South Africa's Bafana Bafana will kick-start their Africa Cup of Nations campaign on the 16th of January 2024. In this article, we'll take a look at their AFCON 2023 fixtures, as well as their group opponents.
Bafana Bafana AFCON 2023 fixtures
Bafana Bafana were drawn in Group E, where they'll take on Mali, Tunisia and neighbours Namibia. It's worth mentioning that Bafana Bafana's group games will be played at the same venue in Korhogo. This is what their schedule looks like:
- Mali vs Bafana Bafana – 16/01/2024, 10pm (Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium)
- Bafana Bafana vs Namibia – 21/01/2024, 10pm (Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium)
- Bafana Bafana vs Tunisia – 24/01/2024, 7pm (Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium)
With that in mind, let's see how Bafana Bafana fared against their opponents in the past:
Bafana Bafana vs Mali
Mali had a really impressive qualifying campaign, where they won five of six group matches en route to this tournament. They are currently on a six-match unbeaten run, with five wins and a draw. What's more? Eric Chelle's men scored a total of 14 goals in that six-game stretch, keeping three clean sheets in the process.
Bafana Bafana have faced Mali a fair few times, and their most recent encounter was in a 2019 friendly, where the South Africans won by 2 goals to 1. At the AFCON, these teams last met in the 2013 event, where Mali defeated Bafana Bafana in the quarter-final on penalties. The Malians will likely cause some problems for Hugo Broos' troops in their AFCON opener.
Bafana Bafana vs Namibia
Unlike Mali, Namibia are not particularly high on morale ahead of this tournament. They won just one of their last seven matches in all competitions, with three draws and three losses.
It's also important to note that Bafana Bafana have dominated Namibia in the past. They have no losses in the last 10 skirmishes between these outfits, with six wins and four draws. In fact, the last time Namibia defeated South Africa was back in 1999. These teams met twice at the AFCON (1998 and 2019), and Bafana Bafana won both clashes. Interestingly, the last three meetings between these teams ended in stalemates.
Bafana Bafana vs Tunisia
Bafana Bafana and Tunisia are former AFCON champions; as they've both won one title in the past. The Tunisians emerged victorious when they hosted the tournament in 2004, while South Africa won as hosts in 1996.
It may interest you to know that when Bafana Bafana won their first and only AFCON title, they defeated Tunisia in the final. These teams squared off against each other on six occasions, and four of those clashes took place at the Africa Cup of Nations.
As it stands, both sides have three wins apiece in their six encounters. However, Tunisia came out on top the last two times these teams met. The most recent skirmish between Bafana Bafana and Tunisia was at the 2008 edition of this competition.
This article was most recently revised and updated 11 months ago
