South African players celebrate the 1-0 victory in the 2026 World Cup Group A football match between South Africa and South Korea at the Monterrey Stadium in Guadalupe, Mexico, on June 24, 2026. (Photo by Julio Cesar AGUILAR / AFP)
South African football fans took to the streets in the early hours of Thursday, honking vuvuzelas and singing in celebration at Bafana Bafana’s first-ever qualification for the World Cup knockout rounds.
Playing in a World Cup for the first time since they hosted it in 2010, the team shocked South Korea 1-0 on Wednesday to secure progression, which had seemed unlikely after they lost their opening group stage match 2-0 to co-hosts Mexico.
As the match ended at around 5:00 am local time, scores of people headed out into the streets — many in their pyjamas — to chant, dance and blow long plastic vuvuzela horns.
Soweto resident Nandi Ntini told AFP that she was woken up by vuvuzelas and fireworks.
