2026 World Cup: South Africa's complete journey

A look back at South Africa's journey in the 2026 World Cup, from the group stage through to their elimination at the hands of Canada.

Drawn into Group A alongside Mexico, Czechia, and South Korea, Bafana Bafana grew into the tournament after a faltering start. Two positive results in their last two group games propelled them to second place with 4 points, securing direct qualification to the knockout stages—a historic first for South Africa in their four World Cup appearances.

Mexico 2 - 0 South Africa (Quiñones 9', Jiménez 67')
Czechia 1 - 1 South Africa (Sadílek 6'; Mokoena 83' pen)
South Africa 1 - 0 South Korea (Maseko 63')

Read also: 2026 World Cup: DR Congo's complete journey

A historic first halted by Canada

This qualification was already a landmark achievement for the nation, which had never previously made it past the opening round in four World Cup appearances—including as hosts in 2010. The adventure ultimately came to an end in the round of 32:

Canada 1 - 0 South Africa

Mahdi Zakaria LAZRI |

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Football web writer creating digital sports content with a focus on news, analysis and stories that reflect passion, accuracy and objectivity.

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