Brunei National Football Team

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.

Brunei Darussalam

Nickname(s)	Tebuan (The Wasps)
Association	Football Association of Brunei Darussalam
Confederation	AFC (Asia)
Sub-confederation	AFF (Southeast Asia)
Head coach	Mario Rivera
Captain	Hendra Azam Idris
Most caps	Azwan Saleh (33)
Top scorer	Shah Razen Said (8)
Home stadium	Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium
FIFA code	BRU
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	194 (4 April 2024)
Highest	140 (December 1992)
Lowest	203 (October 2012)
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 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 five appearances in the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers, but they have never passed the first qualification round.

Early days

 

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

 

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.

Returrn 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.

FIFA Series tournament

In 2024, FIFA invited Brunei to the 2024 FIFA Series matches on from 22 to 26 March 2024 held in Jeddah where they would face their first ever opponents outside Asia. On 22 March 2024, Brunei faced off against CONCACAF opponent Bermuda, but conceded two late goals, losing 2–0. In the next match against Vanuatu on 26 March 2024, Brunei won the match 3–2 in an epic battle where they were 2–1 down until the 73th minute where Nurikhwan Othman scored the equaliser. 3 minutes into stoppage time, Hakeme Yazid Said secured the win against the Oceania opponent.

 

Kit

Brunei had initially worn dark yellow shirts and shorts as their home kit since their inception in 1956 to represent the colours of their flags.

On July 11, 2021, a decade after it was formed, the Football Association of Brunei Darussalam (FABD) aligned itself with the country’s philosophy as part of its rebranding strategy. In fact, FABD, which was earlier established as the National Football Association of Brunei Darussalam (NFABD), dropped the word National from its name including a new logo which was also unveiled consisting of a three-layered crescent combined to represent the lunar stages culminating into a full moon. The three layers of the crescent each represent the colours of the national flag of Brunei. The ‘ripe-lemon’ coloured crescent contains a Jawi inscription of the association’s name in Malay while the black crescent has the association’s name written in English. The logo also features a green football covered with honeycomb pattern, signifying the association’s wish to inject more precise and better growth in the sport. In fact, the honeycomb motif was chosen as it drew inspiration from the national team’s nickname ‘The Wasps’.

Home stadium

Brunei's home stadium is the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium in Bandar Seri Begawan. The stadium capacity is 28,000. Since 2021, Brunei have 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 have chosen 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
	Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium	28,000	Bandar Seri Begawan	v    Indonesia (17 October 2023; 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification)
	Track & Field Sports Complex	1,700	Bandar Seri Begawan	v    Sabah FC (6 September 2023; Unofficial friendly)

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

2023

Brunei   v   Sabah

6 September Unofficial Friendly	Brunei	1–3	Sabah	Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
20:15 UTC+8	Adi   56'		Ramon   12' (pen.) Jafri   69' Sappie   81'	Stadium: Track & Field Sports Complex Referee: Mou'azhzham Zamakhsyarie Marsidi

Hong Kong   v   Brunei

11 September Friendly	Hong Kong	10–0	Brunei	So Kon Po, Hong Kong
20:00 UTC+8	Everton   12', 59' Tan Chun Lok   20' Hélio   41' Fernando   51' Wong Wai   56' Chan Siu Kwan   64', 83' Poon Pui Hin   84', 87'	Report		Stadium: Hong Kong Stadium Attendance: 6,097 Referee: Warintorn Sassadee (Thailand)

Indonesia   v   Brunei

12 October 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC first round	Indonesia	6–0	Brunei	Jakarta, Indonesia
19:00 UTC+7	Drajad   7', 72', 90+2' Ridho   12' Sananta   63' (pen.), 67'	Report		Stadium: Gelora Bung Karno Stadium Attendance: 23,318 Referee: Bijan Heydari (Iran)

Brunei   v   Indonesia

17 October 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC first round	Brunei	0–6 (0–12 agg.)	Indonesia	Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
20:15 UTC+8		Report	Caraka   4', 22' Vikri   42' Sulaeman   47' (pen.) Ridho   63' Sananta   82'	Stadium: Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium Attendance: 17,812 Referee: Ahmed Faisal Al Ali (Jordan)

2024

Brunei   v   BSL All Stars

26 February Unofficial friendly	Brunei	0–0 (2–4 p)	BSL All Stars	Berakas, Brunei
20:15 UTC+8				Stadium: Track and Field Sports Complex Referee: Adib
	Penalties
	Haziq N.   Hirzi   Razimie   Nurikhwan		K. Anwar   Rafik   Azwan S.   Adi

Bermuda   v   Brunei

22 March 2024 FIFA Series	Bermuda	2–0	Brunei	Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
22:00 UTC+3	Todd   82' Parfitt-Williams   88'	Report		Stadium: King Abdullah Sports City Reserve Stadium Referee: Qasim Matar Al-Hatmi (Oman)

Vanuatu   v   Brunei

26 March 2024 FIFA Series	Vanuatu	2–3	Brunei	Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
22:00 UTC+3	Kalo   38' Iawak   70'	Report	Syafiq Safiuddin   52' Nurikhwan   72' Hakeme   90+3'	Stadium: King Abdullah Sports City Reserve Stadium

Current squad

The following 23 players were called up for the 2024 FIFA Series matches on 22–26 March.

Information correct as of 27 March 2024, after the match against   Vanuatu.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Haimie Abdullah Nyaring (vice-captain)	(1998-05-31) 31 May 1998 (age 25)	18	0	DPMM
18	1GK	Ishyra Asmin Jabidi	(1998-07-09) 9 July 1998 (age 25)	2	0	DPMM
20	1GK	Jefri Syafiq Ishak	(2002-05-21) 21 May 2002 (age 21)	0	0	Kuala Belait
4	2DF	Fakharrazi Hassan (captain)	(1989-07-15) 15 July 1989 (age 34)	25	2	Unattached
22	2DF	Yura Indera Putera Yunos	(1996-03-25) 25 March 1996 (age 28)	19	0	DPMM
3	2DF	Abdul Mu'iz Sisa	(1991-04-20) 20 April 1991 (age 33)	13	1	DPMM
23	2DF	Hirzi Zulfaqar Mahzan	(2000-08-13) 13 August 2000 (age 23)	1	0	Unattached
21	2DF	Nazry Aiman Azaman	(2004-07-01) 1 July 2004 (age 19)	0	0	DPMM
6	3MF	Khairil Shahme Suhaimi	(1993-04-16) 16 April 1993 (age 31)	18	0	Kasuka
2	3MF	Afi Aminuddin	(1991-10-09) 9 October 1991 (age 32)	17	0	Kasuka
11	3MF	Hakeme Yazid Said	(2003-02-08) 8 February 2003 (age 21)	15	2	DPMM
5	3MF	Nurikhwan Othman	(1993-01-15) 15 January 1993 (age 31)	14	2	DPMM
14	3MF	Haziq Kasyful Azim Hasimulabdillah	(1998-12-24) 24 December 1998 (age 25)	13	0	Kasuka
16	3MF	Abdul Hariz Herman	(2000-09-24) 24 September 2000 (age 23)	4	0	DPMM
17	3MF	Hanif Farhan Azman	(2000-11-02) 2 November 2000 (age 23)	3	0	DPMM
15	3MF	Amin Sisa	(1998-01-02) 2 January 1998 (age 26)	2	0	Indera SC
13	3MF	Faturrahman Embran	(1999-08-22) 22 August 1999 (age 24)	2	0	DPMM
19	3MF	Nazif Safwan Jaini	(2000-08-18) 18 August 2000 (age 23)	2	0	Unattached
8	3MF	Syafiq Safiuddin Abdul Shariff	(2002-07-16) 16 July 2002 (age 21)	2	1	DPMM
10	4FW	Razimie Ramlli	(1990-08-06) 6 August 1990 (age 33)	18	6	Unattached
9	4FW	Nazirrudin Ismail	(1998-12-27) 27 December 1998 (age 25)	11	1	DPMM
7	4FW	Hariz Danial Khallidden	(1996-11-01) 1 November 1996 (age 27)	5	0	MS ABDB
12	4FW	Haziq Naqiuddin Syamra	(2004-05-25) 25 May 2004 (age 19)	0	0	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	Azriel Arman	(1995-03-26) 26 March 1995 (age 29)	0	0	MS ABDB	v.   Hong Kong, 11 September 2023
DF	Alinur Rashimy Jufri	(2000-06-12) 12 June 2000 (age 23)	8	0	Kasuka	2024 FIFA SeriesPRE
DF	Najib Tarif	(1988-02-05) 5 February 1988 (age 36)	26	1	DPMM	2026 World Cup qualification
DF	Hanif Hamir	(1997-02-22) 22 February 1997 (age 27)	16	0	DPMM	2026 World Cup qualification
DF	Nazhan Zulkifle	(2001-01-17) 17 January 2001 (age 23)	4	0	Kasuka	2026 World Cup qualification
DF	Hazwan Hamzah	(1991-09-09) 9 September 1991 (age 32)	9	0	Kasuka	v.   Hong Kong, 11 September 2023
DF	Martin Haddy Khallidden	(1998-04-21) 21 April 1998 (age 26)	0	0	MS ABDB	Training camp, June 2023
MF	Azwan Ali Rahman	(1992-01-11) 11 January 1992 (age 32)	21	5	DPMM	2024 FIFA SeriesPRE
MF	Hendra Azam Idris	(1988-08-10) 10 August 1988 (age 35)	21	0	Unattached	2024 FIFA SeriesPRE
MF	Nur Asyraffahmi Norsamri	(2000-05-04) 4 May 2000 (age 23)	10	0	Kasuka	2024 FIFA SeriesPRE
MF	Shafie Effendy	(1995-08-04) 4 August 1995 (age 28)	6	1	MS ABDB	2026 World Cup qualification
MF	Eddy Shahrol Omar	(2003-10-04) 4 October 2003 (age 20)	1	0	Unattached	Training camp, June 2023
FW	Adi SaidRET	(1990-10-15) 15 October 1990 (age 33)	28	7	Kasuka	2026 World Cup qualification
FW	Abdul Azizi Ali RahmanRET	(1987-01-17) 17 January 1987 (age 37)	19	3	Unattached	2026 World Cup qualification
FW	Hamizan Aziz Sulaiman	(1989-01-24) 24 January 1989 (age 35)	11	0	Indera SC	v.   Hong Kong, 11 September 2023
Notes STD = On standby PRE = Preliminary squad RET = Retired from international duty

As of 23 March 2024
Players in bold are still active with Brunei.

Most capped players

 

Top goalscorers

 

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
1986	Did not qualify									6	0	0	6	2	29
1990 to 1998	Did not enter									Did not enter
2002	Did not qualify									6	0	0	6	0	28
2006 and 2010	Did not enter									Did not enter
2014	Suspended									Suspended
2018	Did not qualify									2	1	0	1	1	2
2022										2	1	0	1	2	3
2026										2	0	0	2	0	12
2030	To be determined									To be determined
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
1956	Did not enter									Did not enter
1960
1964
1968
1972	Did not qualify									3	0	0	3	0	27
1976										3	0	0	3	1	19
1980	Withdrew									Withdrew
1984
1988	Did not enter									Did not enter
1992
1996
2000	Did not qualify									3	0	0	3	0	11
2004										2	0	1	1	1	6
2007	Did not enter									Did not enter
2011	Did not qualify									AFC Challenge Cup
2015	Withdrew									Withdrew
2019	Did not qualify									2	1	0	1	1	2
2023										2	1	0	1	2	3
2027	To be determined									2	0	0	2	0	12
Total	–	0/18	−	−	−	−	−	−		18	2	1	15	5	80

Asian Games

AFC Challenge Cup

AFC Challenge Cup
Year	Round	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA
2006	Group stage	3	1	1	1	2	2
2008	did not qualify
2010
2012	Suspended
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
2016	Fourth place	4	1	1	2	7	7
Total	Best: Fourth place	4	1	1	2	7	7

AFF Championship

This competition was formerly known as the Tiger Cup

AFF Championship Qualification record Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA   1996 Group stage 8th 4 1 0 3 1 15 No qualification   1998 did not qualify 2 0 0 2 2 6   2000 Withdrew Withdrew     2002 did not enter did not enter     2004     2007 did not qualify 4 1 1 2 6 11     2008 4 1 1 2 8 7     2010 Suspended Suspended     2012 did not qualify 4 2 0 2 6 7     2014 4 0 0 4 5 12     2016 3 1 0 2 5 8   2018 2 1 0 1 2 3   2020 Withdrew Withdrew   2022 Group stage 10th 4 0 0 4 2 22 2 1 0 1 6 3 Total Group stage 2/14 8 1 0 7 3 37 25 7 2 16 40 57

As of 27 March 2024 after match against   Vanuatu

Opponent	First	Last	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Confederation
Bahrain	1981	1981	1	0	0	1	0	7	−7	AFC
Bermuda	2024	2024	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	CONCACAF
Bhutan	2006	2008	2	0	2	0	1	1	0	AFC
China	1980	1985	3	0	0	3	1	22	−21	AFC
Chinese Taipei	2009	2015	3	1	0	2	1	7	−6	AFC
Hong Kong	1975	2023	4	0	0	4	1	26	−25	AFC
India	2001	2001	0	0	0	2	0	6	−6	AFC
Indonesia	1977	2023	13	2	2	9	6	52	−46	AFC
Japan	1981	2000	3	0	0	3	2	18	−16	AFC
Laos	1993	2022	11	1	0	10	17	32	−15	AFC
Macau	1985	2026	4	0	1	3	2	6	−4	AFC
Malaysia	1971	2022	11	0	0	11	3	48	−45	AFC
Maldives	2022	2022	1	0	0	1	0	3	−3	AFC
Mongolia	2019	2019	2	1	0	1	2	3	−1	AFC
Myanmar	1993	2014	8	1	0	7	5	28	−23	AFC
Nepal	2006	2016	2	1	0	1	2	4	−2	AFC
Pakistan	2009	2009	1	0	0	1	0	6	−6	AFC
Philippines	1977	2022	14	5	2	7	15	20	−5	AFC
Singapore	1975	2015	13	0	1	12	5	44	−39	AFC
Sri Lanka	2006	2009	2	0	0	2	1	6	−5	AFC
Tajikistan	2008	2008	1	0	0	1	0	4	−4	AFC
Thailand	1980	2022	7	0	0	7	4	37	−33	AFC
East Timor	2006	2022	10	7	0	3	25	15	10	AFC
United Arab Emirates	2001	2001	2	0	0	2	0	16	−16	AFC
Vanuatu	2024	2024	1	1	0	0	3	2	1	OFC
Yemen	2001	2001	2	0	0	2	0	6	−6	AFC

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