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Visa Mix‑Up Forces Bafana Bafana 30‑Hour Delay Before World Cup Departure

The late, incomplete visa filings that grounded the team prompted emergency consular help and government demands for a formal SAFA report.

Bafana Bafana take a team photo during the International Friendly match against Nicaragua at Orlando Amstel Arena on Friday. Photo: Sydney Mahlangu BackpagePix
President Cyril Ramaphosa with the Bafana Bafana Fifa World Cup players at the South African football team's send-off dinner at the Sefako M. Makgatho Presidential Guesthouse on May 27, 2026 in Pretoria, South Africa. Picture: Gallo Images/Frennie Shivambu
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Overview

  • The squad was held in Johannesburg for more than 30 hours and finally boarded a charter flight late on Monday, June 1, which cost the team a day of planned preparation for their Pachuca base camp.
  • Assistant coach Helman Mkhalele and head of security Mdu Mbatha did not travel with the main group because of incomplete paperwork, and both were later reported to have been issued visas to follow.
  • SAFA issued a public apology and thanked the Department of International Relations and Cooperation and the US Consulate for assistance, while Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie and Deputy Minister Peace Mabe have demanded explanations and a formal report.
  • Commentators warn the lost time and disrupted acclimatisation could hurt morale and readiness for South Africa’s opening match, and coverage contrasted the chaos with smoother logistics from teams such as Morocco and Senegal.
  • Separately, a former FIFA referee has alleged Bafana fielded 12 players in a friendly against Nicaragua, and that claim plus SAFA’s recent 2025 administrative sanction raise the risk of disciplinary action and broader scrutiny of the federation’s governance.