Yearning for the international stage

Despite being covered by ice and largely desolate, football is still king in Greenland, whose players want to compete with other nations, but it remains a pipe dream until they join a continental federation.

Until now, footballers in the Danish autonomous territory have mostly played among themselves and the national team made up of amateurs- has relied on the goodwill of opponents to organise matches.

The territory's football association, KAK, announced on 28 May that it had applied to join the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf), since it was unable to join the European football association Uefa.

Uefa statutes stipulate that membership can only be granted to federations "based in a country which is recognised as an independent state by the majority of members of the United Nations".

"It's the only place on Earth right now who's not member of any football association," Greenland coach Morten Rutkjaer told AFP.

Nevertheless, football - and in particular the English Premier League is very popular for the some 57 000 inhabitants of the world's largest island which covers an area of two million square kilometres with one of In the streets of Greenland's towns and cities, many children play football in the summer, and as soon as the weather permits, the pitches fill up the most eye-catching being the one in the northern village of Uummannaq which lies in the shadow of nearby icebergs.

"The biggest sport'