The SoFi Stadium in California will be the venue for a historic match for both South Africa and co-host Canada, as this marks their first-ever appearance in the World Cup knockout stage.
South Africa seemed destined for the same fate as in previous World Cups (1998, 2002, and 2010) – all eliminated in the group stage – but a surprising 1-0 victory against South Korea in the final match secured them second place in Group A and a spot in the Round of 32.
The African representatives had a poor start, losing 0-2 to hosts Mexico, then drawing 1-1 with the Czech Republic, thanks to a penalty goal from Teboho Mokoena in the 83rd minute, and finally Thapelo Maseko's decisive goal against South Korea (63') helped them continue their World Cup adventure.
Similarly, this is also Canada's first time in the knockout round. They qualified as the second-placed team (4 points) in Group B, behind Switzerland (7 points).
Co-hosts Canada opened with a 1-1 draw against Bosnia & Herzegovina, before securing a resounding 6-0 victory over Qatar. Despite losing 1-2 to Switzerland in their final group stage match, Canada secured second place, avoiding early elimination as they had in 1986 and 2022.
Against Canada, South Africa sees the return of midfield maestro Teboho Mokoena to the squad, after serving a one-match suspension (due to receiving consecutive yellow cards in the first two group stage matches).
However, their appeal against the increase of striker Themba Zwane's suspension from one to three matches, which he received in the opening game against Mexico, was unsuccessful.
Meanwhile, Canadian left-back Alphoao Davies (Bayern Munich), who hasn't played since the start of the tournament due to a hamstring injury, is still recovering. However, there are speculations that he might be brought on as a substitute in this match against South Africa.
Meanwhile, midfielder Ismael Kone suffered a broken leg in the match against Qatar and will likely be out for the rest of the tournament.
In the past, South Africa and Canada have only met once, in a friendly match in 2007, with the African team winning 2-0.
The team that wins the match at 2 AM on June 29th will face either the Netherlands or Morocco in the round of 16, before potentially encountering title contenders like France or Germany in the quarter-finals.
Both teams are determined to make history by taking another step forward in the 2026 World Cup. Who will have the smile on their faces?
According to Sportsmole experts, this is a very unpredictable match, but there is confidence that Canada will win narrowly 2-1 against South Africa . That is also Goal's prediction for the outcome of this match.
Khel Now also predicted that host nation Canada would win 2-1 against South Africa , but predicted the match would go into extra time.
Sportskeeda experts share the same idea: the first match of the 2026 World Cup Round of 32 will go into extra time and end with a 2-1 score (1-1 draw after 90 minutes) , the only difference being their prediction that the winner will be South Africa, not the host nation Canada .
Predicted lineup :
South Africa : Williams; Mudau, Mbokazi, Okon, Modiba; Mbatha, Mokoena; Maseko, Mofokeng, Appollis; Makgopa.
Canada : Crepeau; Johnston, De Fougerolles, Cornelius, Laryea; Buchanan, Eustaquio, Saliba, Ahmed; David, Larin.
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/du-doan-bong-da-nam-phi-vs-canada-vong-1-32-world-cup-2026-2529391.html
