Despite its small size and population, Nauru, which is the only country with Australian football as its national sport, consistently ranks among the top eight teams in the world.

[2] The men's team, nicknamed the Chiefs, debuted in 1976 and finished 5th at the 2008 Australian Football International Cup.

Australian rules had been played on Pleasant Island as early as 1916[3][4][5] with regular competition between local teams from 1921.

Despite the sport's popularity and the national team's success, as of 2017 no Nauruan international has played in the Australian Football League.

[19] As the only Australian rules ground on Nauru, the Linkbelt Oval in the Aiwo District is home to the sport on the island.

At that time, the government of Australia was attempting to build Nauru a second field with a grass surface through Australian Aid so the country could host other national teams and international competition.

[23] They have gone on to compete in every edition of the tournament, aside from 2005 when the team had to withdraw because of financial difficulties shortly before the games started.

[24] Nauru competed in the 1995 Arafura Games in Darwin, the first edition of the tournament to feature national teams.

[40] At the under-16 level the nation has experienced much success, including Oceania Cup championships in 2013, 2015,[41] 2016,[42] and 2019;[43] and multiple second-place finishes;[44] and appearances in the Barassi International Australian Football Youth Tournament.