Bafana’s AFCON Record Against Morocco: History on South Africa’s Side
All eyes in Mzansi are set on the Laurent Pokou Stadium as Bafana Bafana are set to take on the Moroccans on the 30th of January 2024 in a Round of 16 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) clash.
Beginning at 22:00 SAST, South Africa and Morocco will be looking to break into the quarterfinals of the tournament, with both teams reaching the same stage in the competition but failing to go beyond it in 2019 and 2021, respectively.
Percy Tau and Themba Zwane | SUPPLIED
The only time the two sides have locked horns for AFCON glory at the knockout stage was all the way back in 1998, the 22nd of February at the Stade Municipal, Ouagadougou. Bafana triumphed over the Atlas Lions in that quarterfinal 2 goals to 1. Best Player of the Tournament Benni McCarthy and 1996 AFCON winner David Nyathi were up on the scoresheet that day, with the latter netting the 79th-minute decider.
Other AFCON encounters, a total of four more after the 1998 match, have resulted in Morocco winning one, losing one, and drawing two of the encounters against SA – all these were during the group stages of the AFCON spanning from 2002 to 2019.
Watch highlights of SA vs. Morocco at the 1998 AFCON:
This is how well Bafana has fared against Morocco in the AFCON (1998 – 2019):
1998 Quarterfinal: 2 – 1 Morocco
2002 Group Stage: 3 – 1 Morocco
2004 Group Stage: 1 -1 Morocco
2013 Group Stage: 2 – 2 Morocco
2019 Group Stage: 0 – 1 Morocco
Bafana coach Hugo Broos | SUPPLIED
Coincidentally, the two sides share the same medal track record at the AFCON, with both sides having a gold, a silver, and a bronze medal thus far. With history on the side of South Africa (two wins out of five encounters in the tournament), Bafana will be looking to draw strength from their pedigree, while also looking to make the most of Hugo Broos’ AFCON-winning experience to find their way into the last eight of the contest.
With South Africa’s coach boasting a 50%-win percentage vs. 57% from Moroccan helmsman Walid Regragui, the sides are all but evenly matched, with the possibility of a win for both sides being as precarious as that of a coin toss.