Goal Programme - Mauritius Football Association - 2002

Football is the number one sport in Mauritius. There are 11,000 registered footballers (male and female), in a population totaling 1,200,000. Two stadiums host international matches, while a further six hold games in the domestic league championship. Approximately 450 private and public playing fields encourage football among the masses. However, the national association has yet to experience any real success on the pitch, but the football-crazy Mauritians look back fondly upon two matches in particular. During qualifying for the African Cup of Nations 2000, the national team secured a 1-1 draw at home in the King George V Stadium against South Africa, and also defeated a strong Angola team 2-0 in Luanda. Jean-Marc Ithier is one of the few players to ply his trade abroad (Santos FC Club, in Cape Town, South Africa).

On 1 May 2003, the Goal Bureau approved a new national association headquarters and a new grass pitch. The project is being financed by Goal and the FIFA Financial Assistance Programme, while the government donated the necessary land. The project is a part of the long-term development plan drawn up together with the Development Office in Gaborone (Botswana) in August 2003. The national association needs new facilities in order to reach its objectives. The new national association headquarters will provide the perfect environment to complete all of the administrative tasks, while the new pitch will be used for training camps of the various national teams, for courses as part of the projected further education of coaches and referees, and for gatherings of the most talented players in each age group. Women's football is also part of this new long-term plan and will also benefit from the new facilities.