Bafana Bafana and Nigeria Supporters Trade Memes As Rivalry Builds Ahead of AFCON Semifinal

• South Africa and Nigeria will meet in the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations 2023 in Ivory Coast
• Bafana Bafana fans are celebrating Tyla's Grammy win over Nigerian artists like Davido and Burna Boy
• Nigerians have taken to calling the South African side ''Banana Banana'' ahead of their semi-final game

The heat is on.

South Africa and Nigeria will meet in the semi-final of the Africa Cup of Nations, and the banter has already started between the two sets of fans.

While football fans see the game as a battle between two African giants, there are also other underlying plots.

South Africa’s Tyla wins Grammy

BBC reported that the rivalry between the two nations was fuelled when Tyla won the Grammy Award for Best African Music Performance. The South African artist beat Nigeria’s Davido and Burna Boy to claim the award.

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Football

Afrobeats vs Amapiano

The game is also considered to be the Amapiano derby by some, or the battle between Afrobeats and Amapiano.

The two musical genres are extremely popular worldwide and come from the two respective countries.

Dricus vs Adesanya

The battle between Nigeria and South Africa that everyone wants to see is Dricus du Plessis vs Israel Adesanya.

The two UFC Middleweights were on a collision course for the Middleweight title before Adesanya lost the belt. With the South African now the champ, the Nigerian-born star could be his next opponent.

DStv Nigeria also couldn’t resist getting in on the act, trolling the South African side by calling them Banana Banana.

Here are some other funny memes and posts about the rivalry between the two nations.

South Africa to face Nigeria in semi-finals

South Africa will have edged past Cape Verde in the quarter-finals of AFCON and are one step closer to winning a second title.

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Football

Mamelodi Sundowns keeper Ronwen Williams was the hero of the day as he helped guide Bafana Bafana into the last four.

Sports Brief looks at Bafana's upcoming fixture and who they will need to get past in order to win the title in the Ivory Coast.