News

Overseas Football Players who are eligible to Represent Sri Lanka

Published

6 years ago

November 26, 2020

Editor

There are currently numerous players with strong Sri Lankan roots who play football in Overseas Leagues. Football Sri Lanka has kept a close eye on all these players, tracking their progress and skill levels to see which players can bring a positive impact to the Sri Lankan National Team

The following five players have already applied for dual citizenship and started the necessary processes of making it into the National squad, while the rest are yet to start any such procedures;

Players who are already applied for the Dual Citizenship to represent the National Team

Hamilton O Mervyn

Age : 32 yrs. (DOB: 8 Oct 1988)

Height : 6’

Citizenship : British

Position : Midfield

Current club : Whitehawk FC

League : Whitehawk FC is a Semi Professional, non-league English football club based in Whitehawk, a suburb of the city of Brighton & Hove, East Sussex. Whitehawk FC play in the Isthmian South East Division (English non-league step 4 – Level 8)

Category : Sri Lankan Mother

2. Reef Sebastian Peries

Age : 19 yrs (DOB: 30 Oct. 2001)

Height : 5’ 11”

Citizenship : British

Position : Right Wing Back

Current club : Woking FC (Academy Team)

League : Woking Football Club is a semi-professional association football club, based in Woking, Surrey, England. Founded in 1889, the club plays its home matches at Kingfield Stadium and is nicknamed the Cardinals. Currently, they compete in the National League, the fifth tier of English football.

Category : Sri Lankan Grandparent

3. Ryan Anthony Peries

Age :18 yrs (DOB: 20 Jul 2002)

Height : 6’ 2”

Citizenship : British

Position : Midfield

Current club : Bournemouth University FC

Category : Sri Lankan Grandparent

4. Haneef Mohamed Haseef Mohamed

Age : 27 yrs (DOB: 23 Aug 1993)

Height : 5’ 6”

Citizenship : Switzerland

Position : Left / Right Winger, Attacking Midfielder

Current club : FC Engstringen

League : FC Engstringen plays in the Football Association of the Zurich Region FVRZ 3rd League of Swiss Football Association.

Category : Sri Lankan Father & Mother

5. Vigneswaran Dagsan

Age : 16 yrs (DOB: 02 May 2004)

Height : 6’

Citizenship : Switzerland

Position : Center Back / Midfielder

Current club : Lausanne Sport

League : FC Engstringen plays in the Football Association of the Zurich Region FVRZ 3rd League of Swiss Football Association.

Category : Sri Lankan Father & Mother

Players who are eligible to apply for the Dual Citizenship to represent the National Team

Claudio Matthias

Age : 21 yrs (DOB: 7 July 1999)

Height : 6’ 1”

Citizenship : Deutsch (German)

Position : Center Back, Left Back, Right Back

Current club : SC Freiburg

League : Sport-Club Freiburg e.V., commonly known as SC Freiburg, is a German football club, based in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg. It plays in the Bundesliga. SC Freiburg II is the reserve team of German association football club SC Freiburg plays in the Regionalliga Südwest (English: Regional League Southwest) is the fourth tier of the German football league system in the states of Hesse, Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, and Saarland. It is one of five leagues at this level, together with the Regionalliga Bayern, Regionalliga Nordost, Regionalliga Nord, and the Regionalliga West.

Category : Sri Lankan Mother

2. Canistan Regize

Age : 23 yrs (DOB: 25 Mar 1997)

Height : 5’ 7”

Citizenship : French

Position : Midfielder

Current club : FC Montceau, Boergogne

League : Football Club Montceau Bourgogne is a French association football team founded in 1948. They are based in Montceau-les-Mines, Bourgogne, France and are currently playing in the Championnat National 3. The league serves as the fifth division of the French Football League.

Category : Sri Lankan Father & Mother

3. Kelly Garrett Christopher

Age : 24 yrs (DOB: 13 Apr 1996)

Height : 6’ 1”

Citizenship : British

Position : Central Midfield

Current club : Almyros Gaziou FC (Greece)

League : Almyros Gaziou FC plays in the Gamma Ethniki the fourth highest football league in Greece.

Category : Sri Lankan Mother

4. Manimeldura Leon Perera

Age : 23 yrs (DOB: 1 Jan 1997)

Height : 5’ 8”

Citizenship : Deutsch (German)

Position : Central Midfield

Current club : MTV Treubund Lüneburg

League : MTV Treubund Lüneburg competes in the Landesliga Lüneburg, called the Bezirksoberliga Lüneburg from 1979 to 1994 and 2006 to 2010, is the sixth tier of the German football league system and the second-highest league in the German state of Lower Saxony.

Category : Sri Lankan Father

5. Tiffan Anthonypillai

Age : 18 yrs. (DOB: 21 Sep 2002)

Height : 5’ 7”

Citizenship : Canadian

Position : Right Back

Current club : Cs Saint-Laurent, Montréal,Canada

Category : Sri Lankan Mother

6. Chikereuba Tochokwu Francis

Age : 27 yrs (DOB: 24 Apr 1993)

Height : 6’ 3”

Citizenship : Nigerian

Position : Central Defender

Current club : Java Lane SC, Colombo

League : Champions League – Sri Lanka

Category : Sri Lankan Spouse & Children

7. Poopathithasan Nilooshan

Age : 19 yrs (DOB: 19 Jul 2001)

Height : TBC

Citizenship : Deutsch (German)

Position : TBC

Current club : TBC

Category : Sri Lankan Mother

Furthermore, Waseem Razeek and his brother Muzakir Razeek already eligible to represent the country.

Athletics

Rumesh Extends European Dominance with Ostrava Gold

Published

18 hours ago

June 17, 2026

Editor

Sri Lanka’s rising athletics star Rumesh Tharanga Pathiragae reinforced his status as one of the world’s premier javelin throwers by capturing gold at the prestigious Ostrava Golden Spike meeting in the Czech Republic on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old delivered another commanding performance at the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold event, producing a winning throw of 86.57 metres to finish comfortably ahead of a high-quality international field.

Rumesh signaled his intentions from the outset with an opening effort of 85.87m before improving to 86.30m in the second round. He then produced his best throw of the day, 86.57m, in the third round, a mark that remained unbeaten for the rest of the competition.

Grenada’s double world champion Anderson Peters had to settle for second place with 84.27m, while South Africa’s Douw Smit completed the podium with a throw of 83.90m.

The latest triumph comes just weeks after Rumesh announced himself on the global stage with a sensational 92.62m effort in Rome, a throw that elevated him to eighth place on the all-time world rankings and established him as a genuine contender for major international honours.

Unlike in Rome, where he arrived as an emerging talent, Rumesh entered the Ostrava meet carrying the weight of expectation. Widely regarded as the athlete to beat in men’s javelin this season, the Sri Lankan was among the headline attractions of the competition and featured prominently in pre-event promotions.

News

Sports Minister Warns Rugby Federation of Disciplinary Action Over Visa Fiasco

Published

1 day ago

June 16, 2026

Editor

Minister of Sports Sunil Kumara Gamage has announced that disciplinary action will be taken against the Sri Lanka Rugby Federation following the national team’s failure to obtain visas for its scheduled Asian Rugby Championship match against South Korea, resulting in the cancellation of the fixture last week.

Addressing reporters, the Minister emphasized that the responsibility for securing travel documents and making logistical arrangements rests entirely with the relevant sports federation and not with the Ministry of Sports.

Gamage stated that federations are expected to make visa applications and travel arrangements well in advance and cannot rely on last-minute interventions. He described the incident as a clear case of negligence on the part of the Rugby Federation.

“The Sports Ministry does not intervene in visa or ticket processes. If funding is provided, we cover expenses, but team selection and visa arrangements are solely the federation’s responsibility. The Federation cannot request a visa on Monday if the team is to travel on Wednesday. This is the Federation’s negligence. This is not a government issue; it is an issue of the Federation or Association. We will take disciplinary action, as we have done before,” the Minister said.

He further stressed that such administrative failures cannot be allowed to continue, noting that sports federations often attempt to shift responsibility to the Ministry when shortcomings arise.

The Minister reiterated that the Rugby Federation must be held accountable for the cancellation of the international fixture, adding that the matter has also attracted attention in Parliament.

The cancellation of the Asian Rugby Championship match has raised concerns over the management and administrative efficiency of the sport’s governing body, with calls for greater accountability to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Cricket

Online Abuse Targets Sri Lanka A Cricketer After Match Incident

Published

1 day ago

June 16, 2026

Editor

Sri Lanka A player Vishen Halambage has reportedly become the latest victim of online harassment after a match-related confrontation with India A batter Vaibhav Suryavanshi sparked widespread discussion on social media.

The incident occurred during Sri Lanka A’s dramatic Super Over triumph over India A in the Tri-Nation Series on Monday. Footage showing a tense exchange between the two young cricketers quickly spread across social media platforms, drawing significant attention from cricket fans.

Following the match, Halambage’s Instagram account was flooded with critical and abusive messages, with many comments reportedly originating from social media users reacting to the on-field altercation. Unverified reports also suggested that individuals connected to the player were subjected to online harassment.

By Tuesday, Halambage’s Instagram profile appeared to be inaccessible. While some reports indicated that the account may have been blocked or restricted after receiving numerous complaints, the exact reason remains unclear. Neither the player nor Instagram has publicly commented on the matter.

The episode has once again brought attention to the growing issue of online abuse in sport, where athletes particularly younger players can face intense backlash following high-profile incidents. Sports analysts and observers have repeatedly called for greater efforts to curb harassment on digital platforms and promote responsible fan engagement.

The match itself ended in a memorable victory for Sri Lanka A, but the events that followed have shifted attention toward the challenges athletes face beyond the boundary ropes.