Africa will be playing in its 11th Africa Cup of Nations. Bafana Bafana, who missed out on the last edition, will be aiming to win their 2nd continental trophy. Sport News Africa tells you more.
The country
Capital cities: Pretoria (administrative capital), Cape Town (legislative capital), Bloemfontein (judicial capital), Johannesburg (de facto)
Surface area: 1,219,912 km2
Population: 61,525,521
Official languages: Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans, Sesotho, Setswana, Siswati, Tshivenda, Ndebele, Sepedi, Xitsonga, English
Inhabitants : South African / South African woman
Motto: Unity in diversity
Team nickname: Bafana Bafana
South Africa and the AFCON
Title: 1
Final: 2
Appearances prior to AFCON 2023: 10
Host country: 2 (in 1996 and 2013)
AFCON history
1996: Winner
1998: runner-up
2000: semi-finalist
2002: Quarter-finalist
2004: First round
2006: First round
2008: First round
2013: Quarter-finalist
2015: First round
2019: Quarter-finalist
AFCON record
42 matches
16 wins
11 draws
15 defeats
44 goals scored
41 goals conceded
🇿🇦📄 À la différence des autres sélectionneurs, Hugo Broos a opté pour une liste classique de 23 joueurs avec ses cadres habituels pour la CAN 2023 !
🔗https://t.co/LJlWp75ESq#sna #TotalEnergiesAFCON #Can2023
— Sport News Africa (@snewsafrica) December 28, 2023
The star: Percy Tau
Percy Tau was born in Witbank, South Africa, in 1994. Trained at Mamelodi Sundowns, he will head for Europe in 2019. He signed for Brighton for 3.2 million euros. However, he failed to make an impact with the Seagulls. After a series of loans (Union Saint-Gilloise, Bruges, Anderlecht), Bafana Bafana returned to Africa in 2021. The South African striker has signed for Al Ahly. In the national team, he is currently one of the key players. With 39 caps and 14 goals, Percy Tau is also one of Hugo Broos' lethal weapons.
The coach: Hugo Broos
Hugo Broos is a 71-year-old Belgian coach. He signed up with South Africa in 2021, following the country's failure to qualify for the CAF Africa Cup of Nations. With a wealth of African experience, including a 2017 title with Cameroon, the Belgian managed to qualify the South Africans for the edition in Côte d'Ivoire. With a team made up mainly of local players, he hopes to repeat the feat of 2017 with the Indomitable Lions.
South Africa's schedule in Group E
January 16: Mali - South Africa
January 21: South Africa - Namibia
January 24: South Africa - Tunisia
