South Africa’s Bafana Bafana could be penalized with a three-point and three-goal deduction if found guilty of fielding an ineligible player during their Matchday 5 fixture of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho on March 25, 2025.
The controversy revolves around the Mamelodi Sundown midfielder Teboho Mokoena, who was allegedly ineligible to play due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Mokoena received bookings in South Africa’s opening qualifier against Benin (Matchday 1) and another against Zimbabwe (Matchday 4).
Despite this, he played 81 minutes in the Matchday 5 clash with Lesotho, potentially violating FIFA regulations. According to FIFA rules, a player who accumulates two yellow cards in separate matches must serve a one-game suspension.
While this rule has traditionally applied to the standard six-game qualification format, if it is confirmed to also apply to the current ten-game format, South Africa could face disciplinary action, including a three-point deduction for using an ineligible player.
South Africa currently leads Group C of the CAF 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers with 13 points after securing another victory against Benin Republic away from home.
If this strict action is enforced, it will reduce Bafana Bafana’s points to 10, with a goal difference of +2. This would leave the qualification race in the group wide open, as Rwanda, Benin, and Nigeria would be within close reach of South Africa.
