WINDHOEK: Namibia’s senior men’s futsal team, known as the ‘Brave Fives,’ are hard at work preparing for the upcoming Futsal African Cup of Nations (AFCON) scheduled for Rabat, Morocco between 11 and 21 April 2024.

The 2024 Futsal AFCON will be the eighth edition of the quadrennial international futsal championship organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for the men’s national teams of Africa.

The AFCON tournament will serve as the CAF qualifiers for the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) Futsal World Cup.

The top three teams from the tournament will qualify for the 2024 FIFA Futsal World Cup, which will be held later in the year in Uzbekistan.

Futsal Namibia’s Communication and Media Officer, Greyeno Rusberg, told Nampa on Thursday that they held trials a week ago and selected 17 players who will prepare for the championship in Morocco.

‘The team’s training camp is scheduled to begin on 18 March 2024 and will continue until the team departs for the championship. Cur
rently, the team has evening training sessions, but the plan is to increase them to twice a day,’ he said.

He added that their aim is to be fully prepared for the upcoming championship so they can be more than mere participants.

‘The competition rules allow us to choose 18 players for the competition, but currently, we only have 17 players. The number may be reduced depending on injuries picked up during the camp, as well as on the team’s tactics,’ Rusberg said.

Rusberg also stated that the team management is currently occupied with looking at ways to arrange an international friendly match before their trip to Morocco.

‘The team’s objective is to compete, not just participate. At the moment, I am happy with the team spirit and energy brought at training; our last game against Tanzania brought us together, and the players now understand what they can do if they work as a unit,’ he said.

The communication and media officer emphasised that Namibia’s qualification for AFCON must not be taken lightly, as it
was the result of hard work and dedication, which he hopes will encourage the business community to start supporting the local futsal league, which will in-turn grow Namibia’s reputation.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency