Hotto is hot property
Soccer
Namibian soccer star Deon Hotto continues to raise the bar in his profession
Deon Hotto (33) is steadily moving towards becoming the Brave Warrior's most capped player. Nicknamed DH7, Hotto who will be celebrating his 34th birthday on 29 October and plays as a midfielder for the Premier League giants Orlando Pirates in South Africa, made 78 appearances for Namibia.
According to the chairman of the Deon Hotto Foundation, Carl Pesat, Hotto is also an estimated 23 games shy of joining an elite group of players who played 200 matches for Orlando Pirates.
Hotto represented the country for the first time on 12 June 2013 in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Nigeria at Sam Nujoma Stadium in Windhoek and is now just five games shy of overtaking centre-back Denzil Haoseb who played 83 caps for the Brave Warriors. Haoseb made his debut for the Brave Warriors in a friendly against Botswana in Maun on 16 March 2011.
“Deon has a solid religious foundation and is brimming with confidence. Things did not work out well for the Brave Warriors at the African Cup of Nations qualifiers. Still, he is looking forward to making Namibians proud by adding the South African Premier League medal which is the only missing piece of silverware, to his trophy cabinet,” said Pesat.
Hotto who scored 12 goals for the Brave Warriors, is also hot on the heels of Namibia’s top goalpoacher and captain Peter Shalulile who made 58 appearances and hit the back of the net on 16 occasions for the country.
According to Pesat, the Foundation which intends to construct three DH Sports Facilities (each accommodating two 5-a side football courts and a netball court) in Swakopmund, Omaruru and Okahandja, will present its business case to the municipal council of Swakopmund on 29 November.
"The mandate of the Foundation is to complement and assist with the provision of sports infrastructure and to uplift young disadvantaged persons and communities. The Foundation also intends to become the preferred sports agency for mentoring and managing young talent," reiterated Pesat.
He added that plans are also at an advanced stage to launch the Deon Hotto Kasi street soccer tournament. "This event is open to youth teams based at the coast and will be hosted on the land earmarked for the construction of the Deon Hotto stadium by the Foundation. Roland Jacobs the owner of Streethouse has come on board and will sponsor sports equipment and prices for the tournament which will cater for players in Grade 8 up to players aged 23.”
Pesat confirmed that the Foundation also started with the groundwork for the next edition of the Deon Hotto Charity Cup. “Karibib or Outjo are strong contenders in the race to possibly host the 2025 edition of the tournament in June,” he said.
The inaugural edition was hosted in Henties Bay in 2019, the second edition in Henties Bay (2022), the third edition took place in Swakopmund (2023) and the fourth edition in Omaruru this year.
The foundation also started a donation initiative in 2018 and provides two donations per year to old age homes, orphanages, schools and sports clubs. Previous beneficiaries include Coastal High School and Atlantic Combined School in Swakopmund as well as Pahye Primary School in Omaruru.