South Africa national soccer team
| Nickname(s) | Bafana Bafana | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Association | South African Football Association (SAFA) | |||
| Confederation | CAF (Africa) | |||
| Sub-confederation | COSAFA (Southern Africa) | |||
| Head coach | Hugo Broos | |||
| Captain | Ronwen Williams | |||
| Most caps | Aaron Mokoena (107) | |||
| Top scorer | Benni McCarthy (31) | |||
| Home stadium | Various | |||
| FIFA code | RSA | |||
| ||||
| FIFA ranking | ||||
| Current | 56 1 (3 April 2025) | |||
| Highest | 16 (August 1996) | |||
| Lowest | 124 (December 1992) | |||
| First international | ||||
| Argentina 0–1 South Africa (Buenos Aires, Argentina; 9 July 1906) | ||||
| Biggest win | ||||
| Australia 0–8 South Africa (Adelaide, Australia; 17 September 1955) | ||||
| Biggest defeat | ||||
| South Africa 1–9 England (Cape Town, South Africa; 17 July 1920) | ||||
| World Cup | ||||
| Appearances | 3 (first in 1998) | |||
| Best result | Group stage (1998, 2002, 2010) | |||
| Africa Cup of Nations | ||||
| Appearances | 12 (first in 1996) | |||
| Best result | Champions (1996) | |||
| CONCACAF Gold Cup | ||||
| Appearances | 1 (first in 2005) | |||
| Best result | Quarter-finals (2005) | |||
| African Nations Championship | ||||
| Appearances | 2 (first in 2011) | |||
| Best result | Quarter-finals (2011) | |||
| COSAFA Cup | ||||
| Appearances | 18 (first in 1998) | |||
| Best result | Champions (2002, 2007, 2008, 2016, 2021) | |||
| Website | safa.net | |||
The South Africa national soccer team represents South Africa in men's international soccer and is run by the South African Football Association, the governing body for soccer in South Africa. Nicknamed Bafana Bafana (The Boys in Zulu), the team's home ground is FNB Stadium, which is located in Johannesburg. The team is a member of both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF). The team is one of the most well-supported national sides in Africa, and are recognized by their traditional yellow-green kits.
Having played their first match in 1906, South Africa returned to the world stage in 1992, after sixteen years of being banned from FIFA, and forty years of effective suspension due to the apartheid system. South Africa have qualified for the FIFA World Cup three times: 1998, 2002, and 2010, when it hosted the tournament, becoming the first African nation to do so. Despite defeating France 2–1 in their final game of the group stage, they failed to progress from the first round of the tournament, becoming the first host nation in the history of the FIFA World Cup to exit in the group stage, followed by Qatar in 2022. As of December 2024, the team is ranked 10th in Africa (CAF) and 57th in FIFA overall.
South Africa's most significant achievement came in 1996 when they hosted and won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). They reached the final again in 1998 but were defeated by Egypt.
Some of the most notable players in Bafana Bafana's history include Benni McCarthy, the team's top scorer with 31 goals, and Aaron Mokoena, who holds the record for the most caps with 107 appearances. Other significant players include Lucas Radebe, Doctor Khumalo, and Itumeleng Khune.