South Africa vs. Ivory Coast: Hugo Broos Sends Message to Fans After Impressive Draw

• Hugo Broos is pleased with his South African team following their 1-1 draw with Ivory Coast
• The tactician believes his side could have extended their lead had they converted all chances
• Broos also urged football fans to show their support during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers

The head coach of the South African national football team, Hugo Broos has disclosed that he is pleased with his team’s performance in their draw against Ivory Coast.

Bafana Bafana and the Elephants were engaged in a thrilling international friendly on Tuesday night and it ended in a 1-1 draw.

Broos’ side went ahead in the ninth minute when Themba Zwane fired home the opener to settle his side into the game.

However, the West Africans restored parity in the 66th minute courtesy of a fine strike by Sebastien Haller.

The warm-up game serves as part of preparation for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, which start in November.

Ranking the top 10 best Brazilian football strikers of all-time

Football

Broos believes South Africa should have even extended their lead if they had converted their chances. After the match, he said via iDiski Times:

"As angry I was Friday, as pleased and happy I am today. I think South Africa played a very good game against a very good team. There was a good mentality on the pitch and they played good football."

The coach feels his team put Ivory Coast in trouble through both attacking and defending.

"It’s a pity that we didn’t score the biggest chance of the game in the second half, otherwise it should’ve been 2-0 and we win the game."

Over 21,000 fans were present at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny to cheer both teams and Broos used the opportunity to urge South African fans to come out during the World Cup qualifiers.

"Even today, there was a full stadium, all supporters of Ivory Coast, but you know that gives motivation to players also. Again, I hope that for Benin next month that South Africa will support us and they will be in the stadium because it’s very important to have them there."

Newcastle vs. PSG: Magpies’ Captain Bans Himself from TikTok to Avoid Watching Kylian Mbappe

Football

SAFA’s financial woes mounting

Sports Brief previously reported that it has been alleged that the current Bafana Bafana camp is unhappy after not receiving payments linked to recent matches.

This would be another episode in a long-running series that most recently had South Africa's women's team unhappy just before the Women's World Cup.

A publication, currently with the Bafana Bafana squad in Abidjan, reported inside information they had gathered regarding a payment dispute involving SAFA.