Football is an admired sports discipline in numerous countries of the world and Namibia is not an exception. This kind of sport enjoys a significant popularity in this country and all important tournaments gather a great number of fans. The Namibia Premier League was the domestic league of the country which was formed in 1990, but folded in 2020. Instead of it, there was another league set up in 2020 called The Namibia Premier Football League. Twelve football clubs compete in this league.
The official body that manages the national team as well as organises and regulates football competitions in the country is Namibia Football Association. It was created in 1990 and became a full member of CAF and FIFA in 1992. Namibia has its national association football team that is known by the nickname Brave Warriors. In this article, you will find out full information regarding the team. By the way, if you are interested in making bets in live mode, then you should follow the link and you will uncover top live betting sites for you.
History of the team
- On May 16, 1989, Namibia hosted Angola in their debut international football match. At that time, the team was called South-West Africa. The team lost the game back then with the score of 1-0.
- Namibia confronted Zimbabwe on the twenty-third of March in 1990, barely 2 days after the country became independent from South Africa. The team was defeated with the score of 5-1.
- On June 7, they were defeated 2–1 by Mauritius in a friendly match at home.
- Namibia’s next matches took place in Lesotho. The team lost 2–0 to their opponents on August 1, 1992. However, they earned their first draw in history the following day in a 2–2 stalemate against the same opposing team.
- Namibia’s first victory happened in the match against Botswana on the first of July in 1994, when they won 1–0.
- Namibia was defeated with the score of 2–1 by non-African opposition in their debut encounter that took place beyond the borders of Africa on the seventeenth of May in 1998.
The biggest win in the history of the team happened on July 15, 2000 in Windhoek, Namibia, in the match against Benin. Namibia defeated the opponent with a score of 8-2. The second great win took place on August 25, 1996 in the match against Botswana. Namibia won with the score of 6-0.
As far as the biggest defeats are considered, there were two of them in the history of the football club. The first one happened on November 8, 1996 in Cairo against Egypt. Namibia was defeated with the score of 7-1. The second great defeat happened on July 13, 2001 in Alexandria in the match against Egypt as well. The game ended with a score of 8-2 in favour of Egypt.
The current head coach of the team is Bobby Samaria who is a former football player and was appointed on this position in the year 2019. Before him, Ricardo Mannetti managed the team from 2015 until 2019.
Achievements and tournaments
The Namibia national football team has never competed in a FIFA World Cup. Although it finished in second place in the COSAFA Cup two times. The team also participated in Africa Cup three times in 1998, 2008 and 2019, but it finished at the group stage of the competition.
Brave Warriors also played in the African Nations Championship two times – for the first time in 2018. They appeared in the COSAFA Cup as well nineteen times – first in 1977. The team earned the title of champion in this competition in 2015.
When it comes to the latest news concerning the most recent games played by the Namibian national team, it was played against Guinea in 2021AFCONQ. The match took place on March 28, 2021 and ended with a score of 2-1 in favour of Namibia. Brave Warriors participated in 2021 COSAFA Cup Group B. They played against Senegal on July 7, 2021 and beat the opponent with the score of 2-1. The team also played against Zimbabwe on July 11, 2021 and won with the score of 2-0.
Full Squad information
Below you will uncover all the information concerning the present Namibia squad of the team:
- Virgil Vries (33 years old) – goalkeeper;
- Lloyd Kazapua (33 years old) – goalkeeper;
- Ndisiro Kamaijanda (22 years old) – goalkeeper;
- Calvin Spiegel (24 years old) – goalkeeper;
- Mbemuthiua Mata (29 years old) – goalkeeper;
- Larry Horaeb (30 years old) – defender;
- Riaan Hanamub (27 years old) – defender;
- Vharles Hambira (31 years old) – defender;
- Ivan Kamberips (28 years old) – defender;
- Aprocius Petrus (22 years old) – defender;
- Immanuel Heita (29 years old) – defender;
- Ryan Nyambe (24 years old) – defender;
- Lubeni Haukongo (21 years old) – defender;
- Kennedy Amutenya (25 years old) – defender;
- Denzil Haoseb (31 years old) – midfielder;
- Deon Hotto (31 years old) – midfielder;
- Willy Stephanus (30 years old) – midfielder;
- Absalom Iimbondi (30 years old) – midfielder;
- Dynamo Fredericks (30 years old) – midfielder;
- Marcel Papama (25 years old) – midfielder;
- Alfeus Handura (28 years old) – midfielder;
- Wesley Katjiteo (28 years old) – midfielder;
- Ambrosius Amseb (27 years old) – midfielder;
- Wendell Rudath (26 years old) – midfielder;
- Prins Tjueza (20 years old) – midfielder;
- Peter Shalulile (29 years old) – forward;
- Elmo Kambindu (28 years old) – forward;
- Joslin Kamatuka (30 years old) – forward.
The top goalscorers of the national team which are admired in African football are:
- Rudolf Bester – 13 goals over his career 2004-2014.
- Peter Shalulile – 12 goals from the year 2014 up to now.
- Gervatius Urikhob – 11 goals over his career 1993–2003.
- Deon Hotto – 10 goals from 2013 to present.
- Johannes Hindjou – 10 goals over his career 1996–2005.
Look ahead: Prospects and team development
The Namibian national team is undoubtedly causing a stir on the South African soccer scene and has a potential for further growth and development. Although The Brave Warriors are not popular worldwide, they take a high position in the grand tournaments of Africa such as Africa cup of nations and Confederations Cup and instil hope in their fans.
