Despite being in the form of his life, attacking midfielder Thembinkosi Lorch has been omitted from Bafana Bafana’s preliminary squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations [AFCON]. African Times can reveal the 32-year-old has failed to make the cut for the tournament starting next month in Morocco, where he is playing club football for Wydad Casablanca. Bafana Bafana’s preliminary squad will be announced on Monday afternoon. Lorch was again one of the players to watch on the weekend when…

African Times has picked 10 players that have done enough to convince Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos to include them in his squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco. Bafana Bafana’s opening match of the tournament will be against Angola on 22 December in Marrakech, followed by a clash against Egypt on 26 December in Agadir, before they conclude their group stage assignment when they challenge neighbours Zimbabwe, also in Marrakech. “It’s not difficult (to select the 23-man…

South Africa’s man of the moment, Raymond Mdaka, has lauded the DStv Diski Challenge (DDC) organisers following the country’s success in the CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations. The SA U20 side, Amajita, are the toast of the town after winning the tournament at the expense of the North Africans, Morocco, in a final played on Sunday. The Premier Soccer League (PSL) Reserve League was founded in 2014, and while it has drawn both positive and negative reactions over the…

South Africa’s fairytale run in the CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) has culminated in the team bringing the trophy home. Amajita’s maiden title was achieved through a 1-0 victory over Morocco at the Cairo International Stadium, Egypt, on Sunday. Midfielder Gomolemo Kekana netted the all-important goal in the second stanza. The win is sweet revenge over the North Africans, coming 28 years after Amajita suffered a final defeat to the same opponents in 1997. Raymond Mdaka’s boys were…

The South African U20 side has reached the Africa Cup of Nations final for the first time in 28 years. Led by Raymond Mdaka, Amajita saw off rivals Nigeria 1-0 in their semi-final clash on Thursday at the ongoing tournament in Egypt. Tylon Smith’s 66th-minute header was the difference on the day. Now the stage is set for the final at the Cairo International Stadium on Sunday (8 PM SA time), and Morocco will be the opposition. Ironically, Amajita lost…

In 1996, Bafana Bafana was ranked 16th in the world and 1st in Africa after winning the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on home soil that year. Fast forward to 2025, and Bafana Bafana is placed 56th in the world and 10th in Africa, as confirmed by the latest FIFA rankings released on Thursday, 3 April. Generally, football supporters are baffled why Bafana Bafana are moving up at a snail’s pace despite being the talk of the town these days,…

FIFA has put Zambian football on notice: resolve your governance mess, or face suspension. In a letter dated March 5, 2025, to Reuben Kamanga, General Secretary of the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ), the global football authority raised alarms over internal disputes and government meddling that threaten the sport’s independence in the country. The warning follows months of turmoil surrounding FAZ’s leadership elections, with rival factions, allegations of misconduct, and a controversial push by Zambia’s National Sports Council to intervene.…

Zambia’s football community is reeling from a deepening crisis surrounding the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) presidential election, a saga that threatens to tarnish the nation’s proud footballing legacy. At the heart of the controversy is incumbent FAZ President Andrew Kamanga, who was declared re-elected unopposed after eight rival candidates were disqualified from the race. With the government stepping in, legal challenges looming, and the specter of a FIFA ban on the horizon, the situation has spiraled into a full-blown…

The fourth most capped international male footballer in history, Egypt’s Ahmed Hassan, has expressed great disappointment in Jamie Carragher, who has said the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is not a major tournament. Englishman Carragher has come under fire after making what has been termed “ignorant” comments regarding the AFCON. Carragher sparked controversy when trying to explain why Liverpool forward Mohammed Salah, who’s from Egypt, is unlikely to win the Ballon d’Or, because he plays for Egypt in international football.…

Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba’s contribution to Bafana Bafana over the years has not gone unnoticed. On Wednesday, 5 February, the South African Football Association (SAFA) paid Mashaba a visit at the hospital to award him a bronze medal attained when Bafana Bafana finished third at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Ivory Coast a year ago. Mashaba, 74, was admitted to the Helen Joseph Hospital in Johannesburg on January 27, 2025, for a suspected bladder infection. His hospital stay…