Exciting period for SAFA on and off the field – South African Football Association

20 October 2026 – It has been a hectic period for the South African Football Association (SAFA) with positive news on and off the field.

Fresh from hosting a successful Elective Congress, the appointment of Vice Presidents and the induction of newly elected National Executive Committee members in line with FIFA statutes, on the field of play the Association has been equally busy with several teams posting positive results.

Bafana Bafana:

• South Africa 2 – 1 Guinea
• Eritrea 0 – 5 South Africa
• Egypt 0 – 1 South Africa

Newly appointed Bafana Bafana Head Coach Dr Pitso Mosimane led the South African Senior Men’s National Team to three victories in as many matches.

The journey started at Orlando Stadium where they defeated Guinea 2-1, then travelled to a neutral venue in Egypt for their clash with Eritrea who they thrashed 5-0 – both matches were 2027 AFCON qualifiers. Dr Mosimane’s charges rounded off their good start with an impressive 1-0 win over Egypt in an away international friendly match in Cairo.

Banyana Banyana:

• Madagascar 0 – 4 Banyana Banyana
• Banyana Banyana 3 – 0 Madagascar

Sasol Banyana Banyana were also merciless against Madagascar in the second round of the 2028 LA Olympic Games qualifiers. With the Islanders having no suitable venue for official matches, the two-legged fixture took place at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein, with South Africa registering 4-0 and 3-0 victories to progress to the third round where they will face Angola.

SA U23:

• SA U23 3 – 1 Algeria
• SA U23 1 – 1 Algeria

The South African U23 Men’s National Team also got together after a long absence and met their counterparts from Algeria in two international friendly fixtures. Both games were in preparation for the 2028 LA Olympic Games qualifiers where they will meet Madagascar next month. South Africa came from behind to win the first match 3-1 and drew the second 1-1 at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein.

SA U20:

• South Africa 3 – 0 Lesotho
• Angola 0 – 2 South Africa
• Eswatini 0 – 2 South Africa
• Zambia 2 – 4 South Africa
• Mozambique 1 – 2 South Africa

Five matches, 13 goals, 3 conceded.

That is the story of the South African U20 Men’s National Team, under the tutelage of Head Coach Raymond Mdaka who led the squad in Mozambique in defence of their COSAFA Youth Championship title.

The successful mission saw them defeat Lesotho (3-0), Angola (2-0), Eswatini (2-0), Zambia (4-2) and hosts Mozambique (2-1).

Amajita also won five Player of the Match awards in the process: Steven Mendes (vs Lesotho, vs Zambia), Manelis Mazibuko (vs Eswatini), Emile Witbooi (vs Mozambique).

South Africa also took home top accolades:

• Goalkeeper of the Tournament: Takalani Mazhamba
• Top Scorer: Steven Mendes.

SA U16 Boys:

• FC Augsburg (U16) 0 – 2 South Africa U16
• Arminia Bielefeld U16 0 – 5 South Africa U16

The South African U16 Men’s National Team returns home today from Germany where they were part of the SAFA Bundesliga Dream 2026 as part of preparations for the inaugural FIFA U15 World Cup and Festival scheduled to be played in Azerbaijan from 24-30 October.

During their time in Germany the squad played and won two matches, defeating FC Augsburg U16 and Arminia Bielefeld U16 2-0 and 5-0 respectively.

The SAFA Girls Academy was also out in Portugal to get a feel of the world out there, and in the process created memories by making new friends with their European peers and also strengthened team environment. The tour formed part of the Academy’s commitment to developing young female footballers and preparing them for future opportunities at club and national team level.

The team returned home in high spirits after posting exciting and positive results.

SAFA Girls Academy:

FC Porto U17 vs SAFA Girls Academy

0 – 0

SC Braga U17 vs SAFA Girls Academy

0 – 3

Famalicão U18 vs SAFA Girls Academy

1 – 3

SC Rio Tinto Senior vs SAFA Girls Academy

1 – 1

FIFA TDS Programme:

The FIFA TDS Interprovincial tournament also took place in Johannesburg with all provinces represented in the Boys and Girls sections. The U15 Western Cape team lifted the trophy in the Girls section while Gauteng claimed gold in the Boys’ division. The South African U15 Boys National team did not disappoint as they took second place.

SAFA President Dr Danny Jordaan congratulated all these teams and said more success is on the horizon as the increasingly busy period for South African football continues.

COMING UP NEXT…

SAFA continues working hard behind the scenes as more on the field action follows.

First up will be the South African U15 Men’s National Team heading to Azerbaijan after their visit to Germany. The squad won’t have time to rest as they fly out to Europe on Wednesday (21 October 2026).

Next in action will be the SA U23 team who get into the thick of things as they face Madagascar in back-to-back qualifiers next month. The two nations meet in the first leg on Saturday, 14 October at 15h00, with the return fixture scheduled for Tuesday, 17 October at 20h00. Both matches will be played at the Lucas Moripe Stadium in Atteridgeville.

During that period, Bafana Bafana will take to the field and face Benni McCarthy’ Kenya in two-legged 2027 AFCON qualifiers set for Orlando Amstel Arena starting with the home match on Friday, 13 November, and away in Nairobi on Tuesday, 17 November 2026.

At the end of November, Sasol Banyana Banyana will head to Morocco for the penultimate round of 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup Preliminary Phase Play-offs where they will face Chinese Taipei, Ecuador and Uzbekistan.

South African Football: The Premier Soccer League (PSL) is the top professional football league in South Africa.