Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos says he will take a hard look at South Africa’s failed 2025 Africa Cup of Nations campaign and carefully assess what went right and wrong as he prepares the team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Broos and his players arrived back in Johannesburg earlier than expected following their 2-1 defeat to Cameroon in the last 16.
South Africa entered the tournament as underdogs with growing expectations after their surprise bronze medal at Afcon 2024 in Ivory Coast. But they never truly found their rhythm, producing unconvincing displays in Group B against Angola, Zimbabwe and Egypt before exiting to the Indomitable Lions at the first knockout stage.
“Everybody is very disappointed,” Broos admitted. “We went to Afcon with the goal of doing as well as in the last tournament and maybe better. OK, it didn’t work we are already home, and it’s a big disappointment.”
The Belgian coach added that this campaign was always likely to be tougher, as Bafana entered it with a higher profile after last year’s success and with most of the continent’s traditional heavyweights performing strongly this time around.
Hugo Broos has faced criticism online over his squad selection and decisions during the tournament, but he made it clear he will not be influenced by social media commentary. “First, I don’t want to comment on that. Second, I don’t read social media because that is trash,” he said. He added that decades of experience have taught him to ignore “big mouths” who speak up only in defeat.
The coach said he has already spoken to his players but stressed those discussions will remain private. His focus now is on a detailed review of the tournament to ensure South Africa are stronger when they line up at the World Cup in Mexico, Canada and the United States in June and July.
“My job now is to try to analyse what happened and see what was wrong and what was good and try to correct the wrong things and be stronger again for the World Cup in six months,” he said.
Hugo Broos believes the experience, although painful, remains valuable for the squad’s development. He underlined the importance of South Africa consistently qualifying for major tournaments to compete at the highest level and continue learning.
Bafana Bafana will face Mexico, South Korea and a European qualifier in Group A at the expanded 48-team World Cup. They open their campaign against hosts Mexico at the Estadio Azteca on June 11, with preparation friendlies scheduled for March.
