Proud leader- Coach Vela Khumalo reflects on Amajimbos journey to the World Cup qualification
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Coach Vela Khumalo expressed immense pride in his young charges after South Africa’s U17 men’s national team secured qualification for the FIFA U17 World Cup despite a 2-0 defeat to Burkina Faso in their final Group B match at the CAF U17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco on Sunday night.
Amajimbos booked their ticket to the global tournament in Qatar, scheduled for 3–27 November 2025, by finishing second in the group. Their fate was also sealed thanks to Egypt’s 2-1 victory over Cameroon, which worked in South Africa’s favour.
"This is a great moment and a big achievement," said Khumalo. "I made it clear from the beginning that our top priority was to qualify for the World Cup. We’ve accomplished that mission. I’m very happy for the boys and for myself. Yes, we lost today, but we still played well. We need to be sharper in front of goal and more aggressive going forward," said Khumalo
South Africa had a chance to take the lead in the first half when Emile Witbooi was fouled in the box, earning a penalty. However, Neo Bohloko was unable to convert the penalty.
The team was later denied another penalty in the second half after VAR ruled Bohloko had committed a foul.
Burkina Faso eventually broke the deadlock through Bara Junior after a defensive error, and Tapsoba sealed the win with a second goal in the closing minutes.
Still, the result didn’t affect South Africa’s progression to both the AFCON quarterfinals and the U17 World Cup, their first appearance at the global showpiece since 2015, and only their fourth time reaching the AFCON knockout stages.
"Now we can go into the rest of the tournament with less pressure and more focus. We’re excited to see how far this team can go," said Khumalo
IOL Sport
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