Germany’s Westphalia U/17 football team will officially visit Namibia from 26 March to 6 April 2026.
The international exchange aims to promote youth development through sport, encourage cultural exchange, and strengthen bilateral sporting relations between Namibia and Germany.
The programme includes training sessions, friendly matches against national and regional teams, and community engagement activities.
According to Roger Kambatuku, national coordinator of the Namibia School Sports Union (NSSU), the bilateral agreement between Westphalia and the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture has been intentionally designed to target development at the grassroots level.
“The NSSU delivered the team in cooperation with the Namibia Football Association. So, I think it’s very important because this is the foundation level; this is the starting stage for sports development,” he said.
Kambatuku emphasised that such engagements add value and credibility to the work the NSSU is doing at the school level. He added that international exchanges are crucial in exposing players to different styles of play and cultures, ultimately accelerating their development.
He further noted that the same group of players who travelled to Germany last year has largely been retained, allowing them to benefit from both away and home experiences. Namibia’s U/17 head coach, Uerikondjera Kasaona, said the team is well prepared following an intensive training camp.
“We have been in camp for almost three weeks, which is quite impressive. We had long enough to prepare, and the players came on time,” Kasaona said.
Reflecting on last year’s tour to Germany, Kasaona acknowledged that the team faced challenges but has since worked on improving.
“We came back to the drawing board and saw how we can better the result from last year. We made some changes, and now we will see whether they benefit the team. In football, everything is a learning curve. It all comes with game preparation, game time, and all thatcan define the results at the end,” she said.
Kasaona described the tour as highly significant for player development, highlighting the importance of early exposure.