Azofeifa: Costa Rica are excited to face Brazil

It was at the FIFA U-17 World Cup™ in 2001 where Randall Azofeifa realised that he wanted to be in football the rest of his life. Azofeifa was a member of a Costa Rica team that reached the quarter-finals and boasted future FIFA World Cup™ players such as Azofeifa himself, Christian Bolanos and Gabriel Badilla.

Now, 25 years later, after a sparkling playing career, Azofeifa is shepherding a new generation of future stars that he wants to see on Los Ticos’ squad for the FIFA World Cup 2030™. But first things first, Azofeifa’s side will measure themselves against their category’s best at the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2026™.

Speaking with FIFA, Azofeifa highlighted his teams strengths, his fond memories of Trinidad and Tobago 2001, and the excitement of facing Brazil in the group stage.

FIFA: How is the team’s preparation coming along?

Randall Azofeifa: Quite well. This team has been together for about two years. It was great for us to qualify for the World Cup, but as we’ve told the players, the World Cup didn’t even start for us when we qualified, it started a good while before then. So all of that preparation has been good. It has been consistent and the players’ performance has been improving to the point where we now have many players competing for spots with club teams in the first division at just 16 or 17 years old, which is very important.

What stands out about this group of players?

Their attitude, their willingness to contribute, and the fact that they’re such good people, that’s incredibly important to us. Building on that, they’re very eager to represent the crest they wear the best they can, and we’ve also tried to instill in them an understanding of what Costa Rica truly stands for. The players’ characteristics have evolved quickly, and they’ve managed to grasp the dynamics of the international stage.

And with 35 goals in three qualifying matches, they know how to score a lot of goals, no?

It’s more than just planning a game to score a lot of goals. The idea with them has always been that regardless of the opponent, you have to respect them. When you respect your opponent, you play to your full potential. We didn’t want a game to be treated at any point as anything other than a knockout match, and if the opportunity arose to score that many goals, we were going to take it with the seriousness it deserved, and that’s exactly what happened. We try to encourage that instinct to always strive for more.

You played in a U-17 World Cup back in 2001. What do you remember from that experience?

In football, for me, there was a before and after with that World Cup. Everything changed. At 16, I already had the opportunity to sign a professional contract. Teams from outside Costa Rica started showing interest in me, and as for the World Cup itself, I enjoyed that opportunity. The chance to represent my country in the best possible tournament in my age group; it’s so much a source of pride for me. Hearing the national anthem abroad at such a prestigious tournament moved me deeply, and on top of that, what better way to do it than by playing football?

That was when you realized football would become your life?

At that point in your career you're at a crossroads and you have to decide whether you want to continue playing football or not. That's why I say that World Cup, that whole experience, had a huge impact on me, and I realized then that was what I wanted to do for a long time.

What will be your message to your players as they begin the World Cup?

First of all, that football is one of the best things that exists, so you have to enjoy it a lot, and above all the crest that they are representing is incredibly important. That you can’t achieve anything without the right attitude, willingness, and discipline, and that we’re also trying to build something so that in a few years we’ll have a strong national team. By working with these generations and trying to influence them in the right way, I believe we have a path to achieving results different from what we’re seeing now.

What can your players learn from playing a World Cup in such a different part of the world?

We can’t let our nerves turn into fear, because we’ve earned the opportunity to be there, so we have to go and make the most of it. Building on that, we also try to make them understand that we can’t give in to uncertainty or stage fright. We’re working on those things because we can train a lot, we can do the best drills in practice, but mentally we have to be prepared.

Your thoughts on your group, with Brazil, Republic of Ireland and Tanzania?

We love it, we’re fascinated by it. We keep telling the players that if we’re going to the World Cup thinking there’s going to be an easy opponent, then we’re mistaken. The World Cup features the best teams in their area, so we have to prepare to compete against the best. We really like the group; it’s very competitive. It’s now up to us to live up to expectations and match the excitement we’re feeling going into the World Cup.

It is always special to play Brazil in any tournament, so have the players been speaking among themselves about it?

Yes, they have. We’re paying close attention to all our opponents, but let’s be honest: when it comes to Brazil, the name itself always carries a different weight. Will it always be this way? I think it will be for the rest of my football career, or perhaps for the history of football itself. But at the same time, the main thing here is what we can accomplish, what we can focus on, and the level of concentration we bring to every game. We’re very excited about the opportunity we have, and we’re continuing to prepare as much as possible to perform at our best.

Photos courtesy of Costa Rica Football Federation