South Africa's preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup have suffered an unexpected setback after the national team failed to depart for Mexico as scheduled on Sunday (31 May) because some players and officials had not yet received their visas.
The national team, Bafana Bafana, were due to fly on a chartered flight to their training base in Pachuca, Mexico, but the trip was postponed as the South African Football Association (SAFA) worked to resolve the documentation issues.
The delay comes just 11 days before South Africa's opening Group A match against co-hosts Mexico in Mexico City on 11 June, a fixture expected to attract a global television audience.
South Africa's Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie expressed his frustration over the situation in a post on X.
"This SAFA travel and visa debacle is embarrassing and grossly unfair towards the players and coaching staff," McKenzie wrote.
"I have informed SAFA that I need a report and action must be taken against those responsible for this mess. We are being made to look like fools."
In a statement, SAFA confirmed that visa-related challenges had prevented the team from travelling as planned.
"The team was unable to fly in the morning as planned due to challenges regarding visas for some players and officials," the association said.
"SAFA is working around the clock to ensure that the team travels to Mexico City as soon as possible."
"We remain committed to ensuring that the team's preparations for the tournament remain on track and in the meantime, Bafana Bafana will continue to train in Johannesburg until departure," the statement added.
An emergency SAFA meeting was scheduled for Sunday evening to address the situation.
The latest administrative problem follows an earlier scare during the qualification campaign. South Africa's 2-0 win over Lesotho was initially overturned after midfielder Teboho Mokoena was found to have been ineligible for the match because of suspension.
Despite the setback, South Africa still managed to top their qualifying group, finishing one point ahead of Nigeria and Benin to secure their place at the finals.
The tournament marks South Africa's first appearance at the World Cup since hosting the competition in 2010.
After facing Mexico, South Africa will take on the Czech Republic in Atlanta on 18 June before concluding their group-stage campaign against South Korea in Monterrey on 24 June.
U.S. Donald Trump has said he has cancelled planned strikes on Iranian oil and gas ports announced earlier on Thursday. Trump said he made the decisio...
Britain's Defence Minister, John Healey, and Armed Forces Minister, Al Carns, have resigned from UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government over a...
Spanish football club Real Madrid has appointed José Mourinho as its new manager. The 63-year-old nicknamed “the special one” returns to the hel...
Pakistan says it has killed 26 militants in strikes on terrorist hideouts along the Afghan border, marking the most significant escalation between the...
Canada’s Privacy Commissioner has found that xAI’s Grok chatbot and its parent company X Corp. violated federal privacy law by launching an AI ima...
U.S. Donald Trump has said he has cancelled planned strikes on Iranian oil and gas ports announced earlier on Thursday. Trump said he made the decision after senior leadership in Iran agreed to peace talks.
Britain's Defence Minister, John Healey, and Armed Forces Minister, Al Carns, have resigned from UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government over a disagreement about defence spending.
Spanish football club Real Madrid has appointed José Mourinho as its new manager. The 63-year-old nicknamed “the special one” returns to the helm of Spain’s most successful football club, more than a decade since his last stint as the team's manager.
Canada’s Privacy Commissioner has found that xAI’s Grok chatbot and its parent company X Corp. violated federal privacy law by launching an AI image-generation tool without adequate safeguards, enabling the creation and distribution of non-consensual sexualised deepfakes.
Mexico and South Africa meet in Thursday’s World Cup opener in Mexico City, with both teams approaching the match from very different positions but facing their own pressures.
Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry says 19 citizens have been repatriated following a deadly drone attack on two cargo ships in the Sea of Azov on 5 June.
The Pakistani city of Karachi is struggling under severe heat and humidity as the country enters a prolonged heatwave period. The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has warned of above-normal temperatures across much of the country between 7 and 12 June.
Ukraine's military said it struck a Russian "shadow fleet" tanker in the Black Sea as part of ongoing efforts to disrupt Moscow's energy and logistics networks. The move underscores Kyiv's focus on targeting maritime assets it says are used to bypass sanctions on Russian oil exports.
U.S. forces say they have completed strikes on Iranian military sites near the Strait of Hormuz. Iran responded with missile attacks on an American base in Jordan, marking a sharp escalation in tensions between the two sides.
More than a third of Belgium’s population now has a foreign background, according to new figures released by the national statistics office, Statbel. The data show that around 4.34 million of the country’s nearly 11.7 million residents do not have an entirely Belgian background.
Fuel stations across the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula ran dry on Thursday as Ukraine stepped up attacks on supply routes to the region.
Britain's Defence Minister, John Healey, and Armed Forces Minister, Al Carns, have resigned from UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government over a disagreement about defence spending.
Spanish football club Real Madrid has appointed José Mourinho as its new manager. The 63-year-old nicknamed “the special one” returns to the helm of Spain’s most successful football club, more than a decade since his last stint as the team's manager.
Pakistan says it has killed 26 militants in strikes on terrorist hideouts along the Afghan border, marking the most significant escalation between the neighbouring countries since a China-brokered diplomatic effort helped ease tensions earlier this year.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment