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Namibia national football team facts for kids

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Namibia
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s) Brave Warriors
Association Namibia Football Association (NFA)
Confederation CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation COSAFA (Southern Africa)
Head coach Collin Benjamin
Captain Peter Shalulile
Most caps Denzil Haoseb (82)
Top scorer Peter Shalulile (16)
Home stadium Independence Stadium
FIFA code NAM
First colours
Second colours
Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current 110 Increase 1 (7 February 2019)
Highest 68 (November 1998)
Lowest 167 (July 2006)
Elo ranking
Current 111 Increase 4 (3 March 2019)
Highest 100 (12 September 1998)
Lowest 165 (22 July 2006)
First international
South Africa South-West Africa 0–1 Angola 
(Namibia; 16 May 1989)
Biggest win
 Namibia 6–0 Botswana 
(Windhoek, Namibia; 25 August 1996)
 Namibia 8–2 Benin 
(Windhoek, Namibia; 15 July 2000)
Biggest defeat
 Egypt 7–1 Namibia 
(Cairo, Egypt; 8 November 1996)
 Egypt 8–2 Namibia 
(Alexandria, Egypt; 13 July 2001)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances 4 (first in 1998)
Best result Round of 16 (2023)
African Nations Championship
Appearances 2 (first in 2018)
Best result Quarter-finals (2018)
COSAFA Cup
Appearances 19 (first in 1997)
Best result Champions (2015)
Medal record
COSAFA Cup
Gold 2015 South Africa
Silver 1997 Southern Africa
Silver 1999 Southern Africa

The Namibia national football team represents Namibia in men's international football and is controlled by the Namibia Football Association. They have never qualified for the FIFA World Cup but have made four appearances in the Africa Cup of Nations. The team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

History

Namibia played its first international under the name South-West Africa on 16 May 1989 at home against neighbouring Angola and lost 1–0. On 23 March 1990, only two days after gaining independence from South Africa, they hosted neighbour Zimbabwe and lost 5–1. On 7 June, they lost a home friendly 2–1 to Mauritius. Namibia's next contests were played in Lesotho, where they lost 2–0 to their hosts on 1 August 1992, but gained their first ever draw in a 2–2 tie against the same opposition the very next day. Namibia's first win came on 1 July 1994 in a 1–0 victory away over Botswana in a friendly. On 17 May 1998, Namibia played their first match outside of Africa and against non-African opposition, losing 2–1 in a friendly in France against Saudi Arabia.

Namibia has made four appearances in the African Cup of Nations, going out in the first round in their first three competitions and going out in the Round of 16 in their fourth competition. In 1998, Namibia lost to Ivory Coast 4–3 and drew Angola 3–3 before losing to South Africa 4–1. In 2008, Namibia lost to Morocco 5–1 and to Ghana 1–0 but drew Guinea 1–1 in their last match. In 2019, they lost all their group games scoring only a single goal. They lost to Morocco 1–0, and suffered the same loss to South Africa before losing to Ivory Coast 4–1.

The most capped player of the Brave Warriors is defender Denzil Haoseb with 82 caps while Peter Shalulile is the all-time top goal scorer with 16 goals. He reached this milestone in a 1-1 draw against Cameroon in the AFCON qualifiers at Yaoundé on 24 March 2023.

Namibia reached the Round of 16 for the first time in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, where they lost 3-0 against Angola.

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2023

2024

Coaching history

Caretaker managers are listed in italics.
  • Namibia Eric Muinjo (1992–1993)
  • Zimbabwe Shepherd Murape (1994–1995)
  • Namibia Ruston Mogane (1997–1998)
  • Namibia Mlungisi Ngubane (1998)
  • Namibia Seth Boois (1998–1999)
  • Germany Heinz-Peter Überjahn (1999)
  • Namibia Herman Katjiuongua (2000)
  • Namibia Lucky Richter (2000)
  • Romania Ted Dumitru (2000–2003)
  • Zimbabwe Shepherd Murape (2004)
  • Zambia Ben Bamfuchile (2006–2007)
  • Netherlands Arie Schans (2007–2008)
  • Belgium Tom Saintfiet (2008–2010)
  • Namibia Brian Isaacs (2010–2011)
  • Namibia Bernard Kaanjuka (2011–2013)
  • Sweden Roger Palmgren (2013)
  • Namibia Ricardo Mannetti (2013–2015)
  • Namibia Fillemon Kanalelo (2015)
  • Namibia Ricardo Mannetti (2015–2019)
  • Namibia Bobby Samaria (2019–2021)
  • Namibia Collin Benjamin (2022–present)

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Caps and goals correct as of 27 January 2024, after the match against Angola.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Lloyd Kazapua (1989-03-25) 25 March 1989 (age 35) 41 0 South Africa Chippa United
16 1GK Kamaijanda Ndisiro (1999-12-01) 1 December 1999 (age 24) 5 0 Namibia African Stars
23 1GK Edward Maova (1994-09-05) 5 September 1994 (age 29) 13 0 South Africa Pretoria Callies

2 2DF Denzil Haoseb (1991-02-25) 25 February 1991 (age 33) 83 0 Namibia Khomas Nampol
3 2DF Ananias Gebhardt (1988-09-08) 8 September 1988 (age 35) 65 2 South Africa Baroka
4 2DF Riaan Hanamub (1995-02-08) 8 February 1995 (age 29) 44 0 South Africa AmaZulu
5 2DF Charles Hambira (1990-06-03) 3 June 1990 (age 33) 29 3 Namibia African Stars
12 2DF Kennedy Amutenya (1996-07-15) 15 July 1996 (age 27) 15 0 Botswana Gaborone United
18 2DF Aprocius Petrus (1999-10-09) 9 October 1999 (age 24) 33 0 Kosovo Liria Prizren
20 2DF Ivan Kamberipa (1994-02-03) 3 February 1994 (age 30) 32 0 Botswana Orapa United
21 2DF Lubeni Haukongo (2000-09-24) 24 September 2000 (age 23) 7 0 South Africa Cape Town Spurs
22 2DF Ryan Nyambe (1997-12-03) 3 December 1997 (age 26) 18 0 England Derby County

6 3MF Ngero Katua (2001-07-25) 25 July 2001 (age 22) 12 0 Namibia UNAM
8 3MF Uetuuru Kambato (1998-01-24) 24 January 1998 (age 26) 3 0 Namibia African Stars
10 3MF Prins Tjiueza (2002-03-12) 12 March 2002 (age 22) 14 1 Kosovo Liria Prizren
14 3MF Joslin Kamatuka (1991-07-27) 27 July 1991 (age 32) 26 3 South Africa Maritzburg United
15 3MF Marcel Papama (1996-04-28) 28 April 1996 (age 27) 34 1 Botswana Jwaneng Galaxy
17 3MF Wendell Rudath (1995-07-10) 10 July 1995 (age 28) 17 2 Botswana Jwaneng Galaxy
19 3MF Petrus Shitembi (1992-05-11) 11 May 1992 (age 31) 79 4 Malaysia Kuching City

7 4FW Deon Hotto (1990-10-29) 29 October 1990 (age 33) 73 11 South Africa Orlando Pirates
9 4FW Bethuel Muzeu (2000-02-22) 22 February 2000 (age 24) 15 1 South Africa Black Leopards
11 4FW Absalom Iimbondi (1991-10-11) 11 October 1991 (age 32) 64 7 Namibia Khomas Nampol
13 4FW Peter Shalulile (Captain) (1993-03-23) 23 March 1993 (age 31) 54 16 South Africa Mamelodi Sundowns

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for Namibia in the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Jonas Mateus (1996-02-10) 10 February 1996 (age 28) 0 0 Namibia Ongos Valley 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK Immanuel Immanuel (1990-12-02) 2 December 1990 (age 33) 0 0 Namibia Blue Waters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK Philipp Katjimune (1996-10-02) 2 October 1996 (age 27) 0 0 South Africa Orlando Pirates 2023 COSAFA Cup
GK Mervin Kazetura (1997-05-02) 2 May 1997 (age 26) 0 0 Namibia African Stars v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE
GK Nelly Rooi (1998-08-10) 10 August 1998 (age 25) 0 0 Namibia United Africa Tigers v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE

DF Steven Damaseb (2002-10-11) 11 October 2002 (age 21) 4 0 Namibia Blue Waters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Lubeni Haukongo (2000-09-24) 24 September 2000 (age 23) 2 0 South Africa Cape Town Spurs 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Erasmus Ikeinge (1995-02-08) 8 February 1995 (age 29) 1 0 Namibia Khomas Nampol 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Given Mutuezu (1997-03-21) 21 March 1997 (age 27) 0 0 Namibia Mighty Gunners 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Stefan Amukwaya (1997-10-03) 3 October 1997 (age 26) 1 0 Namibia Orlando Pirates 2023 COSAFA Cup
DF Gianluca Kahingunga (1998-10-19) 19 October 1998 (age 25) 0 0 Namibia Okahandja United v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE
DF Nalikewe Nalweendo (1998-10-18) 18 October 1998 (age 25) 0 0 Namibia Citizens v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE
DF Johannes Shifafure (2000-06-04) 4 June 2000 (age 23) 0 0 Namibia Julinho Sporting v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE

MF Ronald Ketjijere (1987-12-12) 12 December 1987 (age 36) 65 2 Namibia African Stars 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Edmund Kambanda (1993-02-25) 25 February 1993 (age 31) 9 1 Namibia African Stars 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Edmar Kamatuka (2002-07-26) 26 July 2002 (age 21) 5 0 Namibia UNAM 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Romeo Kasume (1997-10-21) 21 October 1997 (age 26) 4 0 Namibia Ongos Valley 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Revered Matroos (1993-03-08) 8 March 1993 (age 31) 1 0 Namibia Khomas Nampol 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Simon Elago (2000-11-28) 28 November 2000 (age 23) 1 0 Namibia Tura Magic 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Paulus Amutenya (2002-07-22) 22 July 2002 (age 21) 0 0 Namibia UNAM 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Lawrence Doeseb (2003-06-04) 4 June 2003 (age 20) 0 0 Namibia Life Fighters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Alfeus Leevi (2001-01-18) 18 January 2001 (age 23) 0 0 Namibia Eeshoke Chula Chula 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Tjipe Karuuombe (2001-09-21) 21 September 2001 (age 22) 0 0 Namibia UNAM 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Steven Damaseb (2002-10-11) 11 October 2002 (age 21) 0 0 Namibia Blue Waters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Moses Shidolo (1998-05-20) 20 May 1998 (age 25) 0 0 Namibia Eeshoke Chula Chula 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Devin Somseb (1995-05-29) 29 May 1995 (age 28) 3 0 Namibia United Africa Tigers 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Dynamo Fredericks (1992-04-04) 4 April 1992 (age 32) 45 1 Namibia African Stars 2023 COSAFA Cup
MF Ralph Nghipandulwa (2002-07-22) 22 July 2002 (age 21) 2 0 Namibia UNAM 2023 COSAFA Cup
MF Niklas Shikomba (1990-05-29) 29 May 1990 (age 33) 2 0 Namibia Life Fighters 2023 COSAFA Cup
MF Wolfgang Kaapanda (1993-08-03) 3 August 1993 (age 30) 1 0 Namibia Young Brazilians 2023 COSAFA Cup

FW Elmo Kambindu (1993-05-26) 26 May 1993 (age 30) 28 9 South Africa Chippa United 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Isaskar Gurirab (1998-03-01) 1 March 1998 (age 26) 12 2 Namibia Blue Waters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Junior Petrus (2000-06-17) 17 June 2000 (age 23) 4 0 Kosovo Liria Prizren 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Erastus Kulula (1997-02-27) 27 February 1997 (age 27) 0 0 Namibia Blue Waters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Sem Ndeshipanda Ndahangwapo (2000-09-24) 24 September 2000 (age 23) 0 0 Namibia Blue Waters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Michelino Hei-Gauseb (1998-01-16) 16 January 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Namibia Okahandja United v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE
FW Eliakim Jadsson (1997-10-01) 1 October 1997 (age 26) 0 0 Namibia Life Fighters v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE
FW Nehemia Ndengu (1998-10-03) 3 October 1998 (age 25) 0 0 Namibia Tura Magic v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE
FW Erwin Tjiuja (1998-11-16) 16 November 1998 (age 25) 0 0 Namibia Life Fighters v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE
FW Stofell Witbeen (1999-11-28) 28 November 1999 (age 24) 0 0 Namibia Okahandja United v.  Cameroon; 24 March 2023 PRE

DEC Player refused to join the team after the call-up.
INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
PRE Preliminary squad.
RET Player has retired from international football.
SUS Suspended from the national team.

Previous squads

Africa Cup of Nations Squads
  • 1998 Africa Cup of Nations squad
  • 2008 Africa Cup of Nations squad
  • 2019 Africa Cup of Nations squad

Player records

Players in bold are still active with Namibia.
Most appearances
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Denzil Haoseb 83 0 2011–present
2 Petrus Shitembi 79 4 2011–present
3 Ronald Ketjijere 74 2 2010–2019
4 Deon Hotto 73 11 2013–present
5 Ananias Gebhardt 65 2 2011–present
6 Absalom Iimbondi 64 7 2015–present
7 Johannes Hindjou 63 10 1996–2005
8 Larry Horaeb 61 0 2011–present
9 Mohamed Ouseb 60 3 1994–2004
Willy Stephanus 60 3 2011–present
Top goalscorers
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Peter Shalulile 16 54 0.3 2014–present
2 Rudolph Bester 13 46 0.28 2004–2014
3 Gervatius Urikhob 11 40 0.28 1993–2003
Deon Hotto 11 73 0.15 2013–present
5 Johannes Hindjou 10 63 0.16 1996–2005
6 Elmo Kambindu 9 28 0.32 2019–present
Benson Shilongo 9 34 0.26 2011–2021
Eliphas Shivute 9 37 0.24 1993–2001
9 Hendrik Somaeb 8 31 0.28 2011–2019
Ruben van Wyk 8 33 0.24 1994–2002

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup record

FIFA World Cup Qualification
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 1990 Part of  South Africa Part of  South Africa
United States 1994 did not qualify 4 0 0 4 0 12
France 1998 8 2 2 4 9 18
South Korea Japan 2002 10 1 3 6 7 27
Germany 2006 2 0 1 1 1 4
South Africa 2010 6 2 0 4 7 12
Brazil 2014 8 3 2 3 10 4
Russia 2018 4 1 1 2 3 5
Qatar 2022 8 3 2 3 9 11
Canada Mexico United States 2026 to be determined 2 1 0 1 2 1
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 to be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total 0/8 52 13 11 28 48 94

Africa Cup of Nations record

Africa Cup of Nations record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
Sudan
1957
to
Algeria
1990
Part of  South Africa
Senegal
1992
to
Tunisia
1994
did not enter
South Africa 1996 did not qualify
Burkina Faso
1998
Group stage 14 3 0 1 2 7 11
Ghana
Nigeria
2000
did not qualify
Mali
2002
Tunisia
2004
Egypt
2006
Ghana
2008
Group stage 10 3 0 1 2 2 7
Angola
2010
did not qualify
Equatorial Guinea
Gabon
2012
South Africa
2013
Equatorial Guinea
2015
Gabon
2017
Egypt
2019
Group stage 23rd 3 0 0 3 1 6
Cameroon
2021
did not qualify
Ivory Coast
2023
Round of 16 15th 4 1 1 2 1 7
Morocco
2025
to be determined
Kenya
Tanzania
Uganda
2027
Total Round of 16 4/36 13 1 3 9 11 31

African Nations Championship record

African Nations Championship record
Appearances: 2
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
Ivory Coast 2009 did not qualify
Sudan 2011
South Africa 2014
Rwanda 2016
Morocco 2018 Quarter-finals 7th 4 2 1 1 3 3
Cameroon 2020 Group stage 15th 3 0 1 2 0 4
Algeria 2022 did not enter
Total Quarter-finals 2/7 7 2 2 3 3 7

COSAFA Cup

Head-to-head record against other nations

Updated on 17 November 2019 after match against  Guinea

      Positive Record       Neutral Record       Negative Record

Opponent
Pld
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
 Algeria 4 0 0 4 0 7 −7
 Angola 14 0 6 8 9 22 −13
 Benin 2 1 0 1 8 4 +4
 Botswana 19 2 10 7 18 19 −1
 Burkina Faso 3 0 0 3 2 11 −9
 Burundi 2 1 0 1 4 4 0
 Chad 3 2 0 1 4 4 0
 Cameroon 2 0 0 2 0 5 −5
 Comoros 5 3 1 1 8 2 +6
 Congo 4 1 0 3 1 7 −6
 Djibouti 2 2 0 0 4 0 +4
 DR Congo 3 1 1 1 7 4 +3
 Egypt 6 0 1 5 6 23 −17
 Eritrea 2 2 0 0 4 1 +3
 Ethiopia 2 2 0 0 4 2 +2
 Gabon 2 0 2 0 2 2 0
 Gambia 4 2 1 1 5 5 0
 Ghana 2 0 0 2 0 2 −2
 Guinea 8 0 2 6 2 15 −13
 Guinea-Bissau 2 0 1 1 0 1 −1
 India 1 0 0 1 0 2 −2
 Ivory Coast 6 2 1 3 8 13 −5
 Kenya 6 4 0 2 5 3 +2
 Lebanon 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
 Lesotho 11 4 4 3 12 12 0
 Liberia 1 1 2 1 2 2 0
 Libya 2 1 0 1 2 2 0
 Madagascar 7 3 1 3 9 10 −1
 Malawi 15 8 3 4 20 15 +5
 Mali 5 1 2 2 3 5 −2
 Mauritius 4 2 0 2 5 4 +1
 Morocco 7 0 1 6 2 15 −13
 Mozambique 17 9 5 3 24 13 +11
 Niger 3 1 0 2 2 3 −1
 Nigeria 4 0 1 3 1 8 −7
 Rwanda 4 0 3 1 3 6 −3
 Saudi Arabia 2 0 0 2 1 3 −2
 Senegal 5 0 0 5 1 16 −15
 Seychelles 6 3 3 0 12 4 +8
 South Africa 10 1 2 7 8 21 −13
 Swaziland 8 1 4 3 7 9 −2
 Tanzania 3 0 2 1 1 3 −2
 Tunisia 4 1 0 3 2 8 −6
 Zambia 20 2 10 8 11 26 −15
 Zimbabwe 12 6 0 6 23 25 −2
Total 253 67 69 117 252 362 −110

Honours

COSAFA Cup
  • Winners: 2015
  • Runners-up: 1997, 1999, 2022

See also

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