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EZEKIEL PHALANA
PICTURES SOURCED FROM SAFA WEBSITE.
The South African Football Association (SAFA) has confirmed the appointment of highly decorated South African coach Pitso Mosimane as the new head coach of Bafana Bafana, marking the return of one of the country’s most successful football coaches to the national team.
Mosimane succeeds Belgian coach Hugo Broos, who stepped down on 31 July 2026 after five years in charge of the senior men’s national team. Broos leaves the position after guiding Bafana Bafana to the second round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and helping restore belief and competitiveness around the national side.
The appointment brings back a coach with an exceptional continental record. Mosimane is a three-time CAF Champions League-winning coach, having lifted the prestigious trophy with Mamelodi Sundowns and twice with Egyptian giants Al Ahly. His career has also included success in the Premier Soccer League, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and other football environments.
Mosimane will be joined on the Bafana Bafana technical team by Kabelo Rangoaga and Musi Matlaba, with SAFA expected to announce further members of the technical structure in the coming days.
Welcoming Mosimane back to SAFA House, SAFA President Dr Danny Jordaan outlined the major objectives facing the national team.
Jordaan highlighted the Africa Cup of Nations, the forthcoming CAF African Nations League and the 2030 FIFA World Cup as key priorities, while also identifying the COSAFA Cup as an important platform for developing and graduating emerging players into senior international football.
For Mosimane, the return to the national team represents an opportunity to build upon the progress achieved under his predecessor while setting an even higher standard for Bafana Bafana.
Speaking after his appointment, Mosimane called for national unity behind the team and emphasised the importance of making Bafana Bafana a source of collective pride.
“When that national anthem plays, those differences fall away. And when Bafana Bafana takes to the field, we have an opportunity to make those words in the anthem, to make them real – One South Africa, behind one team.”
The new Bafana Bafana coach also paid tribute to Broos, his technical team and the players who contributed to the national team’s recent progress.
Mosimane said his responsibility was to build on the foundation already established, move the team forward and raise the standards even further.
Broos, meanwhile, congratulated his successor and wished Mosimane and SAFA success in the months ahead.
He praised Mosimane’s achievements and described him as one of the most successful coaches South Africa has produced.
SAFA CEO Lydia Monyepao said Mosimane’s appointment comes at an important moment, with the team’s preparations for the next Africa Cup of Nations campaign already beginning.
“The work starts now because we have an important AFCON campaign ahead of us and our preparations start immediately,” Monyepao said.
AFCON 2027 campaign begins this month
Mosimane’s first major assignment will arrive quickly, with Bafana Bafana set to begin their CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2027 qualifying campaign later this month.
South Africa will host Guinea on 26 September 2026, with the venue expected to be announced in the coming days, before travelling to face Eritrea away on Wednesday, 30 September 2026.
The 2027 Africa Cup of Nations will be staged in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda from 19 June to 17 July 2027.
With the new coach expected to announce a preliminary squad in the coming days, preparations for the qualification campaign are already gathering momentum.
Mosimane now faces the task of building on Bafana Bafana’s encouraging World Cup progress, developing the next generation of South African internationals and creating a team capable of competing consistently at the highest level of African football.
His return has generated renewed anticipation around the national team, with South Africa now looking towards a new chapter under a coach whose record and experience have already made him one of the country’s most celebrated football figures.