Bafana Bafana’s upcoming 2025 AFCON qualifier match against Congo on 11 October will be hosted at the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium in Gqerberha, Eastern Cape. The game was initially going to be played in the Free State, however according to SAFA CEO Lydia Monyepao, due to unforseen circumstances the game had to be moved to the Eastern Cape.
“The reason why we selected Nelson Mandela Bay – initially we had pencilled in Bloemfontein, and we were in advanced talks with the Mangaung Municipality to take the game back there.
“Given the support we received in June when Bafana Bafana played against Zimbabwe, we thought it’s the best atmosphere to give our team the support they need to get maximum points at home before they go to Brazzavile.
“But there were certain issues beyond our control that saw us take the game away.”
With a rugby match scheduled to be played at Free State Stadium a few days prior, and other issues, Monyepao says they had to make a call, and the Friendly City was next in line.
“We were thinking about the happenings in Mangaung around that weekend, but things like the condition of the pitch leading up to the game was not going to be ideal for this kind of game,” she added.
“Because we were notified of the rugby games that were happening before then, and we also had other logistical challenge that, when we sat down and thought about it, we thought it’s best to move it to Port Elizabeth, which was actually scheduled to host Bafana in November.”
Coach Broos announced the preliminary 33-member squad earlier this week and is set to announce the final 23-member squad in the coming few days. South Africa will face Congo at home on Friday, 11 October 2024 (7pm), and then they travel to Congo to play the return match on Tuesday, 15 October 2024
SAFA will communicate the ticket information and the home match venue this week. The two top finishers will qualify for the tournament to be hosted in Morocco from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026.
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Image: Alche Greeff/Gallo Images
Source: SAFA/ SABC Sport
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