—ten years after China-born player Qiu Li became a Singaporean to play for the Lions. Song is not a stranger to Singapore as he has been here since he was 18 and played for Home United’s youth team (now known as the Lion City Sailors).
“It is important that beyond sporting abilities, these players must demonstrate that they are prepared to take up the duties and responsibilities that come with citizenship, and have shown their ability to integrate into our society,” added MCCY.
The ministry mentioned that while Singapore and FAS continue to explore the possibility of tapping on the foreign sports talent scheme to support our football objectives, we need to do so at a posture and pace that reflects the wider considerations of our sporting policies, as well as the granting of Singaporean citizenship.
Other sports that have benefitted from the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme include billiards, badminton, and table tennis.
Peter Gilchrist has been winning medals for the country ever since he became a Singaporean in 2006.
Badminton was known for tapping on Indonesian talents in the early 2000s, such as siblings Hendra Wijaya and Handri Saputra and Ronald Susilo.
For table tennis, most of their foreign talents came from China such as Feng Tianwei, Gao Ning, Yu Mengyu, Jing Junhong, and Li Jiawei.