Moses Mabhida confirmed as venue for Bafana and Zimbabwe World Cup qualifier

Zimbabwe have reversed their decision to move their 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifier away from South Africa, with Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium now confirmed as the venue for the all-important match scheduled for Monday, October 6.

The global showpiece will be jointly hosted by the US, Mexico, and Canada next year, and should they qualify, Bafana Bafana would make their first return to the World Cup through the qualifying route since the 2002 Korea-Japan edition.

Zimbabwe’s preferred choice was a venue in Botswana, but with the Zebras scheduled to play their own World Cup qualifier against Uganda there on October 6, they had no option but to revert to the originally planned South African venue.

Bafana still face uncertainty over the eligibility of Teboho Mokoena, who received two yellow cards leading up to South Africa’s 2-0 win against Lesotho in March. Fifa confirmed last week that it would investigate the matter, and if South Africa is found guilty, the team could face a points deduction, with a 3-0 loss applied as punishment.

While Hugo Broos and his charges currently stand on the brink of qualification, the investigation casts a shadow over their campaign. The recent venue shift, however, provides a silver lining, allowing Bafana to play their “away” match in familiar surroundings and regain some comfort ahead of the crucial fixture.

Bafana are currently leading Group C on 17 points, three more than second-placed Benin, with each team having played eight matches.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, have endured a poor run in the qualifiers and sit at the bottom of the group with just four points. With uncertainty lingering over Bafana due to the investigation, it becomes vital for South Africa to capitalise on their wounded neighbours.

Irrespective of the investigation’s outcome, the team’s fate remains in their own hands heading into the final two round of fixtures.