10 Best Football (Soccer) Players from Tanzania

Photo by Md Mahdi on Unsplash

10 Best Football (Soccer) Players from Tanzania

Tanzania’s national football team represents Tanzania in men’s international football and is managed by the Tanzania Football Federation, the country’s governing body for football.

Tanzania’s home stadium is the Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium in Dar-es-Salaam. They are commonly referred to as the Taifa Stars. Tanzania has never been to a FIFA World Cup and will not be participating in the 2022 world cup slated to be held in Qatar(check out their top soccer players ) from November 20.

Before joining Zanzibar, the squad was known as the Tanganyika national football team. The team is affiliated with both FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF). Tanzania is undeniably a hotbed of unique soccer skills. Several soccer players have stepped forward to demonstrate their football skills, gaining the interest of local and international scouts.

This has also resulted in the establishment of new soccer academies to cultivate emerging talent. Soccer players from Tanzania have gone on to garner numerous sponsorships, allowing them to sign lucrative contracts with prestigious clubs all around the world.

Some of Tanzania’s most distinguished players have gone on to make a significant impression on the next generation of footballers. Here are the top 10 best football players from Tanzania.

1. Mbwana Samatta

Mbwana Samatta during the First Champions League match of FC Salzburg photo by Werner100359 – Wikimedia commons

Tanzanian striker Mbwana Ally Samatta currently plays for Belgian Pro League club Genk on loan from Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe as well as the Tanzanian national team.

Samatta started his playing career in 2008 as a young player for the Tanzanian Team African Lyon. He made his professional debut in 2010 with Simba Sports Club, where he only played for half of the season before transferring to TP Mazembe in DRC, where he spent a total of five years, initially establishing himself as a first-team regular.

He was chosen as the 2015 African-based Player of the Year and ended the campaign with the most goals in the CAF Champions League, contributing to TP Mazembe’s championship.

Samatta signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Premier League team Aston Villa on January 20, 2020. In doing so, he became the 117th different nationality to play in the league and the first Tanzanian to sign for a Premier League club.

Samatta practices Islam. Along with Omar Colley, a teammate from Genk, he performed the umrah in Mecca in 2018.

2. Saimon Msuva

Saimon Happygod Msuva was born on 2 October 1993. He is a Tanzanian professional football player who plays for the Saudi Arabian club Al-Qadsiah and the Tanzania national team.

3. Aishi Manula

A personal photo of “Aisha Manula”, goalkeeper of Simba Tanzania photo sourced from Wikimedia commons

Aishi Manula is a footballer from Tanzania. He is a goalkeeper who plays for the Tanzanian national team. He started his career with Mtibwa Sugar FC. At the age of 17, he joined Azam FC in 2012.

His performance and consistency enabled him to replace Ghanaian goalkeeper Daniel Agpeyi in the starting lineup. He joined Simba in 2017 and helped his team win the league cup and the golden glove.

He also assisted Simba in winning the league four times in a row. In 2020, he missed out on the final three-man shortlist for the MVP award, but he can look back on a superb campaign displayed that year. 

4. Feisal Salum

Feisal Salum Abdalla, also known as Fei Toto, is a Tanzanian footballer who was born on January 11, 1998. He is a Young Africans player. He was a member of the Zanzibar national football team in the 2017 CECAFA Cup.

On 16 October 2018, he made his Tanzania national team debut against Cape Verde in an AFCON qualifier. He was named to Tanzania’s squad for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

5. Himid Mao Mkami

Himid Mkami is a Tanzanian soccer player who now plays for ENPPI SC as a midfielder.  Mao began his career with Elite Academy in 2005, and after being called up to the Tanzania U-17 team, he was quickly transferred to Azam Academy in 2007, where he won the youth cup (Uhai Cup) twice in a row.

He made his professional debut against Kagera Sugar in 2008 and was promoted to the senior team in 2009. Coach Marcos Tinoco selected Mao for the Tanzanian U-17 squad that competed in the 2010 Coca-Cola Under-17 Copa in South Africa.

He quickly ascended through the ranks and soon found himself playing for the U-20s and U-23s under coach Márcio Máximo.  In a 1-1 tie against Rwanda in the 2018 African Nations Championship qualification, he scored his first international goal on July 15, 2017.

6. Raphael Bocco

John Raphael Bocco is a Tanzanian international footballer who plays as a striker for Simba. Bocco, who was born in Dar es Salaam, began his career with Azam for over ten years. 

In June 2017, he agreed to a two-year contract with Simba. In April 2021, he signed a new two-year contract. In 2009, he made his senior international debut for Tanzania, and he has played in FIFA World Cup qualification matches.

The Taifa Stars forward was in devastating form for Simba, scoring important goals during the team’s title-winning season in 2020. Many people were astonished when Bocco was left off the final three-man shortlist for Tanzanian Player of the Year despite having a fantastic season that year.

7. Abdi Banda

Abdi Banda is a Tanzanian international footballer who plays as a defender for Chippa United. He was born in Tanga and has played for Coastal Union, Simba, Baroka, and Highlands Park.

He signed with Mtibwa Sugar in September 2021. He signed for Chippa United in June 2022. In 2014, he made his international debut for Tanzania.

8. Danny Mrwanda

Danny Mrwanda is a Tanzanian international striker who currently plays for Mbeya Kwanza. Mrwanda has played for Arusha and Simba in Tanzania, Al Tadamon in Kuwait, and Đồng Tâm Long An and Ðà Nẵng in Vietnam before returning home in 2014.

He made his Tanzanian debut in 2005 and has played in FIFA World Cup qualification matches for them.

9. Said Maulidi

Football striker Said Maulidi Kalukula is of Tanzanian and Congolese descent. Kalukula started his career in 1995 with Simba SC and joined League rival Young Africans FC in 2001.

After 196 appearances and 50 goals for Yanga FC, he signed with Futebol Clube Onze Bravos do Maquis in January 2008. After moving to the Republic of the Congo in 2002 and losing his nationality, Kalukula got a Tanzanian passport in 2004.

He plays football for Tanzania’s national team. Having speed and good ball-handling skills, Kalukula poses a threat to the opposition when playing.

10. Shomari Kapombe

Shomari Salum Kapombe is a Tanzanian footballer who has represented Simba as well as the Tanzania national team. He has played for Simba in Tanzania’s Premier League and Cannes in France’s National 2. Kapombe played for Tanzania in the World Cup qualifying in 2014.

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