Safa chaos risks jeopardising Bafana, Banyana campaigns

BAFANA Bafana are just weeks and months away from competing at the AFCON and the Fifa World Cup respectively, but such is the disarray at Safa that their preparations for both events could be in serious jeopardy.

- MIHLALI BALEKA

Bafana brought euphoria across the country in the past few weeks by automatically qualifying for the global showpiece - which will be hosted by the US, Mexico, and Canada next June ~ for the first time since the 2002 edition.

But that joy seems to have been short-lived in Safa's plush offices in the south of Johannesburg. The fact that Bafana coach Hugo Broos, his assistant Helman Mkhalele, and controversial team manager Vincent Tseka cut a cake yesterday to celebrate their triumph is neither here nor there, honestly.

This week, it was reported that the financial challenges facing the association have mounted to the point that the top brass have been asked to take pay cuts ranging from 5% to 25%.

What's even more worrying is that Broos has reportedly been asked to take a pay cut as well. That’s not only concerning - it’s embarrassing, given that Broos, if anything, deserves a pay raise after changing the image of Bafana over the past few years.