The Marshall Islands are the last country on Earth without a national football team - but Englishman Lloyd Owers is at the forefront of attempts to change that.
The chain of volcanic islands and coral-based atolls in the middle of the Pacific Ocean that form the Marshall Islands have long been associated, from afar, with a role as the host of US nuclear testing.There is some way to go before such dreams can become a reality.
"It started via emails, then it became easier to speak via WhatsApp because of the time difference," Owers told BBC Sport. For the 33-year-old Owers, the opportunity to lead the ambitious project from its infancy was one he could not turn down. "We know we want to be part of World Cup qualifiers. We want be part of the OFC Championship, we want be part of mainstream football.
"There's a fully functioning US military base in Kwajalein. It's part of their identity and, because it's very heavily US cultured, there is a lot of interest in sports such as baseball and basketball. "Over recent years there there has been a massive eye-opening realisation that the Marshall Islands will unfortunately lose a lot of islands - and by 2050 will lose most of the land," said Owers.
"We were hoping but we weren't expecting," Owers said of the reaction. "We had like 1,500 followers on Twitter alone within two or three days, unbelievable. We really didn't expect that at all. The kit design was produced by a competition winner from Argentina, whose idea was chosen from more than 200 applicants.
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