The best and worst draw for South Africa at the 2026 World Cup

South Africa/@Africa Soccer

South Africa will play in North America in what will be their fourth appearance at a World Cup finals.

Bafana Bafana will discover their group stage opponents on December 5, during the draw set to take place at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., starting at 17:00 GMT (12:00 local time).

The 1996 AFCON champions have been placed in Pot 3 alongside Norway, Panama, Egypt, Tunisia, Scotland, Paraguay, Ivory Coast, Uzbekistan, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

The worst possible draw for South Africa at the 2026 World Cup

Argentina – Croatia – South Africa – Italy (European playoff winner)

The best possible draw for South Africa at the 2026 World Cup

Canada, Australia – South Africa – Curaçao

As a reminder, the other pots have been determined as follows:

Pot 1: Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, United States, Mexico, Canada.

Pot 2: Croatia, Morocco, Colombia, Uruguay, Switzerland, Japan, Senegal, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria, Australia.

Pot 4: Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, Curaçao, Haiti, New Zealand, European playoff 1, European playoff 2, European playoff 3, European playoff 4, Intercontinental playoff 1, Intercontinental playoff 2.