Pitso Mosimane has returned to the helm of Bafana Bafana as their new coach, taking over from the Belgian Hugo Broos ahead of the start of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers that get under way this month.
It is a third stint in charge for the former SuperSport United, Mamelodi Sundowns and Al Ahly coach, who is the most decorated tactician in South African football history with his success at club level.
Mosimane was unveiled in Johannesburg on Tuesday, and will have to get to work quickly.
His latest tenure starts with a home Cup of Nations qualifier against Guinea on September 26. The side then travels to neutral Egypt to face Eritrea four days later.
They will play Benni McCarthy’s Kenya in home and away fixtures in November, and complete their campaign in Guinea and home to Eritrea in March next year.
Because Kenya are co-hosts and automatically qualify, only one other side from the pool will advance to the 24 team finals.
Mosimane was first handed the reins of the national side on an interim basis in 2006 ahead of the arrival of Brazilian Carlos Alberto Parreira in the country. He was the placeholder in the dugout but took charge of some important matches.
SAFA announces the new Bafana Bafana Head Coach, Pitso Mosimane and his technical team 🇿🇦💚💛#BafanaPride #BafanaBafana pic.twitter.com/APBw79vOxZ
— Bafana Bafana (@BafanaBafana) September 1, 2026
He had seven games in charge, including a 1-0 win in Zambia in a crucial Africa Cup of Nations qualifier that remains one of Bafana’s better away victories down the years.
He had three wins and three draws to go with a single defeat, a 1-0 loss to Egypt in a friendly played in neutral London.
Mosimane then continued his role as assistant coach of the side under Parreira and Joel Santana through the 2010 World Cup, before being elevated to the top job for a second time.
He had a further 16 matches in charge, including the ill-fated bid to qualify for the 2012 Cup of Nations, where a misreading of the rules meant the side played for a draw in a game they needed to win against Niger.
That episode is well documented and remains the low point of his managerial career. It did not lead to his immediate exit from the role, for the blame did not lie with him alone, but perhaps the writing was on the wall.
His side won six of those 16 games to go with seven draws and three defeats. It was not the losses that counted against him, but the draws. Five of his last six games in charge ended level, with a 1-1 draw against Ethiopia in a 2014 World Cup qualifier the final straw.
But there is no doubt that Mosimane is a more experienced and successful coach than he was in the 14 years that have passed since then.
In all he has been in charge of the national side for 23 games, winning nine to go with 10 draws and four defeats. His teams scored 17 goals conceded only eight.