By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), in partnership with Brand South Africa and SA Tourism, will host the Ekhaya Centre at the Centro Nacional de las Artes in Mexico City.
South Africa and Mexico will renew their World Cup rivalry when they meet in the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on 11 June, exactly 16 years after the two nations kicked off the first World Cup on African soil.
The historic parallel was announced by Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie on Thursday during a media briefing in Pretoria.
“It will be a place to see South African art, to hear South African music, to eat South African food. It will be a media centre for the journalists covering Bafana Bafana’s campaign.”
“It will be a fan park and a fan engagement space. It will be a venue for business and investment networking – because when our flag is flying, our economy should be working alongside it,” the Minister said.
Additional activation centres will be hosted in Atlanta and Monterrey, aligned with Bafana Bafana’s match schedule, to further boost fan engagement and promote South Africa on the global stage.
South Africa will also participate at the Aldea Global centre in Mexico City, alongside exhibitions from the 48 participating nations, with up to 20 South African artists set to perform.
The department will support South African artists to perform at the Ekhaya Centre and other activation hubs.
“We will be supporting South African chefs to cater to our fans, our guests, and curious Mexicans who want to experience South African cuisine. We will also support local podcasters and journalists to cover the tournament and tell our story in our own voices.”
“To the South African journalists, podcasters and influencers travelling with us: you are not going to Mexico on holiday. You are going to render a service to your country.”
Details of the selection process will be announced by the department in the coming days.
“You will be telling South Africans, in their own voices and on their own platforms, what their players are doing on the world stage. That role is not always adequately recognised in this country, and it should be,” the Minister said.
McKenzie, has also called on soccer superfans to enter a competition to win an all-expenses-paid trip to attend the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
“We are taking one lucky fan from every Premier Soccer League (PSL) team to the FIFA World Cup in Mexico. Their flights, accommodation, ground transport, and daily allowances will be fully sponsored by two big companies.”
This is the first time the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture is introducing an open competition to send fans to the World Cup and to avoid a controversial super-fan culture.
McKenzie was recently involved in a social media exchange with popular football fan Mama Joy, who has previously benefited from these government-sponsored trips.
He also revealed that his department has secured an international friendly for Bafana Bafana legends from the 2010 World Cup squad to face their Mexican counterparts in Pachuca, Mexico, on 8 June, in a game reminiscent of the opening game of the 2010 World Cup featuring a squad of 20 players from that team.