The MSG Prime Minister's Cup, formerly known as Melanesia Cup, is an association football competition played between the Melanesian countries. It was formerly used (along with the Polynesia Cup) for qualification to the OFC Nations Cup. The original tournament used a round-robin format involving every team playing each other once at the tournaments location.
History
Melanesia Cup (1988–2000)
The Melanesia Cup was founded in 1988, with Fiji becoming the inaugural champions following a 3–1 victory against Solomon Islands. The tournament was played on an annual basis until the 1990 tournament saw the Melanesia Cup become a biennial tournament.[1] It was then played every two years until 2000 except for 1996.
The 1996 Melanesia Cup was cancelled for unknown reasons, and the scheduled 2002 Melanesia Cup was cancelled due to security issues in Honiara as the tournament was moved from July to September 2002.[2]
This tournament was also abolished, with the last two editions played in 2011.[5][6]
MSG Prime Minister's Cup (2022–present)
In 2022 the tournament was revived under the current name, the MSG Prime Minister's Cup, after more than twenty years.[7] The name was changed at the impetus of FIFA.[7] It is organised by the Melanesian Spearhead Group.[8]
The inaugural tournament was won by first-time champions Papua New Guinea in 2022, and the 2022 MSG Prime Minister's Cup also saw the introduction of "B" teams into the tournament.[9]
Participants
The seven the competition is currently played between are:[10]
