Paris 2024: Ones to watch in blind football

The seven blind football athletes you should be looking out for when the next Paralympics kick off in France this summer 22 Mar 2024

By IPC

With the countdown to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games well and truly in the final stages, our Sport Weeks provide you with the perfect guide to each of the competitions being contested in France.

To round off this week, here are the key players in blind football.

Abderrazak Hattab (Morocco)

Two male players in action. — **Hattab, front, is set to compete at his third Paralympic Games. @**Bruna Prado/Getty Images

Arguably Africa’s best blind footballer, he scored Morocco’s first-ever Paralympic goal at Rio 2016 when they became the first African side to compete at the Games. He followed that up by leading the team to more history when they beat China 4-0 to win bronze at Tokyo 2020.

Emre Aslan (Turkiye)

Two male blind football players in action. One athlete is wearing a red jersey and dribbles the ball past an opponent. — Aslan, left, helped Turkiye to the silver medal at the 2022 European Championships. @IBSA Blind Sports

Aslan, who plays blind club football for Bundesliga side Schalke FC in Germany, was named Player of the Tournament at the 2022 European Championships as he helped Turkiye to the silver medal.

Frederic Villeroux (France)

A male blind football player dribbles the ball past an opponent. — Villeroux, right, is preparing to take the spotlight in front of a home crowd. @Carmen Mandato/ Getty Images

A veteran of three Paralympic Games already, he was named Player of the Tournament twice as he led France to European gold in 2009 and silver in 2019. He also captained the team to Paralympic silver at London 2012.

Maximiliano Espinillo (Argentina)

A male blind football player kicks the ball with his left foot — Espinillo, right, targets Argentina's first Paralympic gold medal in blind football. @Naomi Baker/ Getty Images

The star striker of the reigning world champions is hoping to overcome Brazil to secure Argentina’s long-awaited Paralympic gold at Paris 2024, less than a year after beating their fierce rivals to the Parapan American title at Santiago 2023.

Raimundo ‘Nonato’ Mendes (Brazil)

Raimundo 'Nonato' Mendes, a male blind football player from Brazil, celebrates after scoring a goal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. — Mendes helped Brazil capture their fifth straight Paralympic gold. @Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images

The three-time Paralympic champion scored a stunning solo goal that made headlines around the world to help Brazil retain their blind football title at Tokyo 2020.

Ryo Kawamura (Japan)

Japanese player scored for the hosts on their Paralympic debut at Tokyo 2020 as they made history by beating European silver medallists France in their opening match.

Zhu Ruiming (China)

A male blind football dribbles the ball — Zhu made his Paralympic debut at Tokyo 2020. @IBF Foundation

Part of the Chinese side that narrowly missed out on bronze at Tokyo 2020, Zhu will be aiming to help his country to a Paralympic podium following their silver medal at the 2023 Worlds.

Book your tickets for the Paralympic Games by visiting the Paris 2024 ticketing website.