Football

The rise and fall of South Africa at the Cup of Nations

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Here is the complete record of the South Africa (Bafana Bafana) in the African football showpiece after the collapse of apartheid permitted their entry.

Debutants and hosts South Africa won the 1996 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), but it has been mainly downhill since for a team popularly known as Bafana Bafana (The Boys).

The serial Africa Cup of Nations underachievers are under immense pressure to excel at the 2024 tournament in the Ivory Coast, says star forward Percy Tau.

The 1996 champions face fellow former title-holders Tunisia, and Mali and Namibia in Group E in Korhogo, the northernmost of five host cities.

It is widely considered the most intriguing of the six first-round mini-leagues with pundits uncertain which two teams will automatically qualify for the knockout stage.

Here is the complete record of the country in the African football showpiece after the collapse of apartheid permitted their entry:

1994: Failed to qualify

1996: Champions (hosts)

1998: Runners-up

2000: Third

2002: Quarter-finals

2004: First round

2006: First round

2008: First round

2010: Failed to qualify

2012: Failed to qualify

2013: Quarter-finals (hosts)

2015: First round

2017: Failed to qualify

2019: Quarter-finals

2022: Failed to qualify

STORY BY AFP

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