From Asia to Europe
It was in 1994, two years after the independence of Kazakhstan, following the fall of the Soviet Union, that the Kazakh football federation joined FIFA. Initially, the country of North Central Asia is affiliated to the Asian Confederation (AFC). But eight years later, in April 2002, he switched to the West. He eventually became a member of the European football association, UEFA. A change that should serve as a "
powerful launching pad
" to "
raise the professional level
", according to Rakhat Aliev, the president of the Rakhat Aliev Federation - and then the son-in-law of the Head of State, Nur-Sultan Nazarbayev - of after comments reported by
AFP
.
SEE ALSO -
The preparation of the Blues for the 2022 World Cup qualifying matches
No final phase
Between 1994 and 2021, Kazakhstan played several continental and world preliminary rounds, with a view to qualifying for the Asian Nations Cup, the European Championship or the World Cup.
However, in twelve attempts, the country which currently ranks 125th in the FIFA rankings has never managed to reach a final phase of a competition.
Last in group D of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, the Kazakh national team will not be playing in a little over a year in Qatar either.
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An original nickname
The Kazakh football team has a rather original nickname.
Its players are called the “
Snow Leopards
”.
A reference to the feline which lives in often inaccessible lands, such as mountains, and which is present in the country of Central Asia.
Very discreet, he is nicknamed "
the ghost of the mountains
".
The species is unfortunately endangered.
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A single confrontation against France
This Saturday will be the second time in its history that Kazakhstan will be opposed to France.
The first confrontation between the “
Snow Leopards
” and the Blues dates back to the first leg of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, on March 28.
At the Astana Arena, Didier Deschamps' men won 0-2.
Ousmane Dembélé opened the scoring on a service from Anthony Martial (19th), then Sergey Maliy scored against his side just before the break (44th).
Kylian Mbappé, for his part, had seen his penalty kicked off by Aleksandr Mokin (75th).
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A country interested in football
Even if the results of the national team are not excellent, Kazakhstan remains a country where football is very popular. Jérémy Manzorro, who plays in the Kazakh championship, explained it very well to
Figaro
last March: “
They are very interested in football. They like hockey a lot, it seems to me, but football is still the main sport. They move fast, they learn things quickly. There are still two to three clubs which are doing good results in Europe. We also find a lot of foreign players who come and bring their experience. It's a very interesting championship. There is a television channel which broadcasts the matches. The new edition of the Supercup was very popular, for example. There is a real craze,
reported the player who passed by Stade de Reims.
The main thing here in Kostanai is football.
A lot of people wear swimsuits, register their children in clubs.
The city lives for football, because it is the major sport.
They are also interested in their national selection.
When matches are played in Astana, the stadium is packed.
"
