Visa chaos grounds Bafana Bafana’s World Cup departure
Bafana Bafana players have been forced to delay their departure to North America after visa complications stopped the squad from travelling as scheduled on Sunday morning.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico from 11 June to 19 July.
Bafana Bafana is scheduled to open its campaign against Mexico at the historic Estadio Azteca.
“The South African senior men’s national team has experienced challenges regarding visas for some players and officials, and as a result the group could not travel to North America this morning as originally planned,” said South African Football Association (SAFA) spokesperson, Mninawa Ntloko.
It is understood that 20 of their players did not have visas to enter the United States of America.
Ntloko added that efforts are underway to resolve the situation urgently and get the team on the next available flight to Mexico City.
Despite the setback, SAFA has confirmed that preparations will continue locally.
“We remain committed to ensuring that the team’s preparations for the tournament remain on track and in the meantime, Bafana Bafana will continue to train in Johannesburg until departure,” said Ntloko.
SAFA is expected to host an urgent meeting on Sunday evening to resolve the crisis.
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