[citation needed] The GFA affiliated with The Football Association in 1909, and became a full member of FIFA in 2016 allowing its national team to compete in all international competitions.

This attempt was met with fierce opposition from the Royal Spanish Football Federation[2] but was ratified on 13 May 2016 at the 66th FIFA Congress in Mexico.

Current FIFA and UEFA members include several federations which cannot be said to represent fully independent nations, such as the UK Home Nations (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales), the Faroe Islands, Guam, Hong Kong, Macau, New Caledonia, Puerto Rico and Tahiti (French Polynesia).

Additionally, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Saint Martin each have national teams which, despite not being FIFA members, are allowed to compete at the CONCACAF confederation level.

The Federation's president Ángel María Villar attributed Spain's opposition to the Spanish claim over Gibraltar.

This road map was to run until the Ordinary UEFA Congress in 2013, when member associations would vote on the request for admission.

Following the example of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Russia and Georgia, it was confirmed that Gibraltar and Spain would be kept apart in qualifying groups in all major tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup and the European Championship (the Euros).

[12] As part of the celebrations for the GFA's achievement, a 54p stamp was issued by the Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau commemorating the association becoming the 54th member of UEFA.