With Bafana Bafana expected to climb higher in the next FIFA World Rankings, Sports Guru takes a look at how the national team has steadily improved under coach Hugo Broos over the past four years.
For a long time, seeing South Africa outside the top 50 in the FIFA rankings had become a norm. But since Broos took over in May 2021, things have slowly started to change.
Back in 2020, Bafana were ranked 71st in the world and 13th in Africa. A few months later, under then-coach Molefi Ntseki, they dropped even further to 75th.
Broos’ early months in charge didn’t show much progress on paper. At the end of 2021, South Africa were ranked 68th, partly because they didn’t qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations that year.
By the end of 2022, Bafana were still 67th in the world and 12th in Africa. However, the rankings didn’t tell the full story. The team narrowly missed out on qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup after a controversial 1–0 loss to Ghana, a match decided by a questionable penalty that saw Ghana top the group on goals scored.
In 2023, there was still only a slight improvement, but things took a big turn at the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast. Bafana’s impressive run to a third-place finish earned them valuable ranking points, and made the country proud!
Now, South Africa sit 55th in the world and 9th in Africa, their best position in years. When the next FIFA rankings are released, Bafana are expected to rise even higher.
The last time South Africa were ranked inside the top 50 was back in October 2011.
If Broos’ men continue their progress and manage to qualify for the World Cup, they could climb even further up the rankings, as the global tournament carries the most ranking points.
