President Cyril Ramaphosa has promised South Africans an additional public holiday this year, on one condition: Bafana Bafana lift the FIFA World Cup trophy!
The South African national soccer team received a warm send-off from the South African Football Association (SAFA) and various sponsors ahead of their departure this weekend.
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This comes after the official tournament squad was publicly announced.
The boys in green and yellow will play the opening match against one of the three host countries – Mexico – on 11 June.
Before they leave, the squad will play Nicaragua in a friendly match.
On Wednesday, Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos named the official 26-man squad that will represent South Africa at the FIFA World Cup.
The announcement took place at a send-off dinner at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.
On his official X account, President Cyril Ramaphosa, who attended the send-off dinner, congratulated the squad and wished them well on their trip to the FIFA World Cup.
In a tweet, the president joked about the national team making it to the final – and rewarding the public with a public holiday should the team win.
He tweeted: “We wish you the very best as you head off to the tournament. I will be there when you lift the trophy on the 19th of July. And, yes, I will declare it a public holiday.
He added: “May you have wind in your sails, steel in your veins and thunder in your boots”
In his keynote speech, the president told the squad: “We do not want Group Stages or early exits, we don’t want the words ‘eliminated’ or ‘bowing out’. We want to see you compete with courage, determination and belief until the very end”.
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The FIFA World Cup finals fall on Sunday, 19 July – and a win for Bafana Bafana could mean a public holiday, and a day off the next day!
The president added that he would likely be inundated with calls for additional public holidays as or when South Africa progresses throughout the tournament.
