Country facts:

Flag:
Area:	1,138,910 sq km
Population:	42,954,279
Languages:	Spanish
Currency:	Colombian peso (COP)
Climate:	tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands

Colombia

Colombia soccer information

Colombia has a strong footballing pedigree, with good development programmes in place for refereeing and youth football. The national association celebrated its finest hour with the Copa America triumph in 2001. Many Colombian players, such as Valderrama, Rincon, Mondragon and Asprilla, have played professional football abroad. The most famous coaches are Francisco Maturana, who has returned to coach the Colomnnational team after a short stint in Saudi Arabia, and Hernán "Bolillo" Gómez, who led Ecuador to the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan.