Football was introduced to Seychelles in the 1930s. Its first official competition, the Challenge Cup, was organized in 1936. Then in 1941, a championship between five teams was set up with matches of 60 minutes, played barefoot.[4]
In 1969, the president of theSeychelles Football Federation wanted to set up a national team. Engaged on a voluntary basis,Adrian Fisher arrived on the island in September to reorganize Seychelles football. He equipped all the players with shoes, introduced contemporary training techniques and extended the match time to 90 minutes. The newly-formed national team played their first matches at a friendly tournament in Kenya in April 1970. In Seychelles' first matches played on a real football pitch, they drew 2–2 againstFeisal F.C. then lost 1–2 to Mwengi atMombasa Municipal Stadium. When Fisher left Seychelles in 1973, the team had played six games against four clubs.
Seychelles played their first match against another national team on March 13, 1974, againstRéunion. In this friendly match, thePirates lost 0–2. Two years later, this time as an independent nation, the Seychelles faced Réunion again, losing 1–4. In September 1977, they played their first match against a FIFA-affiliated team,Mauritius, during a tournament played in Réunion, and lost 1–2. The team enjoyed its first victory the following year by beating Réunion 1–0 at home.
In 1979, Seychelles played their first tournament, the1979 Indian Ocean Games. They lost their first game 3–0 toRéunion, and beatMaldives 9–0 in their second. In the semi-final, they knocked outMauritius 4–2 on penalties after a 1–1 draw, but in the final they lost 2–1 to Réunion.
Seychelles were eliminated from the group stage at the1985 Indian Ocean Games but, on August 31, 1986, they played their first competitive match recognised byFIFA andCAF, following their affiliation with both organisations, a qualification match against Mauritius for the1987 All-Africa Games, which they lost 1–2. They participated, for the first time, in the1988 African Cup of Nations qualifiers against Mauritius but lost 1–3 over the two legs.
At the1990 Indian Ocean Games, the team suffered the heaviest defeat in its history againstMadagascar in the semi-final, losing 0–6. In the bronze medal match, they won againstComoros 3–1. Despite hosting thefollowing games, the team failed to repeat this performance, losing all four games and finishing last in the competition.
In 2006, a new technical centre inMahé was opened, with help from the FIFA Goal programme.[7] The project had a total cost of approximately 750,000 USD.James Michel, president of the Seychelles, was present at the inauguration. The technical centre houses the SFF headquarters, an auditorium, 20 bedrooms, two massage rooms, changing rooms and a restaurant. The centre is located next to the turf pitches that were also installed by the Goal programme in 2003.[8][9]