Pitso Mosimane Returns as Bafana Bafana Head Coach
Pitso Mosimane is back in charge of South Africa’s men’s national team, a decade after his first spell ended in bruising fashion.
The 62-year-old has been reappointed as Bafana Bafana head coach, replacing Hugo Broos, whose five-year tenure came to an end when his contract expired at the end of July. The South African Football Association’s executive committee approved the move on 8 August, and Mosimane was formally unveiled to the media in Johannesburg on Tuesday after finalising his contract and backroom staff.
The length of his deal has not been made public.
A Second Chance After a Turbulent First Reign
Mosimane’s first stint, from July 2010 to June 2012, carried heavy expectation. South Africa had just hosted the World Cup, the country was still riding the emotional high of 2010, and Bafana Bafana were desperate to turn that energy into sustained success.
Instead, his reign became synonymous with one of the national team’s most infamous miscalculations. South Africa failed to qualify for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations after mistakenly believing a draw in their final group game against Sierra Leone would be enough to reach the finals. It wasn’t. The fallout was severe, and the episode has followed Mosimane ever since.
The end came in June 2012, after a 1-1 home draw against Ethiopia in South Africa’s opening qualifier for the 2014 World Cup. By then, patience had thinned. Mosimane and Bafana Bafana parted ways, and he stepped away from the international stage.
Broos Era Closes After Afcon High
He now replaces Hugo Broos, who leaves with his reputation intact after restoring credibility to the national side. The Belgian guided South Africa to a third-place finish at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, a run that reignited belief in a squad many had written off.
Broos also led Bafana Bafana back to the World Cup stage. South Africa reached the last 32 at this year’s tournament, their first appearance at the finals since hosting in 2010. That return alone marked a significant step forward for the national team.
His contract quietly expired at the end of July, and while there was no dramatic exit, the decision to move on signalled a new direction.
A Decorated Club Coach Returns Home
If Mosimane’s first spell with the national team ended under a cloud, his club career since has rewritten his legacy.
He built a continental powerhouse at Mamelodi Sundowns, then took that authority to North Africa with Al Ahly. Between the two giants, he lifted the African Champions League three times, cementing his status as one of the most successful African coaches of his generation.
Those triumphs opened doors across the region. Mosimane has recently worked in Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Iran, testing himself in different cultures and dressing rooms, broadening his tactical and man-management toolbox.
Now he brings that experience back to Bafana Bafana.
The stakes are clear. The team has rediscovered competitiveness under Broos and returned to the global stage. Mosimane inherits a side with renewed confidence and a fan base that remembers both his past missteps and his continental glory.
This time, there will be far less room for error.
