PRETORIA: Recent major trophy winners Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates dominated the South Africa 2026 World Cup squad named in Pretoria on Wednesday with eight players each.
Sundowns won the CAF Champions League a second time last Sunday, defeating Moroccan rivals FAR Rabat 2-1 on aggregate in the final.
A day earlier, Pirates were crowned South African Premiership champions for the first time since 2012, ending a run of eight consecutive league titles by Sundowns.
A surprise omission was Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper Brandon Petersen, whose outstanding form helped his club finish third behind Pirates and Sundowns in the Premiership.
He was set to be called up for World Cup warm-up matches against Panama two months ago, only to be sidelined by appendix surgery.
