Futsal League kicks off in style

The Namibian futsal season kicked off in style with a new sponsorship and goals galore at the DTS Club over the weekend.

At the launch of the league on Friday, the Namibia Diamond Trading Company (NDTC) was announced as the sponsor of the 2024 Premier League which will consist of 16 teams. The sponsorship amounts to N$450 000, with the league winners due to receive N$25 000, while plans are also afoot to send the top two teams on a trip to play some matches abroad. 

Besides the Premier League there is also a first division, consisting of 19 teams, which continues under the sponsorship of JSB Betting which was announced earlier this year. 

At Friday’s launch, the organiser of Futsal Namibia, Andrei Tirtirau said it was a special day for Futsal Namibia.

“Today is a very big day for us, because it’s our first league that will be launched under the NFA umbrella or the NFA family – we are now in our fourth season, but it’s the first year that we are associated with the NFA,” he said. 

“We formed a national team less than a month after being affiliated to the NFA, which competed at Afcon this year, so that was a big achievement for us, and hopefully, we can do also qualify for the next Afcon in two or three years time,” he added. 

Helena Mootseng of NDTC said it didn’t take long for them to decide to sponsor Futsal Namibia. 

“When Andrei approached NDTC with a sponsorship request for futsal it took a minute to get back to him. It was clear from the onset that it’s something that will help us do what we do best, namely to distinguish value. So that’s what we hope to do with futsal – we hope to give an opportunity to young people to distinguish themselves and to help bring the best out of them,” she said. 

“Opportunities are there, but it’s really what we do with those opportunities that matter. If this is just a fun and games pastime then it’s a wasted opportunity, but if you can take this opportunity to distinguish yourself, you can put yourself on a national or international platform, and you will be able to distinguish yourself in a way that people will know who you are, people will know where you come from, and people will know who your family is, because of what you do,” she added.

The vice president of the NFA, Murs Markus said it was a important milestone for Namibian for Namibian football.

“This event marks a significant milestone in the ongoing development of football in our country, especially considering the relatively short span of four years since the inception of futsal in Namibia. The journey has been remarkable. From our first steps to the recent historic participation in the Futsal Africa Cup of Nations, we have seen the passion, talent, and dedication of our futsal players with pride,” he said.

“As we embark on this new chapter of the Namibia Futsal League, I urge all of us to work beyond the call of duty to make it one of the most competitive leagues on the continent. Let us strive to create an environment for players to thrive, coaches to develop, and administrators to excel. Our goal should not only participate in the next Futsal World Cup but to compete at the highest level,” he added. 

The opening matches, meanwhile, saw some great skills and goals on display. 

The defending league champions Quality FC got off to a winning start with a 4-0 victory against their fierce rivals Patriots, after leading 1-0 at halftime.

Quality’s goalscorers were Ezio Chivas, Luis Solunga, Riya Usurua and Ken Salote.

Chile FC, meanwhile, shot to the top of the log after thrashing Jac Motors 15-0.

Wesley Otto led the way with seven goals, while Bornface Siyanga scored four, Immanuel Angula two, and Jurgen van der Byl and Clinton Hamutenya one each. 

Selecao FC from Swakopmund also got off to a good start with a 7-2 victory against Windhoek Futsal Club. 

Bobby Rutz scored two goals for Selecao and Martin Thomas, Vilho Lawrence, Waldron Theron and Cee-Jay van Wyk one each, while Nanguei Kamatuka and Kagiso Daniel scored for Windhoek FC.

In other results, The Mavericks beat Windhoek Show Society 3-1, Ballers beat 7 Kings 5-2, Ineos Grenadier beat Flying V 2-1, and Knights and X Men drew 3-3.