Bafana Bafana have bowed out of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament following a defeat by Cameroon.
“Bafana Bafana are out of the Africa Cup of Nations after a defeat by Cameroon at the Al Medina Stadium in Rabat, Morocco, in the Last 16 stage of the tournament on Sunday,” the South African Football Association (SAFA) said on Monday.
Goals from defender Junior Tchamadeu in the 34th minute and Christian Kofane two minutes after the restart in the second half gave Cameroon the advantage before Evidence Makgopa pulled one back for the South African senior men’s national team two minutes from regulation time.
“With a bit of luck, the game could have seen a different outcome had the opportunities that Bafana Bafana created during the match managed to find the back of the net,” said SAFA.
“We are very disappointed and sad that we have been eliminated. I think we had the right plan, and everybody saw that, especially in the first half. We had three good chances in the first half, and the game could have been (over) then,” coach Hugo Broos said.
In a post on social media platform, X, government acknowledged the efforts of the team in Sunday night’s match.
“Bafana Bafana bow out of AFCON after a hard-fought match against Cameroon. We salute the team for their effort and commitment, and thank South Africans for the unwavering support,” said government.
Meanwhile, Bafana Bafana will return to their base in Marrakech on Monday, 5 January 2025 before finally heading back home to South Africa.
The South African senior men’s team were knocked out of AFCON after qualifying for the knockout stages in December 2025. At the time, government congratulated the team for the feat.
READ | Bafana Bafana qualifies for AFCON knockout stages
The final of the tournament is expected to be held on 18 January 2026.
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