Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has set out a challenge for his team in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers this month, asking South Africa to reproduce the impressive performances of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
South Africa displayed one of their best performances in the continental spectacle after a long time of underachieving as Bafana finished third behind champions Ivory Coast and rivals Nigeria.
Bafana take on Nigeria this Friday with the hopes of returning to winning ways after losing 2-0 to Rwanda last October.
Broos’ side have three points from two games while Nigeria sit on two points and are desperate for a first win.
Broos, meanwhile, has unwavering trust in the capabilities of the national team – the Belgian mentor believes a good Bafana will only draw attention to his players and pave way for possible career advancements.
“If we can achieve the level of AFCON, we have to be able to qualify for the World Cup again. It is very important that we qualify after so many years,” said Broos.
“It is very important for the country to qualify for big tournaments like the AFCON and the World Cup.
“You saw what happened after our third-place finish in AFCON, suddenly everyone is like, ‘Wow, South Africa’.
“It is important for South Africa players because suddenly there is interest. It is very important that after a good performance in the AFCON we qualify for the World Cup because if we don’t, then we go back to where we started seven months ago.
“We believe in it and I know that we are able to do it because we have a quality team.
“But again, we have Nigeria as one of the better teams in Africa, but you also have the tricky games against Lesotho and Zimbabwe. Normally when we see the quality, everybody says yes [we can win against them]. But it is a challenge,” Broos concluded.
Flight delayed, but we’re on our way, Nigeria bound. #BafanaPride #WCQualifiers ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/g3m8DTquSc
— Bafana Bafana (@BafanaBafana) June 5, 2024
