Pitso Mosimane set for Bafana Bafana return after Broos departure

Pitso Mosimane is set to return as coach of South Africa’s senior men’s national team, with the South African Football Association (SAFA) confirming that its national executive committee (NEC) has approved his appointment.

The decision was taken at an extraordinary NEC meeting on Saturday, although SAFA president Danny Jordaan said some details still needed to be resolved before the appointment could be formally announced next week.

“The NEC has approved the appointment of coach Pitso to Bafana Bafana, but we still need to tie up some loose ends. We will make a formal announcement of the coach next week,” said Jordaan in a statement.

Mosimane will succeed Hugo Broos, whose five-year contract ended on 31 July 2026. The Belgian inherited a Bafana Bafana side that had lost its way and was struggling to qualify for an expanded Africa Cup of Nations, amid widespread public disillusionment with the national team.

Broos rebuilt South Africa into one of the leading teams in Africa. Bafana Bafana finished third at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and reached the knockout stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup for the first time in the country’s history.

Mosimane’s immediate task will be to prepare the team for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, which begin in September. SAFA’s longer-term objective is qualification for the 2030 FIFA World Cup.

The coach’s contract has not yet been finalised because Mosimane wants to bring members of his own technical staff to SAFA House. That has been a condition for him since he established himself as one of the continent’s leading coaches.

Mosimane has won the CAF Champions League three times. He claimed his first title with Mamelodi Sundowns in 2016 before winning the competition twice with Al-Ahly.

During Broos’ time in charge, SAFA used a goalkeeper coach, fitness trainer and analysts on freelance arrangements. Mosimane’s preference to appoint members of his own staff is therefore expected to form part of the outstanding discussions.

The former Mamelodi Sundowns and Al-Ahly coach was the technical committee’s first choice. That committee is responsible for identifying and appointing national-team coaches.

Mosimane’s return gives him an opportunity to repair a relationship with Bafana Bafana that ended painfully in 2012. He departed after a disastrous Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign in which South Africa failed to reach the finals because of a misunderstanding over the qualifying rules.

Members of the team’s management believed goal difference would determine the group standings. However, the Confederation of African Football used head-to-head results to separate teams level on goal difference.

As a result, Bafana Bafana played for a draw when they needed to win. The players and staff then celebrated what they believed was qualification in Mbombela, only to discover that they had not reached the tournament.

Mosimane later rebuilt his reputation through his success with Mamelodi Sundowns and Al-Ahly. He returns to the national-team job convinced that Bafana Bafana can improve further, despite Broos’ achievements.

“No one is indispensable,” Mosimane said, when News24 asked him if he was interested in the job.

“And now we can start saying, ‘Oh, what are we going to do (now that Broos has left)?’ We can do a little bit better. Right?

“With (Carlos Albero) Parreira, we never lost to Mexico. Right? We were 1-0 up until the 80th minute. Come on! We have played Mexico before. So, there is really not much that we can say, ‘Wow! How high the bar has been raised.’ No!

“We have beaten Morocco. We have beaten Nigeria. We have beaten Ghana. So, let’s just be realistic about what has happened. We can be there. Anything is possible.

“We can raise the bar. We can leave the jersey in a better place. Is it possible? Yes, it has been done before.”