After qualifying for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) with two matches remaining and currently sitting on top of their group, Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos is setting his sights on the qualifiers for the World Cup next year in March.
Bafana last qualified for a Fifa World Cup in 2002, for the Korea/Japan edition. They last played in the competition in 2010, by virtue of hosting the tournament and will be yearning to break that 22-year hoodoo. With the Afcon qualifiers out of the way, the 72-year-old Broos now has the mandate to help South Africa qualify for the 2026 Fifa World Cup in the USA, Mexico, and Canada.
Bafana punched their ticket to the upcoming Afcon in Morocco after South Sudan shell-shocked Congo Brazzaville on Thursday. Broos’ men then got the job done and beat Uganda 2-0 at the Mandela National Stadium in Kampala on Friday afternoon.
Broos has accomplished the Afcon dream for South Africa, as he has guided Bafana to their back-to-back continental tournament, becoming the first-ever Bafana coach to achieve that feat.
At the previous Afcon in Ivory Coast early this year, Broos steered Bafana to a historic bronze medal – their first podium finish at the Afcon finals since 1996.
The South Africans will resume their World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho on March 17 next year, with the venue yet to be confirmed. They are currently sitting on number two with seven points with leaders Rwanda after four matches.
Benin, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe are also the other teams standing in Bafana’s way to return to the world stage.
Bafana will wrap up their Afcon qualifiers on Tuesday when they host South Sudan at the Cape Town Stadium.
