WINDHOEK, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Namibian men's fistball team has begun to raise funds for participation at this year's IFA Fistball World Championship, said an official.

Namibia will be the only African team to represent the continent at the event, Namibia Fistball Association media officer Helmo Minz said in an interview with Xinhua on Tuesday.

The draw for the groups will take place in March and 18 teams will participate, he added.

In an effort to ensure their participation, Minz said the association has printed 300 books, consisting of 10 raffles per book as a way to raise funds.

"One raffle costs 40 Namibia dollars. I guess we will sell around 250 books or less. The country's sports commission does not contribute a single cent, not for the World Cup nor anything in any given year, hence our fundraising project," he said.

According to Minz, the country's fistball association does, however support the players financially.

"So those two sources do cover a great deal but each player will still look at about 20,000 Namibian dollars to contribute themselves," he said.

The World Cup will be held in Winterthur, Switzerland in August and Namibia will be allowed to have 10 players in the squad.