Rwanda national team captain Haruna Niyonzima has been featured in FIFA’s Century Club, which only includes players who have played 100 or more A (senior) internationals for their country. The AS Kigali veteran, who made his senior international debut for Rwanda in 2006, achieved the feat after featuring 104 times for Amavubi and scoring six times in the process, becoming the only Rwanda international to achieve the milestone. The 31-year-old is part of the Amavubi squad which is in a residential camp at Sainte Famille Hotel preparing for the 2022 Qatar World Cup qualifier against Mali on Thursday, November 11, at Kigali Stadium. FIFA recognises only matches played within the FIFA World Cup™ (including preliminary competitions), continental competitions (including qualifiers), friendly matches between senior national teams and Olympic final and qualifying matches played up to and including 1948. Our very own, the captain himself has been featured in FIFA’s Century Club. He has achieved the feat after featuring 104 times for us. Congratulations Captain. #FIFACenturyClub https://t.co/s7EPtfzojX pic.twitter.com/hBXbsC0IFw — Rwanda National Team🇷🇼🇷🇼 (@AmavubiStars) November 9, 2021 As of 16 October 2021, a total of 575 footballers have played in 100 or more A international matches for their respective nations, according to FIFA documents and Rec. Sport Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF) statistics. FIFA recognises Soh Chin Ann of Malaysia as the mens all-time record appearance holder with 195 caps while the Malaysian FA recognises the veteran as the most capped with 252 caps. However, the figure includes matches against international B teams, youth teams, and non-international teams which are not considered full A international matches by FIFA or RSSSF. The first footballer to play in 100 international A matches was Billy Wright of England in 1959, finishing with 105 appearance while the current active footballer with the most international appearances is Bader Al-Mutawa of Kuwait, with 186 caps.
