Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has announced a 45-man preliminary squad to face Zimbabwe and Rwanda in the final 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
There’s also something else at stake. Senegal’s Lions of Teranga currently hold the world’s longest unbeaten run at 24 games, while South Africa and Spain are right behind them on 22.
For Broos and his players, maintaining that momentum is just as important as sealing qualification.
BAFANA BAFANA EDGE CLOSER TO FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION
The first match is against Zimbabwe at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Friday, 10 October 2025 at 15:00, before closing against Rwanda at Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday, 14 October 2025 at 18:00.
South Africa lead Group C with 17 points from eight matches, ahead of Benin (14), Nigeria (11), Rwanda (11), Lesotho (6), and Zimbabwe (4).
In the first round, Bafana Bafana met Zimbabwe in June at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein, which was a party as South Africa cruised to a 3-1 win. Following Tawanda Chirewa’s shock opener for the Warriors, Mamelodi Sundowns pair Thapelo Morena bagged a superb brace, while Iqraam Rayners added the third. The return fixture will technically be Zimbabwe’s “home” game, but with no FIFA-approved stadium in the country, it has been shifted to Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium.
Rwanda, on the other hand, handed Bafana one of their toughest lessons in this qualifying campaign. In a rain-soaked encounter on the astro turf of Huye Stadium in Butare back in November 2023, South Africa slipped to a 2-0 defeat. Innocent Nshuti and Gilbert Mugisha struck the goals, leaving Broos and his men to reflect on what went wrong. That loss still lingers, and the Mbombela clash will be about revenge as much as qualification.
Meanwhile, according to FIFA rules, Broos has to name his final squad of 23 players before the first week of October.