Cyprus secures second place in Nations League group following draw with Armenia

The Cyprus national football team secured second place in Group 2 of the Nations League C-tier following a 1-1 draw against Armenia at the Vazgen Sargsyan Stadium in Yerevan on November 12, 2026. The match saw 26-year-old debutant Iasonas Pikis score for Cyprus in the 9th minute, assisted by Ioannis Pittas, while Garibyan equalized for the hosts in the 57th minute.

Following the match, Montenegro defeated Latvia 2-1, officially clinching the top spot in the group with 13 points and leaving Cyprus in second place with 8 points. Consequently, Cyprus will now compete in the promotion play-offs to determine if the team will move up to the B-tier. The final match of the group stage against Montenegro, scheduled for November 15 at Alphamega Stadium, is now considered a procedural game with no remaining impact on the group standings.

The draw for the promotion play-offs is set for November 20, 2026, in Nyon, Switzerland, with matches scheduled to take place in March 2027. Despite missing the top position, the result marks a significant achievement for manager Akis Mantzios’s squad, marking their transition from battling relegation to actively competing for promotion.