Bafana Bafana players paid World Cup shares as McKenzie’s R5m bonus remains outstanding

Bafana Bafana players have received their allocations from the South African Football Association for the 2026 World Cup, but the squad is still waiting for Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie to honour a separate R5 million bonus promise.

The payments follow South Africa’s historic run to the World Cup Round of 32, a result that secured the team a multi-million-rand participation fee from FIFA. The players have reportedly now been paid their tournament shares, leaving McKenzie under pressure to fulfil the commitment he made in the dressing room in Mexico.

McKenzie was a prominent presence around the national team during the group stage and offered strong public and political support to head coach Hugo Broos. After Bafana Bafana’s landmark 1-0 win over South Korea in Monterrey, he told the players he would reward their progress.

“I am committing to you guys. You have already won one, so that’s R5 million,” McKenzie said.

He subsequently outlined a staged bonus arrangement, with R10 million promised for a knockout victory over Canada and R15 million for a win against a later opponent.

Bafana Bafana’s campaign ended with a 1-0 defeat by co-hosts Canada in Los Angeles. Despite that result, the R5 million linked to the South Korea victory is still expected to be paid.

A team insider said the players had received their World Cup money but were yet to see the minister’s promised reward.

“Yes, they paid. I think it was about a month ago. We are still waiting for the Gayton McKenzie bonus he promised,” the insider said.

The source also questioned the distribution of the money among the squad and technical staff.

“Shockingly, the technical staff got only R243 000 each. Mr McKenzie promised R5 million to be split amongst everyone. I haven’t seen any of that.

“The players got around R1.5 million… due to tax, I think. I still think the staff got peanuts though.”

The outstanding payment comes during strained relations between the Sports Ministry and South African Football Association administrators.

At a parliamentary committee hearing in late August, McKenzie clashed with SAFA leadership over separate operational issues. He demanded that the organisation return R30 million in state funding after it failed to meet deadlines for implementing Video Assistant Referee technology.

The dispute has added to uncertainty over when, and how, the additional bonus promised to the Bafana Bafana squad will be delivered.