Teboho Mokoena not to blame as Bafana Bafana suffer avoidable World Cup setback
Not to blame: Bafana Bafana have been docked three points over the fielding of Teboho Mokoena in their World Cup qualifier against Lesotho, when he should have been serving a suspension. Photo: Phakamisa Lensman/BackpagePix
Image: Phakamisa Lensman/BackpagePix
South Africa’s worst nightmare came true on Monday afternoon when FIFA announced that Bafana Bafana would be docked three World Cup qualification points over the fielding of an ineligible Teboho Mokoena against Lesotho.
The sanction means that the team’s World Cup hopes have taken a knock, and they will need maximum points from their two remaining games, while hoping that Benin drop points. It’s not completely hopeless as Bafana’s games are both at home, while Benin have to travel to Rwanda and Nigeria.
A lot of fans have taken to social media to unfairly blame Mokoena for the blunder.
Mokoena is not to blame. None of this is his fault and he should not be held responsible by South African football supporters.
Get your news on the go. Download the latest IOL App or Android and IOS now
Complete timeline of events:
18 November 2023 – Yellow card vs Benin: Mokoena is shown a yellow card in their opening qualifier against Benin at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban. They win the match 2-1.
13 January to 11 February – AFCON in Côte d’Ivoire: Mokoena and Bafana Bafana take part in the Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d'Ivoire, where they come back home with the bronze medal. After their bronze-medal run at AFCON, South Africa played a string of friendlies and competitive fixtures before returning to World Cup qualification duty in June 2024.
11 June 2024 – Yellow card vs Zimbabwe: In their fourth game of qualifiers, South Africa meet Zimbabwe at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein. In the game, Mokoena is shown a yellow card in the 52nd minute. According to FIFA’s regulations, a player who accumulates two yellow cards in separate matches must serve a one-match suspension. Bafana win the game against Zimbabwe 3-1. After this game, Bafana play another eight games.
21 March 2025 – Match vs Lesotho:Almost 500 days after his initial yellow card, and 283 days after his second, Mokoena plays against Lesotho in Polokwane, with Bafana Bafana winning the game 2-0. When it finally registers with the Lesotho FA that Mokoena played when he should have been serving a suspension, over 48 hours had passed, meaning they had missed the deadline to lodge a complaint to FIFA or CAF.
Between the first yellow card against Benin, and featuring against Lesotho, 489 days pass. In that time, he’s also featured 84 times for Mamelodi Sundowns.
FIFA and CAF also at fault
While Bafana Bafana’s administration clearly bears responsibility, this situation also highlights gaps in oversight at the continental and global levels.
The responsibility for this costly error lies squarely with those tasked with tracking player suspensions and ensuring compliance with FIFA regulations. Fans may be disappointed, but pointing fingers at Mokoena is misguided and unfair.
While the administrative oversight within Bafana Bafana is clear, part of the responsibility also rests with FIFA and CAF. Match Commissioners are expected to flag ineligible players when reviewing match sheets, particularly in qualifying campaigns that stretch over two years and are interrupted by other tournaments like AFCON.
Given the sheer volume of games players participate in for both club and country, it is understandable that errors can occur, but stronger checks at the continental and global level could have prevented this costly mistake.
As Bafana Bafana now fight to keep their World Cup dream alive, the focus must be on getting the administration in order, learning from this oversight, and rallying behind the players who still have a chance to make history on the pitch.
IOL Sport
* The views expressed are not necessarily the views of IOL or Independent Media.
** JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Send us an email with your comments, thoughts or responses to [email protected]. Letters should be a maximum of 500 words, and may be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Submissions should include a contact number and physical address (not for publication).