At 21h00 on Thursday South Africa’s senior national football team, affectionately known as Bafana Bafana, will enter the Mexican slaughter house in the first game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. South Africa will be locking horns with Mexico, co-host of the World Cup tournament, and hoping to hold the highly rated nation to a draw in their backyard. This is what Mexico did in 2010 when they held Bafana Bafana to a one-all draw in Bafana’s backyard in Johannesburg.
Frankly, most people don’t give the South African team a chance in this historic encounter at Azteca stadium in Mexico City. This popular opinion is informed by the fact that although Bafana reached the semi finals of AFCON 2023 in the Ivory Coast, they dramatically bombed out of the AFCON 2025 in the Round of 16 in January 2026 in Morocco, courtesy of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon. Under the tutelage of the wily Belgian tactician, Hugo Broos, the nation expected Bafana to crush Cameroon and anything their way to the finals. This did not happen and the nation has been sulking ever since.
To make matters worse for Bafana, they did not cover themselves in glory in the pre-World Cup friendlies in preparation for the world contest in North America this month. Bafana were expected to walk all over Panama, Nicaragua and Jamaica in their warm-up games before meeting Mexico. Unfortunately, the results were dismal, to say the least. Coach Hugo has made matters worse by publicly reprimanding the boys for poor performance and bad results. It is unclear what morale is like in the Bafana camp in Mexico just a day before the first game against the over-confident Mexicans.
Now, football is not a mathematical equation and anything is possible. Those who have experienced the ups and downs of the game in more intensity like Jomo Sono will tell you that on any day luck may be the deciding factor in a game.
Bafana have as much a chance as Mexico to emerge victorious in its first game with Mexico. Mexico is not Brazil or Germany. On a good day, Bafana Bafana can silence the boisterous and intoxicated throngs of fans in the stadium by mesmerising the North Americans and claim the three points at the end of the game. On a bad day, Bafana can be humiliated at the world famous slaughterhouse that is Azteca stadium, especially in a packed to capacity stadium in which the Mexican wave will expected to spur on the hosts. Only time will tell.
In my last meeting with Hugo Broos in Johannesburg before jetting out ot Mexico, he sounded more confident than in our previous discussion that South Africa will make it to the second round of the world contest. This is no misplaced optimism; it the result of a new qualification formula that makes it easier even for those countries that do not make it to the Top 2 for automatically qualification. There will be a lot of best third position holders who will make it to the next round. There is no reason, except witchcraft, why Bafana Bafana should not make it via this attractive option in case they don’t make it to the Top 2.
My message to the boys and the technical team is that we are second to none in the group that comprises Mexico, Czech Republic and South Korea. My view is that the four teams have the same chance to emerge victorious and there is no reason why the Hugo Broos boys, used to finishing top of the group, should not make us proud and go to the very top of Group A after three games. Yes, that will require balls and the right mentality from our national team. With captain Williams in his element, Mbokazi and Mudau ruthless at the back, Mokoena marshalling the midfield and Mofokeng, Appollis and Foster raising their game, these boys will become men and make us proud.
Ndizani Bafana Bafana!
Sello Lediga has published four books. His latest book NDIZANI BAFANA BAFANA – The Comeback Story of a Nation is available at www.sellolediga.co.za
