South Africa made to look like fools – Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie fumes over visa fiasco

South Africa’s Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, has called for urgent accountability following the visa complications that disrupted Bafana Bafana’s departure to Mexico ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The minister expressed his frustration after the senior national team’s travel plans were thrown into disarray, leaving players and officials stranded as they awaited crucial travel documents just days before the start of the tournament.

The delay has cast a shadow over South Africa’s World Cup preparations, with the team originally scheduled to travel to Mexico to continue its build-up ahead of the competition. Instead, administrative issues involving visas forced the squad to remain at home while football authorities scrambled to find a solution.

McKenzie did not hide his disappointment, insisting that those responsible for the situation must be identified and held accountable. The minister described the episode as a major embarrassment for South African football and stressed that the players and technical staff should not have been placed in such a position on the eve of the world’s biggest sporting event.

“I need a report and action must be taken against those responsible for this mess. We are being made to look like fools,” he added on X.

“This Safa travel & visa debacle is embarrassing & grossly unfair towards the players & coaching staff,”

The incident has sparked widespread criticism across the country, with many questioning how a national team preparing for a World Cup could encounter such a significant administrative setback.

South Africa’s football governing body acknowledged that visa-related challenges had affected members of the travelling delegation but moved quickly to reassure supporters that efforts were underway to resolve the issue. Officials have reportedly been working around the clock to secure the necessary documentation and ensure the team can depart as soon as possible.

The complications are believed to be linked to travel requirements involving the United States. While South Africa’s training base and opening World Cup fixtures are in Mexico, the team is also scheduled to play matches in the United States during the tournament, making additional travel clearances necessary.

The timing of the delay could hardly be worse for head coach Hugo Broos, who had hoped to use every available day to prepare his squad for their return to the World Cup stage. South Africa are appearing at the tournament for the first time since hosting the competition in 2010, making the upcoming campaign one of the most anticipated in the nation’s football history.

Bafana Bafana are expected to face Jamaica in a warm-up match before kicking off their World Cup campaign against tournament hosts Mexico on June 11. The friendly is viewed as a vital opportunity for Broos to finalise his plans and assess the readiness of his squad before the opening match.

However, the travel disruption threatens to reduce valuable preparation time and could force adjustments to the team’s schedule.

The setback also arrives at a time when results on the pitch have been less than ideal. South Africa enter the World Cup without a victory in their last four matches, increasing the importance of every remaining training session and preparation game before the tournament begins.

Despite the latest obstacle, there remains optimism that the visa issues will be resolved quickly, allowing the squad to focus fully on football. For now, though, attention remains fixed on the administrative crisis that has overshadowed what should have been the final stages of Bafana Bafana’s World Cup preparations.

As pressure mounts, South African football authorities face growing demands to explain how such a situation occurred and to ensure that similar disruptions do not affect the national team again. With the World Cup fast approaching, the priority is clear: get the players to Mexico and restore focus ahead of the biggest challenge of their careers.