Team South Africa departs for World Cup without assistant coach after US visa delay

South Africa’s World Cup preparations have suffered a setback after the team left for the tournament a day later than planned while assistant coach Helman Mkhalele stayed behind due to unresolved visa issues with the United States.

Bafana Bafana, who will return to the World Cup for the first time since hosting the tournament in 2010, finally departed Johannesburg on a chartered flight on Monday after securing visas for all players. The team was originally scheduled to travel on Sunday, but was forced to postpone its departure after several players and staff members did not receive the necessary travel documents.

South Africa have kicked off their World Cup campaign against co-hosts Mexico in Mexico City on June 11. They will also be playing one of their Group A matches in the United States, so permission to travel to the US is an essential requirement for the entire delegation.

The visa delay drew criticism from South Africa’s sports minister Gayton McKenzie, who described the situation as a “debacle” and blamed an administrative error by team officials. McKenzie said the incident was embarrassing for the country and demanded a full report from the South African Football Association (SAFA).

“We are made to look crazy,” McKenzie wrote on social media.

While SAFA was able to resolve visa issues for the players prior to their departure, assistant coach Mkhalele was left without clearance. SAFA president Danny Jordaan revealed that Mkhalele’s visa application was initially rejected by US authorities without any explanation and his travel documents are still being processed.

“Hopefully that will be resolved as well and all our people will go,” Jordaan told reporters at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport before the team’s departure.

SAFA apologized for the 24-hour delay and thanked South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation, along with the US Consulate in Johannesburg, for their assistance in resolving the matter.

The latest administrative issue has once again put South African football administration under the microscope. Earlier in the World Cup qualifiers, midfielder Teboho Mokoena was brought on against Lesotho despite being suspended, resulting in South Africa dropping points from the match and jeopardizing their qualification hopes.

Despite this setback, South Africa recovered to top their qualifying group by a single point and secure their place at the World Cup.

The team will be based in the Mexican city of Pachuca during the tournament and are scheduled to play their final warm-up game against Jamaica on Friday. After taking on Mexico in their opening game, South Africa will take on the Czech Republic in Atlanta before finishing their Group A campaign against South Korea in Monterrey.

– The end

Issued by:

Saurabh Kumar

Published on:

1 Jun 2026 23:07 IST