Bafana Bafana, South Africa’s national football team, welcomes you to the 2026 FIFA World Cup! They completed the remarkable reversal with a commanding 3-0 win against Rwanda. This incredible accomplishment returns South Africa to the World Cup spotlight. It will be their first time since they automatically qualified as hosts in 2010. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) punished South Africa for fielding an ineligible player during the qualifying rounds by deducting three points. After this disappointment, the squad rallied and finished first place in their qualifying group.
The match against Rwanda showcased South Africa’s dominance, with Thalente Mbatha and Oswin Appollis each scoring within the first 12 minutes. Evidence Makgopa sealed the victory with a third goal in the second half, ensuring a comfortable win that propelled Bafana Bafana into the World Cup finals set to take place in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Nigeria’s hopes of direct qualification were dashed despite Victor Osimhen’s impressive hat-trick against Benin. Nigeria came into the match knowing they needed to close a three-goal margin and do better than a two-goal gap. Osimhen had his hat-trick less than six minutes into the second half. Despite this tremendous showing, Nigeria surprisingly ended up second in the group stage and must now navigate their way to qualification through the CAF playoffs alongside three other second-best teams from nine first-round qualifying groups.
This year’s playoffs are scheduled for November 10-18. This is Nigeria’s golden chance to get back to the World Cup and become a force again! This new turn of events further demonstrates the cutthroat nature of the competition within African football. Even the strongest teams, such as Nigeria, are put in daunting qualifying situations.
