By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie has announced that all six players who missed out on the Bafana Bafana 26-man World Cup squad will travel to Mexico to watch the team’s opening match at the iconic Estadio Azteca on 11 June 2026.
In a statement this morning, the minister said the trip has been made possible by a proudly South African brand Old School.
Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has named his 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with South Africa drawn in Group A alongside hosts Mexico, Czech Republic and South Korea.
Broos has trimmed down his preliminary 32-man squad, with six players cut from the final list.
Among those omitted are the Kaizer Chiefs trio of Brandon Peterson, Lebogang Maboe and Thabiso Monyane, alongside Durban City midfielder Brooklyn Poggenpoel, Thapelo Morena and Patrick Maswanganyi.
McKenzie said, “They deserve to be there and they deserve to see what they helped build.” He added that the initiative arose from a desire to ensure that these players could remain part of South Africa’s historic World Cup campaign, even if not on the field of play.”
The World Cup is a swansong for their Belgian tactician Broos, 74, who has already said he will call time on his coaching career after the finals.
The former defender quit international football as a player after the 1986 finals that were also hosted in Mexico, where he helped Belgium to fourth place.
South Africa have appeared in three previous World Cup finals, having debuted in 1998. They qualified again in 2002 and hosted the tournament in 2010. They exited in the group stages on each occasion.