South Africans gain confidence after impressing against West African powerhouses at AFCON
South African soccer legend Dr Khumalo has backed Bafana Bafana to secure tickets to the 2026 FIFA World Cup ahead of Nigeria, Soccernet.ng reported.
Nigeria and South Africa will be in Group C of the World Cup qualifiers along with Rwanda, Lesotho, Zimbabwe and Benin Republic.
The Super Eagles, who have appeared in six World Cups and three continental championships, were the favorites to win their group and secure a spot in the 2026 tournament, which will be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States .
However, Nigeria did not start their qualifying campaign on the best of terms, drawing their first two matches against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
South Africa fared slightly better, picking up three points from the two games following their win over Benin and loss to Rwanda.
After some impressive results, the Super Eagles and Bafana Bafana met in the semi-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
Nigeria won in the penalty shootout and advanced to the final. Despite this, South Africa performed well in this encounter, winning the bronze medal by defeating the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the third-place match.
The two countries will meet again in June, with the winner taking an early lead in the race to qualify for the World Cup.
Kumalo believes South Africa, which last played in a World Cup in 2002 and only hosted the tournament in 2010, has what it takes to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
Bafana The Bafana legend has backed Hugo Bruce and his team to make Nigeria a contender in the qualifiers.
“Let’s not tear it down so they can qualify. We support Hugo because it’s not broken yet,” said Khumalo, according to SABC News.
“Herman, the background staff, and the boys, let them carry on like they did in Ivory Coast.”
“I’d like to think Nigeria is in our group, but given what we saw in Ivory Coast, I’d bet all my money that South Africa can overcome this obstacle.”
The latest update to the FIFA World Rankings has made Nigeria the third best team in Africa.
Only Morocco and Senegal are higher on the continent than the Super Eagles. The Super Eagles are also considered his 28th best football team in the world.
