South Africa Coach Hugo Broos Turns to Prayer Ahead of Decisive 2026 WCQ Final Day
- The CAF qualifying series for the 2026 FIFA World Cup will draw to a close on Tuesday, October 14
- Group C, which has Nigeria, Benin Republic, and South Africa, is hot heading into the final matchday
- South Africa's head coach, Hugo Broos, has turned to prayer ahead of the decisive final day in Group C
South Africa's head coach, Hugo Broos, has turned to prayers as Bafana Bafana hopes to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on the final day.
The CAF qualifying series for the 2026 World Cup will be concluded on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, with some decisive matches scheduled.
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Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Algeria, Ghana, and Cape Verde have qualified in Africa, with the remaining three automatic slots to be decided on Tuesday.
Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo are in contention in Group B, Cote d'Ivoire and Gabon in Group F, Nigeria, South Africa, and Benin Republic in Group C.
In Group B and F, table toppers Senegal and Ivory Coast will qualify if they win their last game, while Benin will do the same in Group C if they beat Nigeria.
For the remaining countries, they must win their games and rely on the result in the other group games to favour them for a chance to progress.
Hugo Broos speaks ahead of WCQ
South Africa led Group C for most of the qualifying campaign and were on course to pick up the automatic ticket, until a turn of unfortunate events.
FIFA sanctioned Bafana Bafana with a three-point deduction for fielding the ineligible Teboho Mokoena during their 2-0 win over Lesotho in March.
Bafana Bafana slipped up against COSAFA neighbours Zimbabwe on matchday nine, drawing 0-0 and putting themselves in a difficult spot on the final day, as noted by CAF Online.
Hugo Broos has moved from the cocky man during his post-match conference after the 1-1 draw against Nigeria to a calm and soft-spoken man for his pre-match conference before facing Rwanda.
Bafana Bafana needs Nigeria's help, but the Belgian manager claimed that they are focused on their game only and are hoping things work out on the other side.
“We have to focus only on ourselves. Like Ronwen {Williams} said we can't change or decide what happened on the other side in Nigeria,” Broos said, as quoted by All Nigeria Soccer.
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“So if we win, we have to wait and see, but I think that the things we all want and dream of can happen tomorrow.”
“So let's hope on the other side that the gods are with us and see the results that everyone hopes for in Nigeria, and that's that Benin loses the game.”
All three teams will approach the game with caution and attention to the result of the other venue, which could foil their attempts if it goes the other way.
Rohr shared his game plan
Legit.ng reported that Gernot Rohr shared his game plan ahead of the crucial World Cup qualifier match against the Super Eagles of Nigeria.
The former Super Eagles boss admits that he will walk into a hostile environment, but will prepare his team to convert that into passion on the pitch.
Source: Legit.ng
