Football entities - especially SAFA - must support our clubs and national teams as they are flying the country's flag high

South African football is on the rise right now. And that’s why all stakeholders - especially the motherbody - should preserve and aid every moment.

We’ve been boasting about being a football nation for generations. Yet our track record reads otherwise in both club and international football.

It’s been 29 years since Bafana Bafana won the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), while Banyana Banyana only won their women’s Afcon in the last finals, 2022, in Morocco.

Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns are the only two clubs that have won the CAF Champions League - feats that came in 1995 and 2016 respectively.

And with no team yet to win the current CAF Confederation Cup, Stellenbosch are punching above their weight as they could win it at first attempt after reaching the semi-final.

So enter 2025. It’s been an outstanding calendar-year of football so much so that all four crowns - Afcon, Wafcon, the CCL, CCC - could return home, redefining our claim.

The four competitions require no division of allegiances as all four teams are hoisting the country’s flag high on the continent, carrying our hopes and dreams.

Sure, we all know what the national teams stand for, but it’s perhaps worth noting that an all-South African Champions League final, in particular, will mean wonders for all and sundry.

The Ghost and Masandwana, will of course, rally behind the teams, wanting them to add a second star above their crests and boast as champions of the continent.

But the country would have won eventually - backing up claims why they have the best league on the continent, and among the best around the globe.

But before the Ghost and Masandawana can meet each other in the final, they have to back each other up in the semi-final, making sure both teams reach the final hurdle.

So that’s why the fans, regardless of allegiance, must rally behind Pirates and Sundowns in the semi-final against Pyramids and Al Ahly, especially here at home.

A good outing for both teams and Stellies will augur well for Bafana who’ll then have the best players heading into the Afcon finals in Morocco later in the year.

Banyana have turned the tide in recent years, and perhaps since Clive Barker’s team in 1996, there's now ample belief among the masses that we can win Afcon yet again.

So good have been the current crop of Bafana players that they qualified for Afcon without a loss, while their two blemishes were just two draws in six games in Group K.

Coach Hugo Broos and his men are also close to returning to the World Cup for the first time since 2010, as they are top of their group in the qualifiers.

So given that they had an incredible run in the last Afcon edition in Ivory Coast, and are now nigh to booking their ticket to north America, they’ll be one of the teams to beat at Afcon.

We’ll be behind Banyana to ensure that they retain their Wafcon trophy in Morocco. As such, roll out the red carpet for Bafana who’ll arrive in the country for their Afcon finals.

After all, Banyana have made a lot of progress to look back now - that’s why they know the importance of doing well in Wafcon in order to qualify for their third World Cup in a row.

Sure, the players will cover the hard yards on the pitch to get the results, but their organisations - the PSL and SAFA - must make sure they lack nothing.

The PSL must be able to readjust their domestic schedule to ensure that Pirates, Sundowns and Stellenbosch are given ample time to prepare and travel for their continental duties.

The big role lies with SAFA. They need to get their house in order, and ensure that all entities - the national teams and member association, the PSL, are lack nothing.

The motherbody has had so many faults in the past - late payments, bonus rows and poor logistics - that they’ve put a spanner in the works. So this is not the time to drop the ball!