South African Football Association Takes decisive Step Against FIFA Ruling That Cost Group Lead

Bafana Bafana stripped of Lesotho win, fined, and warned over Mokoena case

South African Football Association Takes decisive Step Against FIFA Ruling That Cost Group Lead

The South African Football Association SAFA's confirmed it will appeal FIFA’s decision to overturn Bafana Bafana’s World cup qualifying victory against Lesotho.

FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee ruled that South Africa forfeited their 2 - 0 win in Maseru on 21 Mar 2025 awarding Lesotho 3 - 0 victory.

The punishment came after midfielder Teboho Mokoena was fielded despite serving suspension for accumulated yellow cards.

SAFA was fined 10000 Swiss franc (around 9000 sterling pound) while Mokoena received official warning.

SAFA response and appeal

In strongly worded statement, SAFA expressed "deep disappointment" at what it called an "unprecedented outcome" delivered by single judge without allowing the association to present legal arguments.

The federation's requested written reasons for the ruling and will file appeal with FIFA’s Appeals Committee within the mandatory 10 day window.

🔴 SAFA RESPONSE 🔴

"As SAFA, we are deeply disappointed with this unprecedented outcome noting that it was delivered by a single-member panel without reasons, and without affording the Association an opportunity to present legal arguments. The Association confirms that we have…

— robertmarawa (@robertmarawa) September 29, 2025

Impact on qualification race

The sanction's significant implications for Bafana Bafana who've now lost top spot in their qualifying group with just 2 match remaining.

FIFA has penalized South Africa with a three-point deduction in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers after Bafana Bafana fielded suspended midfielder Teboho Mokoena in their match against Lesotho.

Their 2–0 victory has been overturned into a 3–0 forfeit loss, awarding the win to… pic.twitter.com/oULtugJHnI

— African Hub (@AfricanHub_) September 30, 2025