Italy’s repechage to World Cup, South Africa’s departure skipped: emergency meeting
South Africa’s departure for the 2026 World Cup has been skipped at the last minute. The Bafana Bafana were supposed to leave the country on Sunday on a charter flight bound for their preparation base in Pachuca, Mexico, but as reported by Reuters several players and staff members have still not been granted visas, just 11 days before the opener against the hosts, forcing the delegation into a postponement and subsequent emergency meeting to figure out what to do.
The situation has provoked a wave of criticism. Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie called the affair “embarrassing and deeply unfair” to the team and coaches, announcing that he had asked the federation for a detailed report and action toward those responsible. “We are being made to look like fools,” he wrote in a post.
The SAFA, the South African Football Federation, confirmed in a note that the departure had been postponed due to “visa issues” and assured that it was working tirelessly to enable the delegation to reach Mexico City as soon as possible. In the meantime, the national team will continue training in Johannesburg, pending the outcome of the emergency meeting.
South Africa has been missing the World Cup since the edition it hosted at home in 2010. The path to 2026 had already been bumpy: an administrative error had threatened to jeopardize qualification, after a 2-0 win over Lesotho was nullified due to the use of disqualified player Teboho Mokoena. Despite the penalty, Bafana Bafana managed to finish the group with a one-point lead over Nigeria and Benin. The draw placed them in Group A with Mexico, the Czech Republic and South Korea.
The South Africa case is not isolated in a World Cup 2026 that has not yet begun but is experiencing chaotic situations and potential defections: indeed, the situation of Iran, involved in an open conflict with the United States and at the center of a diplomatic tug-of-war, remains delicate, and the issue related to the Democratic Republic of Congo, grappling with the Ebola-related health emergency and strict U.S. protocols, should not be forgotten.
In this scenario, the hypothesis of repechage inevitably circulates again should one of the national teams involved fail to take part in the tournament. Italy, first excluded in the FIFA rankings among non-qualifiers, remains one of the selections that would be considered in case of a forfeit.
