In April 2005, the NF-Board announced that Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus had been chosen to host the inaugural VIVA World Cup, having successfully hosted a tournament to celebrate 50 years of the KTFF, the KTFF 50th Anniversary Cup, featuring fellow NF-Board member Sápmi and FIFA-unaffiliated Kosovo.

The NF-Board claimed that the government of Ferdi Sabit Soyer insisted on restricting which nations could and could not take part in order to head off potential political arguments.

However, a lack of suitable competitors meant that the tournament was to include six teams: Monaco, the Roma, the Sápmi, Southern Cameroons, West Papua, and the hosts.

However, the failure of West Papua and Southern Cameroon to attend the NF-Board General Assembly in September 2006, and logistical problems facing the Roma,[2] threw new doubt on the tournament, which looked as though it may go ahead with just three teams.

By the end of the week, Sápmi had triumphed, scoring 42 goals in their three games, and lifting the first VIVA World Cup trophy.