'We're not going there to just make up the numbers,' says Bafana skipper Ronwen Williams after World Cup draw
Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams says the team will not be going to next year's World Cup in North America to just make up the number after being drawn alongside co-hots Mexico.
Image: SAFA
Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams has issued a rallying call after the team were drawn to play against co-hosts Mexico in the opening game of the 2026 World Cup in North America.
For the second time in Bafana’s World Cup history, the team will open their tournament against the host nation, as they did when they played France back in their debut tournament in 1998.
It will also be the second time the team will feature in the tournament’s opener. As hosts in 2010, South Africa took on – coincidentally – Mexico at Soccer City in Johannesburg, with the game ending 1-1.
Bafana have also been drawn alongside South Korea and the winner of the UEFA Path D play-off between the Czech Republic, the Republic of Ireland, Denmark, and North Macedonia.
“It’s nice to play against the host nation because, of course, the country will get behind them,” Williams said on SuperSport after Friday’s draw at the Kennedy Centre in Washington DC.
“There are a lot of familiar faces that we will be up against. South Korea have some players we played against at the FIFA Club World Cup, who play for Ulsan HD,” said Bafana Bafana’s number one.
Williams added that he believed the team was capable of getting out of the group and advancing to the knockout stages for the first time ever.
“You can never say where you’re going to get points and where you’re going to drop them. Every game has its own challenges. We will go into each game believing that we can win it and get results.
“We don’t want to be there just to add numbers; we want to see how far we’ve come as a country and believe that we can do wonders. We don’t want to put pressure on ourselves – this is our first time in a very long time being part of such a prestigious tournament. We believe that we’re capable of getting out of that group.”
South Africa’s return to the world’s biggest stage comes with no guarantees, but what they do have is renewed belief, a settled core, and a captain determined to lead with conviction. If Bafana can channel that spirit when they walk out against Mexico, they won’t just be chasing history – they’ll be fighting to redefine their place in it.
IOL Sport