Author: Lehlohonolo Scheepers

There is something quietly profound about following African club football from the southern tip of the continent. While the noise of European leagues drowns out most conversations, those paying attention know that the CAF Champions League and the CAF Confederation Cup tell stories every bit as compelling – stories of ambition, identity, and the slow but undeniable rise of Southern African football on the continental stage. Sundowns and the Benchmark of Excellence Mamelodi Sundowns have fundamentally changed what South African football means to the rest of Africa. Their CAF Champions League triumph in 2016 was not a fluke – it…

A dramatic weekend of FIFA World Cup 2026 action delivered moments of brilliance, heartbreak, and mounting pressure across several groups, with African sides finding the going tough against some of the tournament’s heavyweights. Here is how Sunday and Saturday’s action unfolded. Spain Demolish Saudi Arabia in Atlanta Spain put on a masterclass in Atlanta, dismantling Saudi Arabia 4-0 in a performance that announced their title credentials loudly and clearly. The Spanish pressed relentlessly from the first whistle, suffocating Saudi Arabia’s attempts to build from the back and turning every loose ball into a dangerous transition. Their movement off the ball…

The FIFA World Cup 2026 rolls on through its group stage with a packed schedule of fixtures from Sunday 21 June through to Friday 26 June – and for South African fans, the highlight of the entire week arrives in the early hours of Thursday morning. Bafana Bafana face Korea Republic at the Estadio Monterrey at 03:00 on Thursday 25 June, and the nation will be setting alarms and filling living rooms for what could be a defining moment in this country’s football history. Bafana Bafana Take Centre Stage South Africa’s clash with Korea Republic is the match every fan…

Saturday’s slate of FIFA World Cup 2026 fixtures delivered drama, dominant performances, and at least one result that will have African football fans raising a glass – Morocco continuing to prove that the continent’s representatives belong at the very top table of the global game. Morocco Make History Look Routine For South Africans and African football supporters broadly, the standout result of the weekend was Morocco’s composed 1-0 victory over Scotland in Boston. The Atlas Lions, who captured hearts worldwide at Qatar 2022 with their historic semifinal run, showed exactly why they remain Africa’s standard-bearers at this tournament. Against a…

It was always going to be a stern examination, but few could have predicted just how comprehensive Leinster’s dismantling of the Bulls would be. At a sun-drenched Croke Park on Friday evening, the Irish giants put on a masterclass to defeat the Pretoria side 36-7, ending the Bulls’ United Rugby Championship campaign in ruthless fashion. Leinster Dominate from the Outset From the first whistle, Leinster looked a side utterly at ease with the occasion. Their set-piece was immovable, their backline moved the ball with a fluency and precision that the Bulls simply could not contain. The Irish province built their…

Before the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicked off, there were doubters. Not about the football itself, but about the format. Forty-eight teams, they said, is too many. The group stage will be full of mismatches. You will get 6-0 walkovers and 1-0 snoozefests and long lists of forgettable results from nations who had no business being at a World Cup. Eight days in, the doubters have gone very quiet. Eighty-eight goals in twenty-seven matches. That is more than three goals per game, a rate that would comfortably make this the highest-scoring World Cup in modern history if it keeps up.…

Right, forget the group stage drama for a second. Forget the tactical battles and the upset alerts and the scoreline monitoring. There is a race happening inside this World Cup that is arguably the most compelling individual battle in the tournament’s 96-year history, and it has barely even started. The 2026 World Cup Golden Boot race looks like this: a 38-year-old Argentine who has already tied the all-time scoring record. A 27-year-old Frenchman who now has more World Cup goals than Pelé. A 25-year-old Norwegian striker who is built like a machine and scores like one. And a Canadian striker…

There are football matches that you watch for the result. And then there are football matches that you watch because something about them just refuses to let you look away, where the drama builds layer on layer and by the final whistle you are exhausted and elated and cannot quite believe what you just witnessed. Netherlands versus Japan at the 2026 FIFA World Cup was that second kind of football match. Completely, absolutely, unreservedly. Final score: Netherlands 2, Japan 2. Japan came from behind. Twice. Against the Netherlands. At a World Cup. The Setup The Netherlands are one of the…

In the race for World Cup headlines this week, Canada have been somewhat overshadowed. Messi’s hat-trick happened on the same day. The Cape Verde shock arrived shortly after. Spain and France and the golden boot race have dominated the conversation. Let us fix that, because what Canada did to Qatar in their second group game was extraordinary by any measure, and the story it tells about North American football’s future is one that deserves to be heard at full volume. Canada 6, Qatar 0. Six goals. Clean sheet. At a World Cup. At home. The Jonathan David Show Jonathan David…

Let us start with the odds. Before a ball was kicked in Group H of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the bookmakers had Spain as one of the tournament favourites. World’s top-ranked team. European Championship holders. Lamine Yamal and Pedri and a squad so deep that they could field two entirely different starting elevens and both would comfortably beat most national teams on the planet. Cape Verde. A small archipelago nation of 500,000 people off the west coast of Africa. Making just their second appearance at a FIFA World Cup. Given approximately a 2% chance of taking anything from this…