The government has moved to ease public concerns that the national senior men’s football team, Bafana Bafana, could face political hurdles at next year’s Fifa World Cup hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada in the wake of tensions between South Africa and Washington.
There are fears that the diplomatic bad blood between the two countries might spill over to affect the way the team and the SA contingent might be treated in the US.
However, when asked about such concerns, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco), through the minister’s spokesperson, Chrispin Phiri, moved to allay the fears.
He maintained that suggestions of such a scenario awaiting South Africans at the 2026 Fifa World Cup underestimate how international sport is governed.
Phiri argued that the manner in which global football structures operate makes it highly unlikely that any host nation could bar a qualified team from participating in the tournament.
Phiri said the World Cup operates within a framework designed to prevent political interference. He stressed that control of the tournament does not lie with any single state, including the host country. “The governance of international sporting events operates through a polycentric system,” Phiri said.
“The authority to determine participant eligibility rests not unilaterally with any single government, but is structured through agreements between the host nation and the global governing federation of each sport,” he further added.
Phiri noted that eligibility decisions fall squarely within the mandate of bodies such as Fifa, which set and enforce the rules that ensure fair participation for all member nations.
“These federations, which uphold their own regulations and principles, are the primary bodies that oversee the inclusive and fair participation of all member nations,” he said.
His comments come as Bafana Bafana’s recent resurgence has heightened public sensitivity to anything that could disrupt their long-awaited return to football’s highest stage. For many supporters, the suggestion that political decisions abroad could derail the team’s progress has fuelled anxiety.
But Phiri was unequivocal in his reassurance. “We are confident that due process and the universal values of sport will be upheld,” he said, adding that the international governance system is built to safeguard the integrity of global competitions.
With the World Cup approaching, government officials hope the focus will shift back to football and to Bafana Bafana’s preparations for the tournament.
Approached for comment, Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie said that this issue is speculative right now. And on whether there has been formal communication from the US government and what diplomatic measures South Africa has taken, McKenzie referred enquiries to Dirco.
“Global sport is administered separately from political interference. This is defined by the Olympic Charter, and Fifa’s Constitution is also clear about this, in particular Article 14 and Article 19. As I have said, sports administration and politics are meant to be kept separate. This issue is speculative right now, and we’d have to make decisions around that only if it becomes a problem,” McKenzie told Sunday World.
McKenzie also explained further that he was not sure whether Safa had raised concerns about the current climate and asked that Sunday World speak to Safa as he would prefer not to speak for them. “I can tell you, however, that this issue hasn’t been raised with me
previously,” he added.
