.A preview of the Final Qualification Tournament for the 2027 Men’s Rugby World Cup

Rugby World Cup: Zimbabwe beat Namibia to reach first tournament since 1991  BBC

Africa News Live Updates: WHS and Moria secure dominant wins in Namibian schools rugby league  Moneycontrol

WINNERS: Namibia defeated the UAE 86-29 in their play-off match in Uganda on Saturday, keeping their hopes alive for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. The UAE opened the scoring with an early try, but Namibia quickly found their rhythm, surging to a 39-22 lead  instagram.com

Burger promises better after Namibia book Dubai berth with convincing play-off win over UAE  rugbyworldcup.com

[Namibian] The Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) and the Namibia Rugby Referee Academy (NRRA) have formed a partnership to develop referees throughout the country.

[Namibian] Despite Namibia's 30-28 defeat to Zimbabwe in the Africa Cup final on Saturday, their journey to the 2027 Rugby World Cup is far from over, according to Namibia Rugby Union president Petri Theron.

Namibia’s rugby dream still alive  New Era Namibia

Erasmus Shalihaxwe Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) president Petrie Theron says there is no need to appoint a foreign coach for the national team to qualify for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Theron made the remarks on Tuesday during a press conference in Windhoek while giving updates on the Welwitschias’ World Cup qualifying campaign currently underway in Kampala, Uganda. Namibia failed to secure automatic qualification after a 28–30 loss to Zimbabwe in the Rugby Africa Cup last Saturday.  This marked the first time since 1999 that Namibia has failed to qualify directly for the World Cup. This Saturday, the Welwitschias will face the United Arab Emirates in Uganda.  The winner will move on to a four-nations repechage tournament in Dubai, scheduled for 8 to 18 November 2025.  Namibia could face Belgium, Brazil, and Canada in that tournament. Theron said current head coach Jacques Burger and his technical team have enough experience to lead Namibia through qualification.  He said the coaches have played for the national team in international tournaments, including the World Cup, and have also competed professionally abroad. “We don’t need international coaches; we have got an extremely good coaching staff who have played at multiple World Cups. Some of them have coached at the World Cup level as assistant coaches already. At some stage, you can’t keep on importing international coaches… We need to believe in our own coaches; we need to create a pathway for them. You cannot always keep saying our local coaches are not good enough, especially when they are. We have got coaches who went overseas to expand their experience… so we firmly believe and put full trust in our coaching staff,” Theron said. He expressed full confidence that Namibia will beat UAE and qualify for the repechage tournament. NRU vice president Johan Diergaardt, who also spoke at the briefing, said the union is working to strengthen local club rugby to benefit the national team. “At this stage, one of our weaknesses is club rugby, which we need to strengthen and benefit the national team. Before our leadership, club rugby was neglected. There was no intensity, no real efforts to improve that, and we are now in the process of putting club players in better conditions and club players to get through the pathway of going to the national team,” said Diergaardt.

Zimbabwe qualify for Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 with win over Namibia — first time since 1991  MyJoyOnline

Zimbabwe stuns Namibia to qualify for Rugby World Cup for first time since 1991  MSN

Zimbabwe stuns Namibia to qualify for Rugby World Cup for first time since 1991  Yahoo.co

Erasmus Shalihaxwe The Welwitschias, the national rugby team, are determined to regroup and refocus following their loss to Zimbabwe in the Rugby Africa Cup final on Saturday. The tightly contested match ended 30–28 in favour of Zimbabwe in Kampala, Uganda.  The win secured Zimbabwe a spot at the 2027 Rugby World Cup, marking their first qualification in 34 years. Namibia, which has featured in every Rugby World Cup since 1999, now risks missing out for the first time since 1996.  However, the team still has a chance to qualify through the intercontinental repechage tournament. Following the loss, the Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) expressed confidence in the team’s ability to bounce back and fight for a spot at the tournament, which will be hosted in Australia from October to November 2027.  Namibia is scheduled to face the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this week in Uganda. “The fight is not over. Our boys will regroup, refocus, and come back stronger as we take on the UAE this weekend in Uganda. Let’s rally behind them; the journey continues,” said the NRU.  Rugby Afrique, organisers of  the Rugby Africa Cup, praised Namibia’s performance and sportsmanship during the tournament. “Silver with pride. Namibia may not have claimed the crown, but they walk away with heads held high. A powerful campaign, a proud performance and silver medals that tell the story of resilience and heart,” said Rugby Afrique.

Rugby World Cup: Zimbabwe beat Namibia to reach first tournament since 1991  BBC

Zimbabwe beats Namibia to qualify for 2027 Rugby World Cup  SA Rugby magazine

Rugby Africa Cup: Namibia welcome fresh firepower ahead of final against Zimbabwe  Kawowo Sports

Erasmus Shalihaxwe The national rugby team, the Welwitchias, began their Rugby Africa Cup campaign with a 55–17 win over Senegal on Tuesday in Kampala, Uganda. Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) director Jacques Burger described the match as a tough challenge, saying that playing against Senegal was never going to be easy, but the game was a good test for the players.  “For us it was like a quarter-final. We want it like that, and we want to be better in the next game. Going into the Algeria game, we will definitely work on a lot of things… Basically just cut the errors out, because today we made a lot of mistakes and put ourselves under pressure in situations where we should have been attacking and putting pressure on them, but we just let them off the hook,” said Burger. Burger also highlighted the positives from the match, particularly the introduction of new players in the second half.  “We didn’t have much energy; it was a hot day after we arrived yesterday afternoon, and we didn’t get much sleep. But I am proud of the boys… We got the win; that is all we wanted, and we’ll make sure we improve and be ready for the next game,” he said. Rugby player Prince !Goaseb said the team struggled in the first half, partly due to the weather, but managed to secure a good win.  “The boys picked up pace in the second half, and we managed to get a win. The squad is full of positives; the boys are getting along well in the squad, and we are just going back to the drawing board next week to see how we can best prepare for Algeria,” he said. NRU president Petrie Theron congratulated the team and urged them to focus on qualifying for the 2027 Rugby World Cup.  “Well done guys, great start to the tournament… it is good to feel the heat out there and get used to that humidity weather. Well done for pulling it through, great second half and keep on fighting guys and get us qualify for the World Cup,” said Theron. The winner of the Rugby Africa Cup will qualify for the 2027 Rugby World Cup and represent the continent alongside South Africa.

Erasmus Shalihaxwe The Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) has announced the final squad that will travel to Uganda for the Rugby Africa Cup, which will run from 8 to 19 July in Kampala. The tournament brings together the top eight rugby nations on the continent and serves as part of the two-year qualification process for the 2027 Men’s Rugby World Cup, set to be held in Australia from 1 October to 13 November. Namibia’s squad consists of 28 players, including 17 forwards and 11 full-backs. They will be supported by a 10-member technical and management team. Countries competing in the tournament are Uganda, Zimbabwe, Algeria, Namibia, Kenya, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, and Morocco. The Namibian squad includes Haitembu Shikufa, Jason Benade, Otja Auala, Louise van Der Westhuizen, Armand Combrinck, Torsten Van Jaarsveld, Aronos Coetzee, Adriaan Ludick, Oliver Kurz, Tiaan De Klerk, Wian Conradie, Johan Retief, Max Katjijeko, Richard Hardwick, Adriaan Booysen, Prince !Goaseb, Jacques Theron, AJ Keans, Tiaan Swanepoel, Andre Van Der Burg, Le Roux Malan, Danco Burger, Alcino Izaacs, Jurgen Meyer, Cliven Loubser, Dan Van Der Merwe, and Jay Cee Nel. The management team includes Jacques Burger as director of rugby, Wessel Kotze as team manager, Tanya Green as lead physio, Wilfred Bezuidenhoudt as head doctor, Rohan Kitshoff as forwards coach, David Phillander as backline coach, Sergio De La Harpe as strength and conditioning coach, Jaco Engels as scrum coach, Derral De La Harpe as technical coach, and Devin O’Brien as video analyst.

[Namibia Economist] The Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) this week announced the squad for the 2025 Rugby Africa Cup, scheduled to take place in Uganda from 8 to 19 July.

Namibia names quad for crucial Rugby Africa Cup campaign in Uganda  New Era Namibia

[New Era] After a bruising 73-6 defeat to Italy on Friday at the Hage Geingob Stadium, Namibia's senior rugby team is now setting its sights on the upcoming Rugby Africa Cup, which will take place in Uganda from 8 to 19 July.

Namibia shifts focus after heavy defeat by Italy  New Era Namibia

Italy hammer Namibia ahead of Bok series  SA Rugby magazine

Gonzalo Quesada’s Italy blow Namibia away in Windhoek  Rugbypass.com