Bafana Bafana rise to 49th in FIFA rankings after Eritrea victory

South Africa have climbed to 49th in the provisional FIFA rankings after their 5-0 victory over Eritrea, matching their highest position since October 2011.

The win also moved the senior national team to six points at the top of Group D, which includes Guinea and Kenya. Bafana Bafana will face already qualified Kenya, who secured their place as co-hosts, in back-to-back matches in November.

Before those fixtures, Pitso Mosimane’s side will play Egypt in an international friendly on Sunday.

South Africa began the current FIFA international window in 54th place. Their 2-1 victory over Guinea on Saturday lifted them to 50th, before the emphatic result against Eritrea brought a further 2.55 ranking points.

Those points allowed Bafana Bafana to move above Czechia and claim 49th position.

The ranking represents a return to the level South Africa reached in October 2011, when Mosimane was also in charge. However, the team’s position subsequently declined sharply, with Bafana Bafana falling to 87th by the end of the following year.

Hugo Broos later inherited the team in May 2021, when it was ranked 75th. During his time in charge, South Africa improved and rose to 54th after reaching the World Cup knockout stages for the first time.

Broos has since handed Mosimane a team described as functional, with the latest results producing another improvement in the rankings.

Bafana Bafana now have 1462,67 points and will take that tally into their meeting with Egypt, who are ranked 24th in the world.

The official FIFA rankings will be published at the end of the current international window on Tuesday.