SAFA President Gets Top Job At FIFA
South African Football Association (SAFA) president Danny Jordaan has confirmed his appointment to the FIFA World Cup National Team Competitions Committee, following a nomination by FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
Jordaan revealed the news in an interview with Sportswire, describing the appointment as a significant responsibility within world football’s governing structures.
“Yes, I have been appointed by Gianni Infantino,” Jordaan confirmed.
In his new role, Jordaan will work closely with Infantino, FIFA secretary-general Mattias Grafström, and former Nigeria Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick, among other senior football administrators. The committee is tasked with overseeing FIFA’s major national team tournaments and ensuring their smooth planning, organisation, and delivery.
“The committee will be responsible for competitions such as the FIFA World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, as well as the FIFA Under-20 World Cup and the FIFA Under-17 World Cup,” Jordaan explained.
The next FIFA U-17 World Cup is scheduled to take place in Qatar in 2027, while preparations are already well underway for the expanded 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be the largest edition in the tournament’s history.
FIFA has also confirmed a significant increase in prize money for the upcoming men’s World Cup, with the overall financial rewards rising by 50 percent. The tournament winners will receive $50 million, while the runners-up will earn $33 million. The third-placed team will collect $29 million, with $27 million awarded to the team finishing fourth.
Teams finishing between fifth and eighth place will each receive $19 million, while those placed ninth to 16th will earn $15 million. Nations eliminated between 17th and 32nd place will pocket $11 million, with teams finishing 33rd to 48th each receiving $9 million.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will feature 48 teams, an increase from the previous 32, and will include 104 matches played across 16 host cities in the three host countries. The tournament is expected to be the biggest and most commercially successful World Cup ever staged.
South Africa’s Bafana Bafana have secured qualification for the global showpiece after an impressive victory over Rwanda in October last year. The national team will open their World Cup campaign against co-hosts Mexico on 11 June in Mexico City, in a fixture that echoes the opening match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, which was played at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.
The FIFA World Cup final will take place on Sunday, 19 July 2026, at the New York New Jersey Stadium, with match number 104 set to crown the new world champions.
