2026 World Cup Draw: Where Bafana Bafana could land, best vs worst case scenarios

Bafana Bafana are among 42 countries awaiting the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw set to be conducted in the United States of America on December 5.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C will be the place to be on Friday, December 5 when the World Cup draw is conducted from 19h00 (SA Time) with South Africa among the 42 countries that have already secured their tickets to the 48-team tournament.

Six more slots are yet to be determined as the playoffs are set for March 2026 but the draw will go on nonetheless.

Bafana Bafana’s performance at FIFA World Cup

South Africa last played the FIFA World Cup when they hosted the tournament in 2010 and qualified as hosts but the last time they had fought it out to seal a ticket was in 2002.

That is a long time and after missing the 2014, 2018 and 2022 editions, they return with renewed vigour and big goals, having not gone past the group stages in their previous appearances in 1998, 2022 and 2010.

2026 FIFA World Cup Pots

Bafana Bafana are among 12 teams in Pot 3 which also has African rivals Egypt, Algeria, Ivory Coast and Tunisia, as well as Qatar, Panama, Norway, Scotland, Paraguay, Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia.

That means they will not draw any of those teams in their group but will have to get two sides from Pot 1 and Pot 2 as well as another one from Pot 4.

Pot 1 includes the three host nations; USA, Canada and Mexico as well as the world’s top ranked countries being Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.

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

In Pot 4, Ghana and New Zealand are the seasoned teams leading, with minnows Jordan, Cape Verde, Curacao, Haiti also in the same category and they will be joined by the six sides that will come from the playoffs.

Which Teams will play the playoffs?

Four teams from Europe will join the rest with Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czechia, Denmark, Italy, Kosovo, Poland, Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, Turkiye, Ukraine, Wales, Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland and North Macedonia set to contest the European playoffs.

Meanwhile, two more sides from the intercontinental playoffs will join them with Iraq (AFC), Bolivia (Conmebol), Democratic Republic of Congo (CAF), Jamaica and Suriname (Concacaf), plus New Caledonia, representing Oceania, playing this mini-tournament.

Where Bafana Bafana could land

Bafana Bafana therefore can get any of the teams in Pots 1, 2 and 4 with the exception of their African counterparts as teams from the same confederation cannot be drawn together—except for Europe.

It means South Africa can get either USA, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium and Germany from Pot 1 and Croatia, Switzerland, Colombia, Uruguay, Japan, Iran, South Korea, Ecuador, Austria and Australia from Pot 2.

Their Pot 4 rivals will include New Zealand, Jordan, Curacao, Haiti and any of the playoff teams with the exception of DR Congo, if the Congolese qualify.

Best case scenario for Bafana Bafana

Hugo Broos’ men will be hoping for a favourable draw and from Pot 1, the best case would be to draw either USA, Canada and Mexico while getting any of Switzerland, Iran, Ecuador, Australia or Austria from Pot 2 as well as any of the minnows in Pot 4 such as Jordan, Curacao, Haiti or even New Zealand while avoiding the European sides.

Those are teams that give them the best possible opportunity of qualifying from the group for the first time in their history.

What would be worst case scenario for Bafana?

However, it does not always go as teams wish and South Africa could land one of the so-called ‘Groups of Death’ and these could include being pooled with either Spain, Argentine, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium or Germany from Pot 1 and Croatia, Colombia, Uruguay, and Japan from Pot 2 plus one of the top European teams from the playoffs such as four-time world champions Italy, Denmark or Poland.