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Mauritius national football team facts for kids

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Mauritius
Nickname(s) Club M
Les Dodos (The Dodos)
Association Lasosiasion foutborl Moris
Confederation CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation COSAFA (Southern Africa)
Head coach Guillaume Moullec
Captain Kevin Jean-Louis
Most caps Henri Speville (72)
Top scorer Daniel Imbert (17)
Home stadium Stade George V
FIFA code MRI
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 156 Steady (7 February 2019)
Highest 112 (December 1992)
Lowest 197 (November 2013)
Elo ranking
Current 184 Decrease 2 (3 March 2019)
Highest 46 (November 1968)
Lowest 187 (6 August 2011)
First international
 Mauritius 2–1 Réunion Réunion
(Madagascar; Date Unknown 1947)
Biggest win
 Mauritius 15–2 Réunion Réunion
(Madagascar; Date Unknown 1950)
Biggest defeat
 Egypt 7–0 Mauritius 
(Port Said, Egypt; 8 June 2003)
 Seychelles 7–0 Mauritius 
(Witbank, South Africa; 19 July 2008)
 Senegal 7–0 Mauritius 
(Dakar, Senegal; 9 October 2010)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances 1 (first in 1974)
Best result Group stage (1974)
COSAFA Cup
Appearances 16 (first in 2000)
Best result Quarter-finals (2001, 2004)

The Mauritius national football team, also known as Club M or Les Dodos, represents the island nation of Mauritius in international football. This team is managed by the Mauritius Football Association. They are part of FIFA, the global football organization, and also play in African competitions through the Confederation of African Football (CAF). Their current head coach is Guillaume Moullec.

One of their biggest achievements was playing in the 1974 African Cup of Nations. They also won the Indian Ocean Island Games football tournament twice, in 1985 and 2003. They were also finalists in this competition in 1990, 2011, and 2019.

History of Mauritian Football

Early Days of the Team

Mauritius played its first official international football game in 1947. They won 2–1 against Réunion. For about 20 years, they mostly played against Réunion and Madagascar. This was probably because these three islands are close to each other. They competed in friendly matches and a tournament called the Indian Ocean Games Triangulaire. This tournament ran from 1947 to 1963. Mauritius was very successful, winning the competition ten times. They finished second twice and third once.

From the 1960s to the 1990s

In 1967, the Mauritius team started playing against more countries. They began to enter bigger tournaments like the Africa Cup of Nations and the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. However, they didn't have much success in these larger competitions. They have never made it to the World Cup finals. But they did qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations once, in 1974. They were knocked out in the group stage of that tournament.

Mauritius managed to win the Indian Ocean Games again in 1985. In 1999, there were some serious events that led to all local football games being stopped for 18 months. Only the national team was allowed to play. Many people believe this was a turning point. It's seen as the start of a difficult period for Mauritian football, both locally and internationally.

The 2000s and Today

In the new millennium, the national team's performance slowly got worse. In 2000, they were ranked 116th in the FIFA World Rankings. But by 2011, they dropped to their lowest ever rank, 195th.

A highlight came in 2003 when Mauritius won the Indian Ocean Island Games on their home ground. This was under coach Akbar Patel. They also had a good 3-1 home win against Uganda in a World Cup qualifier in November 2003. However, Uganda still moved forward in the tournament. In January 2004, Mauritius reached the quarter-finals of the 2004 COSAFA Cup. They beat South Africa 2–0. But they lost 3–1 to Zambia, who were favorites to win.

After these successes, the team went through a tough period. They suffered some of their biggest defeats and won very few official games. Many different coaches have led the team since 2000, but none have had lasting success.

During the 2017 African Cup of Nations qualifiers, Les Dodos had some of their best results in ten years. They beat both Mozambique and Rwanda. However, they couldn't keep this momentum going. They lost to Comoros and then São Tomé and Príncipe in the next two tournaments.

In the 2023 AFCoN qualifiers, Mauritius played São Tomé again. They lost the first game 1–0 and drew the second 3–3 at home, so they didn't move forward. Later, the football organization CAF said that one of São Tomé's players was not allowed to play. This meant Mauritius was given a 3–0 win and moved into the group stages. But this decision was later changed after São Tomé appealed.

In 2023, Mauritius had impressive wins against Kenya (1-0) and Angola (1-0). Kenya was ranked in the top 100 teams by FIFA. However, in the 2025 AFCoN qualifiers, Mauritius lost to Chad. This means they have not reached the group stage of the qualification round for four tournaments in a row.

Team Information

Media Coverage

For important home games, the Mauritius Broadcasting Corporation often shows the matches on TV.

Kit Sponsors

The team's jerseys and gear have been provided by different sports brands over the years.

Kit provider Period
Germany Puma 1985–1998
Mauritius Allsports 1998–2003
United States Nike 2003–2006
Mauritius Allsports 2006–2009
Germany Adidas 2009–2017
Spain Joma 2017–2019
Germany Adidas 2019–2022
Italy Macron 2022–2023
India Nivia 2023–Present

Supporters' Club

On May 30, 2011, the official fan club for Club M, called Kop Moris, was started. This was a big moment for football fans in Mauritius. The main goal of this club is to create excitement for Mauritius' games. They want to fill the stadiums and make a fun, family-friendly atmosphere. The MFA officially supports this fan club.

Home Stadiums

Mauritius now plays most of its games at the modern Complexe Sportif de Côte d'Or. This stadium can hold 7,000 people. Before, high-profile matches were played at Stade Anjalay, which holds 18,000 people. Some games were also played at Stade George V, which has a capacity of 6,200.

Recent Matches

Here are the results of matches played by the team in the last 12 months. Also, any upcoming games are listed.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2023 Matches

2024 Matches

Team Staff

Current Staff Members

These are the people who currently work with the national football team.

Position Name
Head coach France Guillaume Moullec
Assistant Coach Mauritius Sanjay Ramchurn
Assistant coach Mauritius Oliver Dufresne
Fitness Coach Mauritius Sameer Chattarjee
Goalkeeper Coach Mauritius Karan Jadhav
Match Analyst Mauritius Manoj Desai
Doctors Mauritius Pradeep Menon
Mauritius Ashok Puran
Physiotherapists Mauritius Jonas Gosselin
Mauritius Neelesh Singh
Mauritius Amit Pillay
Mauritius Suresh Sharma
Team Coordinator Mauritius Jonathan Bru
Technical Director Mauritius Akbar Patel

Past Managers

Many different people have coached the Mauritius national team over the years.

  • England Harry Brophy (1957–59)
  • Mauritius Joseph Le Roy (1959–63)
  • Scotland Danny McLennan (1963–64)
  • Mauritius Mohammad Anwar Elahee (1970–88)
  • Germany Helmut Kosmehl (1976–88)
  • Germany Rudi Gutendorf (1993)
  • Mauritius Mohammad Anwar Elahee (1994–96)
  • Mauritius Akbar Patel (1996-97)
  • Germany Rudi Gutendorf (1997)
  • Mauritius Ashok Chundunsing (1998)
  • Mauritius Rajen Dorasami & Mauritius France L'Aiguille (1998–02)
  • France Patrick Parizon (2002–03)
  • Mauritius Akbar Patel & Mauritius Saoud Lallmahomed (2003)
  • Mauritius Elvis Antoine & Mauritius Rajesh Gunesh (2003–05)
  • Mauritius Sarjoo Gowreesunkur (2006)
  • Mauritius Rajen Dorasami & Mauritius France L'Aiguille (2006)
  • Mauritius Akbar Patel (2007)
  • Mauritius Ashok Chundunsing (2007–08)
  • Mauritius Benjamin Théodore (2008–09)
  • Mauritius Akbar Patel (2009–14)
  • France Didier Six (2015)
  • France Alain Happe (2015–16)
  • Belgium Joe Tshupula (2016–17)
  • Brazil Francisco Filho (2017–18)
  • Mauritius Akbar Patel (2018–19)
  • Algeria Boualem Mankour (2020–2021)
  • Mauritius Tony François (2021–2023)
  • Madagascar Fidy Rasoanaivo (2023–2024)
  • France Guillaume Moullec (2024–present)

Players

Current Team Squad

These are the players chosen for the friendly game against Hong Kong on November 19, 2024.

The number of games played (caps) and goals scored are correct as of September 6, 2024, after the game against Syria.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Kevin Jean-Louis (1989-06-27) 27 June 1989 (age 35) 64 0 Mauritius Pamplemousses
1GK Dorian Chiotti (1998-08-16) 16 August 1998 (age 26) 6 0 Luxembourg Hostert

2DF Wilson Mootoo (2002-04-08) 8 April 2002 (age 23) 26 0 Czech Republic Opava
2DF Jordan François (2002-05-05) 5 May 2002 (age 23) 20 0 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim
2DF Lindsay Rose (1992-02-08) 8 February 1992 (age 33) 17 1 Greece Aris
2DF Dylan Collard (2000-04-16) 16 April 2000 (age 25) 10 1 Portugal Lusitânia
2DF Brandon Citorah (1994-01-09) 9 January 1994 (age 31) 7 0 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim
2DF Bradley Antoine (2003-04-06) 6 April 2003 (age 22) 1 0 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim

3MF Adrien Botlar (1996-09-19) 19 September 1996 (age 28) 26 0 Mauritius Pamplemousses
3MF Yannick Aristide (2001-03-15) 15 March 2001 (age 24) 24 2 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim
3MF Jérémy Villeneuve (1994-04-25) 25 April 1994 (age 31) 23 2 France Créteil-Lusitanos
3MF Pascal Colin (1996-04-07) 7 April 1996 (age 29) 8 0 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim
3MF Stephan De Robillard (2002-12-02) 2 December 2002 (age 22) 3 0 Australia Sydney United 58
3MF Gabriel Caliste (2006-11-18) 18 November 2006 (age 18) 2 0 England West Ham United

4FW Adrien François (1999-08-26) 26 August 1999 (age 25) 38 4 Réunion Trois Bassins
4FW Aurélien François (2003-10-29) 29 October 2003 (age 21) 15 3 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim
4FW Jason Ferre (1998-11-20) 20 November 1998 (age 26) 13 2 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim
4FW Cooper Legrand (1998-12-30) 30 December 1998 (age 26) 3 0 Australia Kingston City
4FW Quentin Lalsing (2007-05-28) 28 May 2007 (age 18) 2 0 Germany Augsburg

Recent Player Call-ups

These players have also been called to join the Mauritius squad in the last year.


Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up

DF Emmanuel Vincent (1997-08-27) 27 August 1997 (age 27) 53 1 Réunion Saint-Denis v.  Syria, 6 September 2024
DF Bernard Jubeau (1992-05-13) 13 May 1992 (age 33) 9 0 Réunion Port-Louis 2000 v.  Chad, 26 March 2024

MF Adel Langue (1997-09-17) 17 September 1997 (age 27) 47 0 France Vitry v.  Syria, 6 September 2024
MF Kévin Bru (1988-12-12) 12 December 1988 (age 36) 30 3 Iceland ÍBV v.  Eswatini, 11 June 2024
MF Nando Jackson (1999-03-11) 11 March 1999 (age 26) 21 0 Réunion Trois Bassins v.  Eswatini, 11 June 2024
MF David Aristide (2002-02-01) 1 February 2002 (age 23) 20 0 Mauritius Cercle de Joachim v.  Eswatini, 11 June 2024
MF Allan Wan Kut Kai (1999-01-21) 21 January 1999 (age 26) 4 0 Austria Favoritner v.  Eswatini, 11 June 2024

FW Ashley Nazira (1995-11-11) 11 November 1995 (age 29) 34 11 Réunion Saint-Pauloise v.  Eswatini, 11 June 2024
FW Mike Gaspard (2003-06-26) 26 June 2003 (age 21) 3 1 France Vitry v.  Eswatini, 11 June 2024

Player Records

Players whose names are in bold are still playing for Mauritius.

Most Games Played

Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Henri Speville 72 1 1995–2007
2 Jimmy Cundasamy 69 4 1997–2014
3 Jean Gilbert Bayaram 64 1 1995–2008
4 Kevin Jean-Louis 63 0 2009–present
5 Andy Sophie 57 11 2007–2022
6 Daniel Imbert 53 17 1972–1983
7 Emmanuel Vincent 52 1 2015–present
8 Jean-Marc Ithier 50 11 1988–2003
Christopher Perle 50 11 1995–2007
Francis Rasolofonirina 50 2 2015–present

Top Goal Scorers

Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Daniel Imbert 17 53 0.32 1972–1983
2 Jean-Yves L'Enflé 15 29 0.52 1976–1984
3 Regis Jean 13 1947–1955
Roland Desvaux de Marigny 13 1949–1955
5 France Martin 12 1947–1950
Doona Raman 12 1953–1957
7 Ashley Nazira 11 33 0.33 2015–present
Kersley Appou 11 46 0.24 1993–2014
Jean-Marc Ithier 11 50 0.22 1988–2003
Christopher Perle 11 50 0.22 1995–2007
Andy Sophie 11 57 0.19 2007–2022

Tournament Records

FIFA World Cup History

Mauritius has tried to qualify for the FIFA World Cup many times but has not yet reached the finals.

FIFA World Cup Qualification
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1930 to 1950 Part of  United Kingdom Part of  United Kingdom
1954 to 1962 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
1966 and 1970 Did not enter Did not enter
West Germany 1974 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 3 5
1978 and 1982 Did not enter Did not enter
Mexico 1986 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 0 5
Italy 1990 Banned by FIFA Banned by FIFA
United States 1994 Did not enter Did not enter
France 1998 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 1 7
South Korea Japan 2002 2 0 0 2 2 6
Germany 2006 2 1 0 1 3 4
South Africa 2010 6 0 1 5 3 17
Brazil 2014 Withdrew during qualifying Withdrew during qualifying
Russia 2018 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 2 5
Qatar 2022 2 0 0 2 0 3
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined 4 1 1 2 3 6
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total 0/15 23 2 4 17 17 55

Africa Cup of Nations History

Mauritius has qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations only once.

Africa Cup of Nations record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA
Sudan 1957 Not affiliated to CAF
United Arab Republic 1959
Ethiopia 1962
Ghana 1963
Tunisia 1965
Ethiopia 1968 Did not qualify
Sudan 1970
Cameroon 1972
Egypt 1974 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 2 8
Ethiopia 1976 Did not qualify
Nigeria 1980
Libya 1982
Ivory Coast 1984
Egypt 1986
Morocco 1988 Withdrew
Algeria 1990 Did not qualify
Senegal 1992
Tunisia 1994
South Africa 1996
Burkina Faso 1998
Ghana Nigeria 2000
Mali 2002
Tunisia 2004
Egypt 2006
Ghana 2008
Angola 2010
Equatorial Guinea Gabon 2012
South Africa 2013 Did not enter
Equatorial Guinea 2015 Did not qualify
Gabon 2017
Egypt 2019
Cameroon 2021
Ivory Coast 2023
Morocco 2025
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027 To be determined
2029
Total Round 1 1/35 3 0 0 3 2 8

Head-to-Head Records

This table shows how Mauritius has played against other teams. It includes games up to the match against  Swaziland.

Team Achievements

Mauritius has won several awards and medals in football tournaments.

Regional Awards

  • Indian Ocean Games
    • Gold medal (2): 1985, 2003
    • Silver medal (3): 1990, 2011, 2019
    • Bronze medal (3): 1993, 2015, 2023
  • Triangulaire
    • Champions (10): 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1957
    • Runners-up (2): 1955, 1958
    • Third place (1): 1963

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Mauricio para niños

  • Mauritius national under-17 football team
  • Mauritius national under-20 football team
  • Mauritius national beach soccer team
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