Bafana Bafana head coach, Hugo Broos, has spoken about the doubts around his side’s chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

South Africa take on Zimbabwe in the FIFA World Cup qualifying match at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday [18:00].

“I think first of all, we need to take it match by match. That’s why I, as a human, you think, yeah, if Benin should lose, or play a draw in Rwanda, so you make plans, but at the end, there is one important thing, it is,” said Broos.

Broos’ side were docked three points by FIFA, for unlawfully fielding Sundowns midfielder, Teboho Mokoena, in their FIFA World Cup qualification against Lesotho in March.

Bafana find themselves second in Group C and level on points with group leaders Benin, heading into their final two fixtures of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

“I was a little bit, how can I say, that maybe disappointed the moment when the three points were deducted, that some people started to doubt that we could qualify,” added Broos.

The Belgian issued a rallying cry for his side, as they look to secure World Cup qualification for the first time in 23 years.

“I told the players also during this week, don’t start doubting or don’t think now that those opponents are twice as good as two months ago, everything stays the same,” said Broos. 

In the African qualifiers, only the group winners automatically qualify for the FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the USA. The four best-placed runners-up will get a second chance via a play-off round.