SAFA announced on Tuesday evening that the first qualifying match of the Bafana Bafana team for the 2027 Africa Cup against Guinea will take place at the Orlando Amstel Arena stadium in Soweto, Johannesburg, on Saturday, September 26.
This match will be a desired event for Bafana at home, as it marks Pitso Mosimane's debut in leadership since his return after replacing Hugo Broos. The coach, born in Belgium, left the team in a significantly better state during his five years, securing two consecutive appearances in the Africa Cup and leading South Africa to the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 16 years, where the team historically reached the 32nd round.
To continue building on Broos' achievements and implement his own strategy, Mosimane called up a combination of permanent players and new faces for three upcoming matches in the international window. The schedule includes the second qualifying match away against Eritrea on September 30 at the Al Salam stadium in Cairo, as well as a friendly match against Egypt on October 4 at the Cairo International Stadium.
The start of the campaign at home against Guinea will allow fans to see the future of the national team. Nevertheless, Mosimane emphasized that there is still a lot of work ahead as the team strives for significant improvement and competition for major trophies.
Mosimane formed a familiar internal technical staff. On Tuesday, SAFA announced that Morena Ramoreboli would join the staff as Bafana's first assistant coach after leaving the post of national team coach of Botswana.
Ramoreboli joins Musi Matlabe and Kabelo Rangoahe in the coaching staff. The latter pair will serve as the chief analyst and fitness coach—roles they held for years as trusted assistants during Mosimane's successful era at Mamelodi Sundowns club.