Broos: Bafana’s World Cup Dream Is Their Biggest Motivator

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos stated that he doesn’t need to motivate his young players by telling them what it’s like to play in a FIFA World Cup.

Broos emphasized that it is every player’s dream to play in the FIFA World Cup, as he did in Mexico in 1986, which is one of the countries that will host the FIFA World Cup next year, along with Canada and the United States of America.  

Broos, a defender in his playing days, played for Guy Thys for the Belgium side that reached the semi-final in that World Cup, but lost 2-0 to eventual winners Argentina.  

Diego Maradona, one of the greatest footballers to play the game, was the star of that game as he scored twice to guide Argentina to the final. Argentina went on to beat West Germany 3-2 in the final.  

Although France defeated Belgium in the bronze medal, Broos gained experience playing at the Estadio Azteca Stadium, where the Attendance was 110,000, against host Mexico in Belgium’s first game of the World Cup.  

Impressively, Broos even scored one of the penalties in the quarter finals as they beat Spain 6-5. 

Estadio Azteca, the world’s iconic venue in Mexico City, will be one of the host venues in the finals next year. 

This will come in handy as Bafana Bafana are on the verge of qualifying for the next World Cup. A win against Nigeria on Tuesday would bring them one step closer to achieving this goal.

“I think I don’t have to tell the players what it means to play in the World Cup,” said Broos when he was asked if he told his charges what it is like to play in the World Cup. 

“I think they all know. They just don’t have the experience, that’s all.  

“I think this is something where I can help them if we qualify for the World Cup. But I think when you are a footballer player, and you have the opportunity to qualify for the World Cup, you will do everything to achieve it. 

“Because this is really the highest level you can achieve as a footballer and also as a coach. So, I was in 1986 with Belgium in Mexico, and I want to be there again, maybe in Mexico as a coach.”  

If Bafana qualify for the World Cup, it will be the second time Broos is coaching in the World Cup, leading the African nation, having done so with Cameroon in 2014 in Brazil.      

In the African qualifiers, only the top team in each group secures an automatic spot, while the four best runners-up will advance to a play-off round for a second chance.