South Africa Names Nigerian Player Ime Okon in AFCON 2025 Preliminary Squad
- South Africa head coach Hugo Broos has announced his preliminary squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations
- Hugo Broos named 54 players on Bafana Bafana’s preliminary list, including Nigeria-eligible defender Ime Okon
- The Germany-based defender was born to Nigerian parents in South Africa and turned down the Super Eagles
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South Africa has announced its preliminary squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, and included a Nigeria-eligible player on the 54-man list.
Bafana Bafana qualified for AFCON 2025 in Morocco after topping Group K of the qualifying series, which also included Uganda, Congo Republic and South Africa.
Source: Twitter
According to SAFA, they face a difficult group at the tournament alongside their neighbours Zimbabwe, North African powerhouse Egypt and Angola.
Hugo Broos would hope that his side would do better than the previous edition, where they lost to Nigeria in the semi-final and beat DR Congo in the third-place match.
South Africa announces AFCON squad
Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has announced his 54-man preliminary squad ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026.
According to CAF Online, South Africa is the first country out of the 24 participants at the tournament to announce its preliminary squad.
Broos will streamline the squad to 23 for the tournament in the coming days, which means that 31 players on the list will not make it to Morocco.
The list is dominated by home-based players, with 42 on the list, while only 12 players based outside the Premier Soccer League are named on the list.
Orlando Pirates have the highest number of players on the list with 13, while their rivals Mamelodi Sundowns have 10, including captain Ronwen Williams.
Veteran attacker Themba Zwane was named in the squad despite the 36-year-old struggling with injuries in the past year, but there is no place for Percy Tau.
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Ime Okon named in South Africa’s squad
Nigerian defender Ime Okon, who plays for German Bundesliga side Hannover 96, is one of the 12 foreign-based players Hugo Broos included on the list.
The defender, who was born in Johannesburg to a Nigerian father and a South African mother, opted to represent the country of his birth over his father's country.
Source: Getty Images
He has made five appearances for Bafana Bafana, which makes him ineligible for Nigeria, and an AFCON appearance will further confirm his place as a South African star.
Okon missed South Africa’s 1-1 draw against Nigeria in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier due to injury, which would have marked his first appearance against the Super Eagles.
The former SuperSport United defender is expected to be named in Broos’ final 23-man squad and play a key role for Mzansi at the tournament in Morocco.
Eric Chelle submitted squad to NFF
Legit.ng reported that Eric Chelle submitted his 55-man preliminary squad to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) ahead of public announcement.
The Franco-Malian has turned his attention to the Africa Cup of Nations after the disappointment of not qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Source: Legit.ng
