Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie is fully behind Bafana Bafana ahead of their Fifa World Cup opener against Mexico on Thursday.
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Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture of South Africa, Gayton McKenzie, has predicted that Bafana Bafana will play to a 1-1 draw with hosts Mexico in the much-anticipated 2026 Fifa World Cup opener at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on Thursday.
The match is, of course, a repeat of the 2010 Fifa World Cup opener when South Africa were the hosts and played against Mexico at the FNB Stadium in Soweto.
Bafana’s Siphiwe Tshabalala opened the scoring that night with an unforgettable strike before Rafa Marquez equalised for Mexico.
Sixteen years later, McKenzie believes the rematch will end in a similar 1-1 stalemate.
“Let me tell you, I'm very, very positive about it. Some people think this is just blind loyalty or being patriotic. No, this is the very same Bafana Bafana that won 27 games without a loss in open play,” McKenzie said.
“This is the very same Bafana Bafana that had three points deducted from them and they still managed to qualify. I mean, how can I not believe in this team? Here's my score prediction: Mexico and Bafana Bafana, 1-1.”
McKenzie went further by stating that Bafana will only grow in confidence after their opening game to claim positive results in their remaining matches against Czechia (18 June, Atlanta) and South Korea (25 June, Guadalupe).
“We're going to beat the Czech Republic in Georgia. We're going to beat South Korea, and we'll draw with Mexico,” he said.
“That's my score prediction. Bafana Bafana, Viva!”