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Brunei national football team facts for kids

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This page is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Women's football in Brunei.
Quick facts for kids
Brunei Darussalam
Nickname(s) Tebuan (The Wasps)
Association Football Association of Brunei Darussalam
Confederation AFC (Asia)
Sub-confederation AFF (Southeast Asia)
Head coach Vinícius Eutrópio
Captain Azwan Ali Rahman
Most caps Azwan Saleh (35)
Top scorer Azwan Ali Rahman & Shah Razen Said (8)
Home stadium Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium
FIFA code BRU
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 195 Steady (7 February 2019)
Highest 140 (December 1992)
Lowest 203 (October 2012)
Elo ranking
Current 229 Decrease 1 (3 March 2019)
Highest 163 (1971)
Lowest 230 (2016)
First international
 Malaysia 8–0 Brunei 
(Bangkok, Thailand; 22 May 1971)
Biggest win
 Brunei 4–0 East Timor 
(Kuching, Malaysia; 2 November 2016)
 Brunei 6–2 East Timor 
(Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei; 5 November 2022)
Biggest defeat
 Brunei 0–12 United Arab Emirates 
(Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei; 14 April 2001)
AFC Challenge Cup
Appearances 1 (first in 2006)
Best result Group stage (2006)
AFC Solidarity Cup
Appearances 1 (first in 2016)
Best result Fourth place (2016)
AFF Championship
Appearances 2 (first in 1996)
Best result Group stage (1996, 2022)
Website the-fabd.com

The Brunei national football team (Malay: Pasukan bola sepak kebangsaan Brunei; recognized as Brunei Darussalam by FIFA), nicknamed Tebuan (The Wasps), is the national team of Brunei, controlled by the Football Association of Brunei Darussalam. The team was founded in 1959 and joined FIFA in 1969. In the past, they have also frequently featured in the Malaysian league and cup competitions as one of the state representative sides.

The Brunei State Football Amateur Association was formed on 15 March 1956. In 1993, the word "Amateur" was dropped, and they were known as the Brunei Football Association. Brunei's experience of international football has been more or less restricted to regional Asian competitions, such as the Southeast Asian Games and the AFF Championship. So far, Brunei has entered the FIFA World Cup qualifiers only four times, in 1986, 2002, 2018 and 2022. On these occasions, they did not qualify for the competition. They have made seven appearances in the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers, entering the third round for the first time via the play-off round in 2024.

History

Early days

Brunei football team (1970)
Brunei national football team of 18 players and 4 officers posed for a photo together with Pengiran Yusuf at Berakas Airport in 1970

The national team's first appearance took place during the 1972 AFC Asian Cup qualification, where they were unable to qualify after all three heavy defeats. The following two championships (1976 and 1977) were no different from the first, with their first and second victory during the 1980 Summer Olympics. In 1979, Brunei entered a team to compete in the professional Malaysian league and despite competing against Malaysian clubs, Brunei had previously never made an impact. However, in 1999, they shocked everyone by lifting the Malaysia Cup.

Brunei won their first and only Brunei Merdeka Games trophy in 1985. Since then, team was not able to qualify into or win any major tournaments. Coming the closest was the 1993 Philippines International Cup, where they came in third position after a 1–0 victory against the Philippines. Brunei was then invited for the inaugural 2006 AFC Challenge Cup held in Bangladesh being grouped with Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Nepal. Brunei narrowly lost to Sri Lanka 1–0 before bouncing back from their defeat in the second match winning against Nepal 2–1 however with them needing the win in the last fixture, Brunei ended up in a goalless draw crashing out from the cup splitting the same points as Nepal but on goal differences.

Suspension

In September 2009, the Brunei Football Association (BAFA) was suspended due to governmental interference in its affairs, which started with a decision by the Brunei authorities to dissolve BAFA and to replace it with a new federation in December 2008. The suspension was applied with immediate effect and meant that the Brunei club DPMM were no longer permitted to play in the Singapore S.League until it was resolved. DPMM has confirmed to Football Association of Singapore (FAS) that they are unable to finish their S.League season because of the issue with its association. FIFA rejected FAS's final request on 17 October 2009 to permit DPMM to compete in the current S.League season while BAFA's suspension persisted.

On 19 March 2010, the FIFA Executive Committee agreed to submit to the next FIFA Congress the expulsion of the association if the BAFA has not been reinstated by then, after noting that no major progress had been made since the BAFA was suspended in September 2009. FIFA warned that unless BAFA came to FIFA's Congress on 9 and 10 June in South Africa having met the conditions for reinstatement it would be expelled. Brunei were re-instated on 31 May 2011 and the National Football Association of Brunei Darussalam (NFABD) was formed that same year.

Reform

Indonesia-Brunei 17 October 2023 46
Brunei captain, Hendra Azam playing against Indonesia during the first round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualification

Upon returning to the football action, the Wasps were unable to qualify for both the 2012 and 2014 AFF Championship following several losses. Brunei was again defeated 2–1 in aggregate against the Chinese Taipei during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualification in March 2015. The wasps failed to qualify for the 2016 AFF Championship after suffering defeats from Cambodia and Laos. Brunei was then invited to the 2016 AFC Solidarity Cup where they finished in fourth place after losing 3–2 to Laos. Despite the disappointment, Shah Razen Said from the Bruneian side managed to become the tournament's top scorer, finishing with a total of 4 goals.

Timor-Leste defeated Brunei in the second leg 2018 AFF Championship qualifying match at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium on 8 September 2018, securing their spot in the 2018 AFF Championship final round group action for the first time in 14 years. Despite having a two-goal advantage from the first leg, Timor-Leste fell 1–0 but still advanced with a 3–2 aggregate score. Brunei defeated Mongolia 2–1 on 11 June 2019, but were unable to advance to the next stage of the preliminary joint qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and the 2023 AFC Asian Cup.

Return to the AFF Championship

Under new coach Mario Rivera, Brunei managed to qualify to the 2022 AFF Championship for the first time in 26 years since its inaugural edition in 1996, by defeating Timor-Leste 6–3 on aggregate. The Wasps were grouped with Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and Cambodia. They finished the group stage without gaining a single point, conceding at least 5 goals in every game with Razimie Ramlli scoring against the Philippines and Nur Ikhwan Othman scoring against Cambodia.

On 17 October 2023, Brunei returned to the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium after four years since their last match against Mongolia in 2019 for their fixture against Indonesia in the first round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification. The Wasps were beaten 0–12 on aggregate, knocking them out of the qualification in the first round.

2024 win streak

In 2024, FIFA invited Brunei to the 2024 FIFA Series held in March in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia where they would face their first ever opponents outside of their confederation. On 22 March, Brunei faced off against CONCACAF opponent Bermuda but conceded two late goals, losing 2–0. Four days later, Brunei came against Vanuatu and won the match 3–2, when three minutes into stoppage time Hakeme Yazid Said's direct free kick sealed the victory against their opponents from Oceania.

Later in June of that year, Brunei invited the Sri Lanka national team to two friendly matches in the country in conjunction with the FIFA calendar. Headed by interim coach Rui Capela Batista, Brunei extended their winning form to three which is the first time in their history after captain Azwan Ali Rahman scored the only goal in both games held at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium on 8 and 11 June respectively.

The following September, Brunei registered two wins against Macau with an aggregate of 4–0 during the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification play-off round to further stretch the streak to five games and thus gaining their spot at the third qualification round of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification. The following month, they failed to qualify for the 2024 ASEAN Championship, losing to Timor-Leste 0–1 on aggregate.

Team image

Indonesia-Brunei 17 October 2023 27
Goalkeeper (left) and home kits (right) of Brunei in 2023

Kit

Brunei had initially worn a predominantly yellow pattern as their home kit adorned with white or black since their inception in 1956 to represent the colours of their flags. The current kit manufacturer is Puma which was incorporated since 2024.

Home stadium

Brunei's home stadium is the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium in Bandar Seri Begawan. The stadium capacity is 28,000. From 2021 to 2022, Brunei used the Track & Field Sports Complex as an alternative stadium as their main stadium went for a renovation works for improvement however as the Track & Field Sports Complex does not meet the required standards, Brunei chose the Kuala Lumpur Stadium in Malaysia as their home ground for their 2022 AFF Championship matches.

Brunei national football team home stadiums
Image Stadium Capacity Location Last match
Indonesia-Brunei 17 October 2023 08.jpg Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium 28,000 Bandar Seri Begawan v   East Timor (8 October 2024; 2024 ASEAN Championship qualification)
Bandar Seri Begawan, 4 February 2024 06.jpg Track & Field Sports Complex 1,700 Bandar Seri Begawan v  Malaysia Sabah FC (6 September 2023; Unofficial friendly)

Results and fixtures

Main article: Brunei national football team results

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

2024

Coaching staff

Position Name
Head coach Brazil Vinícius Eutrópio
Team manager Brunei Azmi Azizul
Assistant coach Brazil Felipe Sampaio
Goalkeeping coach Brunei Omar Nur Aqammaddin Sallehuddin
Fitness coach Brazil Solivan Della Valle
Kitman Brunei Roney Morni
Media officer BruneiEngland Hazim Hamzah

Coaching history

Caretaker coaches are listed in italics.
  • Singapore John Then (1959–71)
  • Brunei Abdul Karim Pukul & Brunei Ibrahim Yahya (1971)
  • Scotland Duncan McDowell (1976–81)
  • Brunei Ibrahim Damit (1982)
  • Brunei Idris Damit (1983)
  • Uruguay Danny Bergara (1984)
  • Brazil Oscar Amaro de Silva (1985–86)
  • Brunei Dayem Ali (1987)
  • Brunei Zainuddin Kassim (1988)
  • Brunei Dayem Ali (1989)
  • Singapore Hussein Aljunied (1990–1993)
  • England Mick Lyons (1993–95)
  • Australia Bobby McLachlan (1995)
  • England David Booth (1996–98)
  • England Mick Jones (1998–01)
  • Brunei Zainuddin Kassim (2001)
  • England Mick Lyons (2002)
  • Morocco Karim Bencherifa (2003–04)
  • Bosnia and Herzegovina Amir Alagić (2005)
  • Croatia Ranko Buketa (2005)
  • Brunei Ali Mustafa (2006)
  • South Korea Kwon Oh-Son (2008)
  • Croatia Vjeran Simunić (2008–09)
  • Brunei Ali Mustafa (2009–11)
  • Brunei Dayem Ali (2011)
  • South Korea Kwon Oh-Son (2012–13)
  • Croatia Vjeran Simunić (2013–14)
  • Scotland Steve Kean (2014)
  • Singapore Mike Wong (2014–16)
  • South Korea Kwon Oh-Son (2016)
  • Singapore Stephen Ng (2017)
  • South Korea Kwon Oh-Son (2018)
  • Netherlands Robbie Servais (2019)
  • England Paul Smalley (2019–20)
  • Brunei Ali Mustafa (2020)
  • Malaysia K. Rajagobal (2020–22)
  • Brunei Rosanan Samak (2022)
  • Spain Mario Rivera (2022–2024)
  • Portugal Rui Capela (2024)
  • Scotland Jamie McAllister (2024)
  • Brazil Vinícius Eutrópio (2024–)

Players

Current squad

The following 23 players were called up for the friendly match against Russia on 15 November 2024.

Information correct as of 15 November 2024, after the match against  Russia.
No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Jefri Syafiq Ishak (2002-05-21) 21 May 2002 (age 23) 1 0 Brunei Kuala Belait
18 1GK Abdul Azeez Elyas (1998-08-09) 9 August 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Brunei DPMM II
3 2DF Abdul Mu'iz Sisa (1991-04-20) 20 April 1991 (age 34) 20 1 Brunei DPMM
5 2DF Nurikhwan Othman (1993-01-15) 15 January 1993 (age 32) 21 2 Brunei DPMM
6 2DF Wafi Aminuddin (2000-08-20) 20 August 2000 (age 24) 11 1 Brunei Kasuka
12 2DF Syafiq Safiuddin Abdul Shariff (2002-07-16) 16 July 2002 (age 22) 6 1 Brunei DPMM
13 2DF Hazwan Hamzah (1991-09-09) 9 September 1991 (age 33) 10 0 Brunei Kasuka
22 2DF Alinur Rashimy Jufri (2000-06-12) 12 June 2000 (age 24) 9 0 Brunei Kasuka
23 2DF Yura Indera Putera Yunos (1996-03-25) 25 March 1996 (age 29) 26 0 Brunei DPMM
2 3MF Abdul Wadud Ramli (1999-03-18) 18 March 1999 (age 26) 1 0 Brunei MS PPDB
4 3MF Hanif Farhan Azman (2000-11-02) 2 November 2000 (age 24) 9 0 Brunei DPMM
7 3MF Azwan Ali Rahman (captain) (1992-01-11) 11 January 1992 (age 33) 27 8 Brunei DPMM
9 3MF Amin Sisa (1998-01-02) 2 January 1998 (age 27) 3 0 Brunei Indera
11 3MF Asri Aspar (1996-01-17) 17 January 1996 (age 29) 1 0 Brunei Kasuka
14 3MF Haziq Kasyful Azim Hasimulabdillah (1998-12-24) 24 December 1998 (age 26) 15 0 Brunei Kasuka
16 3MF Shafie Effendy (1995-08-04) 4 August 1995 (age 29) 9 1 Brunei MS ABDB
21 3MF Azwan Saleh (1988-01-06) 6 January 1988 (age 37) 35 3 Brunei DPMM
8 4FW Baharin Hamidon (1987-11-08) 8 November 1987 (age 37) 2 0 Brunei MS ABDB
10 4FW Razimie Ramlli (1990-08-06) 6 August 1990 (age 34) 20 6 Brunei DPMM II
15 4FW Faturrahman Embran (1999-08-22) 22 August 1999 (age 25) 6 0 Brunei DPMM
17 4FW Hakeme Yazid Said (2003-02-08) 8 February 2003 (age 22) 22 3 Brunei DPMM
19 4FW Hariz Danial Khallidden (1996-11-01) 1 November 1996 (age 28) 12 0 Brunei MS ABDB
24 4FW Nasy'rul Wafiy Hassan (1998-12-13) 13 December 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Brunei Kota Ranger

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Brunei squad in the last twelve months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Haimie Abdullah Nyaring (1998-05-31) 31 May 1998 (age 27) 24 0 Brunei DPMM v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
GK Ishyra Asmin Jabidi (1998-07-09) 9 July 1998 (age 26) 2 0 Brunei DPMM v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
DF Hanif Hamir (1997-02-22) 22 February 1997 (age 28) 19 0 Brunei DPMM v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
DF Najib Tarif (1988-02-05) 5 February 1988 (age 37) 30 1 Brunei DPMM v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
DF Nazry Aiman Azaman (2004-07-01) 1 July 2004 (age 20) 5 1 Brunei DPMM v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
DF Afi Aminuddin (1991-10-09) 9 October 1991 (age 33) 18 0 Brunei Kasuka v.  Macau; 10 September 2024
DF Fakharrazi HassanRET (1989-07-15) 15 July 1989 (age 35) 24 2 Retired v.  Vanuatu; 26 March 2024
DF Hirzi Zulfaqar Mahzan (2000-08-13) 13 August 2000 (age 24) 1 0 Unattached v.  Vanuatu; 26 March 2024
MF Hendra Azam Idris (1988-08-10) 10 August 1988 (age 36) 23 0 Brunei Indera v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
MF Abdul Hariz Herman (2000-09-24) 24 September 2000 (age 24) 10 1 Brunei DPMM v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
MF Khairil Shahme Suhaimi (1993-04-16) 16 April 1993 (age 32) 21 0 Brunei Kasuka v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
MF Nazif Safwan Jaini (2000-08-18) 18 August 2000 (age 24) 2 0 Brunei Kasuka v.  Vanuatu; 26 March 2024
MF Nur Asyraffahmi Norsamri (2000-05-04) 4 May 2000 (age 25) 10 0 Unattached v.  Bermuda; 22 March 2024PRE
FW Nazirrudin Ismail (1998-12-27) 27 December 1998 (age 26) 17 1 Brunei DPMM v.  East Timor; 15 October 2024
FW Haziq Naqiuddin Syamra (2004-05-25) 25 May 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Brunei DPMM v.  Sri Lanka; 11 June 2024
Notes
  • STD = On standby
  • PRE = Preliminary squad
  • RET = Retired from international duty

Player records

Players in bold are still active with Brunei.

Most appearances

DPMM-Kota Ranger 27 November 2022 (Players) 15
Azwan Saleh is Brunei's most capped player with 35 appearances.
Rank Name Caps Goals Career
1 Azwan Saleh 35 3 2006–present
2 Najib Tarif 30 1 2008–present
3 Adi Said 28 7 2012–2023
4 Azwan Ali Rahman 27 8 2012–present
5 Yura Indera Putera Yunos 26 0 2012–present
6 Fakharrazi Hassan 24 2 2011–2024
Haimie Abdullah Nyaring 24 0 2016–present
Shah Razen Said 24 8 2008–2019
9 Hendra Azam Idris 23 0 2009–present
Wardun Yussof 23 0 2001–2022

Top goalscorers

Shah Razen Said and Azwan Ali Rahman are Brunei's joint all-time top scorers with 8 goals.
Rank Name Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Shah Razen Said 8 24 0.33 2008–2019
Azwan Ali Rahman 8 27 0.3 2012–present
3 Adi Said 7 28 0.25 2012–2023
4 Razimie Ramlli 6 20 0.3 2016–present
5 Said Abdullah 5 14 0.36 1993–2001
6 Jamhari Lani 3 9 0.33 1985–1987
Adie Arsham Salleh 3 10 0.3 2006–2009
Hardi Bujang 3 12 0.25 2006–2008
Zainuddin Kassim 3 16 0.19 1982–1989
Abdul Azizi Ali Rahman 3 19 0.16 2015–2023
Hakeme Yazid Said 3 22 0.14 2020–present
Azwan Saleh 3 35 0.09 2006–present

Competition records

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup Qualification
Year Round Position Pld W D L F A Pld W D L F A
1930 to 1950 Part of  United Kingdom Part of  United Kingdom
1954 to 1970 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
1974 to 1982 Did not enter Did not enter
Mexico 1986 Did not qualify 6 0 0 6 2 29
1990 to 1998 Did not enter Did not enter
South Korea Japan 2002 Did not qualify 6 0 0 6 0 28
2006 and 2010 Did not enter Did not enter
Brazil 2014 Suspended Suspended
Russia 2018 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 1 2
Qatar 2022 2 1 0 1 2 3
Canada Mexico United States 2026 2 0 0 2 0 12
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total 0/14 18 2 0 16 5 80

AFC Asian Cup

AFC Asian Cup record AFC Asian Cup qualification
Year Result Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Hong Kong 1956 Did not enter Did not enter
South Korea 1960
Israel 1964
Iran 1968
Thailand 1972 Did not qualify 3 0 0 3 0 27
Iran 1976 3 0 0 3 1 19
Kuwait 1980 Withdrew Withdrew
Singapore 1984
Qatar 1988 Did not enter Did not enter
Japan 1992
United Arab Emirates 1996
Lebanon 2000 Did not qualify 3 0 0 3 0 11
China 2004 2 0 1 1 1 6
Indonesia Malaysia Thailand Vietnam 2007 Did not enter Did not enter
Qatar 2011 Did not qualify AFC Challenge Cup
Australia 2015 Withdrew Withdrew
United Arab Emirates 2019 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 1 2
Qatar 2023 2 1 0 1 2 3
Saudi Arabia 2027 To be determined 4 2 0 2 4 12
Total – 0/18 − − − − − − 19 3 1 15 8 80

Asian Games

Asian Games Record
Year Result M W D L GF GA
1951–1998 did not enter
2002–present See Brunei national under-23 football team
Total 0/13 did not enter

AFC Challenge Cup

AFC Challenge Cup
Year Round GP W D L GF GA
Bangladesh 2006 Group stage 3 1 1 1 2 2
India 2008 did not qualify
Sri Lanka 2010
Nepal 2012 Suspended
Maldives 2014 Withdrew
Total Best: Group stage 3 1 1 1 2 2

AFC Solidarity Cup

AFC Solidarity Cup
Year Result GP W D L GF GA
Malaysia 2016 Fourth place 4 1 1 2 7 7
Total Best: Fourth place 4 1 1 2 7 7

ASEAN Championship

This competition was formerly known as the Tiger Cup and afterwards the AFF Championship

Head-to-head record

Brunei national football team results

Honours

Friendly

  • Borneo Cup
    • Winners (3): 1968, 1981, 1987
  • Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Cup
    • Runners-up (1): 1985
  • Philippines International Cup
    • Third place (1): 1993

See also

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