The South African u20 national team, known as Amajita, has qualified for the 2025 FIFA u20 World Cup, set to take place in Chile from 27 October to 19 November.
It’s another big boost for South African football, with Amajita joining the South African u17 national team, which has already qualified for the u17 FIFA World Cup, to be hosted in Qatar from 3-27 November.
Amajita secured their qualification by advancing to the semi-finals of the ongoing Confederation of African Football (CAF) u20 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), after a 1-0 victory over the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the quarterfinals on Monday.
Following the victory, Amajita’s head coach, Raymond Mdaka told SAFA Media: “We used almost everything that we thought we had, technically, tactically, physically and the character.
“You could see they had a very good plan for us, but we were fortunate not to concede in the first half and in the second half. We sorted it out and then we, at least, came back and were able to get a goal and protected the goal.”
The match was at the Suez Canal Authority Stadium in Ismailia, Egypt, on Monday evening, with Amajita scoring the decisive goal during extra time after the game ended in a 0-0 draw in the standard 90 minutes.
Thabang Mahlangu, with an assist from Shakeel April, netted the winning goal, which not only sealed Amajita’s progression to the u20 FIFA World Cup but also to the semi-finals of the u20 Afcon. They’re still in the running to claim the continental title, of course.
Dr. Danny Jordaan, the President of the South African Football Association (SAFA), commended Amajita, saying their diligent efforts in Egypt have been recognised.
“This is another momentous occasion, coming so soon after we qualified for the 2025 African Nations Championship (CHAN) on Sunday, and the FIFA u17 World Cup to be held in Qatar from 3–27 November 2025,” he stated.
Three African powerhouses – Egypt, Morocco, and Nigeria – qualified for the Afcon semis along with South Africa. All four have qualified for the World Cup.
Egypt faces Morocco on Thursday at the 30 June Stadium, while South Africa takes on Nigeria at the Suez Canal Authority Stadium, also on Thursday. All the games are streamed on CAT Tv on YouTube.
Quarterfinals results
South Africa 1-0 DR Congo
Egypt (5) 2-2 (4) Ghana
Morocco 1-0 Sierra Leone
Nigeria (3) 1-1 (1) Ghana
Fixtures
Venue: Suez Canal Authority Stadium
17:00 (SA Local Time) – South Africa vs Nigeria
Venue: 30 June Stadium
20:00 (SA Local Time) – Egypt vs Morocco
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