South Africa’s senior national football team, Bafana Bafana, is heading to America for the FIFA 2026 World Cup.

Despite losing three points for fielding an ineligible player during their qualifying campaign, Hugo Broos’s men were still good enough to seal qualification ahead of the West Africans, Nigeria and Benin.

Bafana Bafana finished the job with a 3-0 home victory against Rwanda at Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday evening, with Thalente Mbatha, Oswin Appollis and Evidence Makgopa on the scoresheet.

Approximately 25 000 fans witnessed live Bafana Bafana’s third-ever direct qualification after making it in 1998 and 2002, before booking their ticket for the 2026 edition.

South Africa also hosted the global showpiece in 2010.

SA capitalised upon a Nigerian favour to ensure they will appear on football’s grandest stage for the first time in 16 years.

Heading into the final round of fixtures, Benin was top of the log, but they lost 4-0 to Nigeria in Uyo, allowing Bafana Bafana to regain top spot.

Bafana Bafana finished atop Group C with 18 points from 10 matches, followed by second-placed Nigeria (17 points) with a better goal difference over Benin (17 points).

SA will discover their FIFA World Cup group-stage opponents when the draw takes place in Washington DC, United States, on 5 December.

The tournament will be co-hosted by the United States of America (USA), Canada and Mexico.