South African football thriving on FIFA investment, says Jordaan

SAFA president credits Forward Programme for historic World Cup run and growth across the game

South African Football Association (SAFA) President Danny Jordaan has thanked FIFA for backing African football, saying the continent has “benefited immensely” under the leadership of FIFA President Gianni Infantino and Vice President Patrice Motsepe.

Jordaan, elected last month to a fourth term, spoke after Bafana Bafana reached the knockout stage of the World Cup for the first time in 2026. Africa’s strong showing at the 48-team tournament, he said, justified its larger representation. “Africa showed why they deserved more representation,” he said, pointing to Egypt, Côte d’Ivoire, Cabo Verde and South Africa.

A member of FIFA’s Men’s National Team Competitions Committee, Jordaan noted that Africa’s qualifying places rose to just three when North America last hosted the tournament in 1994. The allocation is now nine, plus a play-off spot. Ten African nations played in this year’s finals, and nine reached the knockouts.

“Africa constantly and consistently produces the best in the world when we are allowed to flourish,” Jordaan said. “Any programme that enables this will always have support from us.”

He singled out the FIFA Forward Programme, which has distributed more than USD 5.1 billion to member associations since Infantino took office. Each association received up to USD 8 million in phase 3.0, a seven-fold increase from early 2016. Jordaan called Bafana Bafana’s run “a development pipeline working.”

Progress extends beyond the men’s senior team:

Women’s football: Banyana Banyana qualified for the Women’s World Cup in 2019 and 2023, reaching the last 16 in 2023. They are ranked second in Africa and remain in contention for 2027.

Youth:The U-20s won their first continental title and reached the round of 16 at the 2025 U-20 World Cup. The U-17s qualified for their second World Cup, and a U-15 side will play in Azerbaijan this month.

–Clubs: Mamelodi Sundowns won a second CAF Champions League and beat Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli in the African–Asian–Pacific Cup. They are one game from the Intercontinental Cup final.

SAFA now fields 12 national teams and has trained more than 3,000 coaches in four years. Women’s football has been a priority, including USD 1.4 million in Forward funding for the SAFA Girls Academy, where 25 players train, and an all-female CAF B Licence coaching course.

“Beyond our national teams, we have been hard at work on the wider football ecosystem,” Jordaan said.