Gibraltar to face Slovakia in first full international

(Reuters) - Gibraltar will make their full international debut against Slovakia in Portugal next month having become the 54th official member of UEFA in May, the Slovak FA said on Tuesday. The friendly will be staged in the Algarve on November 19 and the British overseas territory will then host their first international against the Faroe Islands on March 1 at Victoria Stadium, the Gibraltar FA said on its official Twitter feed. Gibraltar were accepted as a members of European soccer's governing body after a 14-year battle in which they faced fierce opposition from Spain, which disputes sovereignty with Britain. Earlier this month, Gibraltar played three matches in the European under-19 championship qualifying competition, losing 7-0 to Croatia and Cyprus and 3-0 to the Czech Republic. They also played European under-17 championship qualifiers, losing 2-1 to Armenia, 4-1 to Ireland and 8-0 to England. Gibraltar will take part in qualifying for Euro 2016, which is being hosted by France, and will find out who their group opponents are when the draw is made on February 23 in Nice. Slovakia will play Gibraltar four days after visiting Poland and will name their squad on November 4, the Slovak FA said. (Reporting by Martin Santa; additional reporting by Brian Homewood in Berne; Editing by Ken Ferris)