THE South African Football Association has responded to the decision by FIFA to deduct three points from their haul in the race for the 2026 World Cup.
The world governing body sanctioned Bafana Bafana for fielding an ineligible Teboho Mokoena in a qualifier against Lesotho, throwing the qualifying group, which also includes the Super Eagles of Nigeria, wide open.
“The South African Football Association (SAFA) acknowledges a ruling by FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee which sanctioned the Association for erroneously fielding midfielder Teboho Mokoena during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier between South Africa and Lesotho played on 21 March 2025,” SAFA said in an official statement.
“In terms of the decision, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee declared the match to have been forfeited by Bafana Bafana by the score of 3-0.
“The Association has also further been ordered to pay a fine of CHF 10,000, while Mokoena has been issued with a warning.
As SAFA, we are deeply disappointed with this unprecedented outcome noting that it was delivered by a single-member panel without reasons, and without affording the Association an opportunity to present legal arguments.
“The Association confirms that we have requested written reasons for the judgment and intend to lodge a formal appeal with the FIFA Appeals Committee within the prescribed 10-day period under FIFA’s disciplinary rules.
“Despite the outcome, the Association emphasises its continued commitment to supporting Bafana Bafana in their qualification campaign.
“The players and the technical team have worked extremely hard to reach this stage, and we remain focused on ensuring they secure maximum points in the matches ahead.
“We apologise to the nation for this administrative oversight and will reflect on the steps to take at the conclusion of our qualifying campaign. Finally, we call on all South Africans to rally behind the team during this final and crucial stage of the qualifiers.
“Bafana Bafana will next face Zimbabwe at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on 10 October 2025, followed by a clash against Rwanda at the Mbombela Stadium on 14 October 2025. Both matches will kick off at 18h00.”
With the deduction, South Africa are left with 14 points, the same as Benin Republic, with the Super Eagles three points back.
Only one of the six teams in the group will earn an automatic ticket to the 2026 World Cup.