Bafana Bafana arrived back from the 2026 Fifa World Cup to an enthusiastic greeting at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg early on Thursday morning.A band accompanied the few thousand supporters who gave the team a noisy greeting in the airport arrivals hall.The national team punched above its weight, progressing as the lowest-ranked side in Group A after a disappointing 2-0 defeat to co-hosts Mexico, an improved 1-1 draw against Czechia and a genuinely impressive 1-0 win against a strong South Korea. The South Africans bowed out with a 1-0 defeat to tough Canada in the last 32 at Los Angeles Stadium on Sunday, the co-hosts triumphing via Stephen Eustáquio’s last-gasp, 92nd-minute winner.It was South Africa’s historic first progression past a World Cup group stage on the fourth try, having failed to do so in France in 1998, Japan and South Korea in 2002 and as hosts in 2010. [IN PICTURES] Bafana Bafana have returned home, arriving at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg after the 2026 FIFA World Cup.Credit: Tom Molepo pic.twitter.com/nDyIop8jrX— SABC News (@SABCNews) July 2, 2026
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