Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has made it clear: if South Africa is serious about competing with Africa’s elite, Bafana players must play in big leagues.
Broos’ blunt assessment comes in the aftermath of South Africa’s AFCON 2025 exit in Morocco, where Bafana Bafana were knocked out in the Round of 16, losing 2–1 to Cameroon, a side many once wrote off as faded giants, but who still know how to win when it matters.
For Broos, the lesson is simple and uncomfortable.
“Our players have to be challenged more. I said from the beginning the level of the PSL and the level we were up against is very big [difference],” Broos said.
“You can only make that gap smaller when you have players in big competitions. So let’s hope we have players who can get chances to move to the big competitions in Europe.”
Local dominance, continental reality
The current Bafana squad is heavily PSL-based, with the AFCON team dominated by players from Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates. At home, the Betway Premiership remains well-funded, well-marketed and fiercely defended by fans who insist it is Africa’s best league.
They point to Sundowns’ domestic dominance and regular appearances at global tournaments like the FIFA Club World Cup as proof.
But Broos’ comments reopen a long-running debate: is commercial strength masking a drop in football quality?
Many analysts believe so, even if supporters don’t want to hear it.
Paul Mitchell stirred the hornet’s nest
In December 2025, veteran football agent Paul Mitchell sparked outrage after openly questioning the quality of the Betway Premiership.
“South Africa has a good commercial league, but the level of the PSL has dropped significantly in the last five years. It’s been a poor league,” Mitchell said.
According to Mitchell, the disappearance of competitive clubs such as Bidvest Wits and SuperSport United weakened the league’s edge and intensity, making it harder for players to attract serious interest abroad.
The backlash was fierce. Some fans accused Mitchell of bitterness, others went as far as pulling the racial card, claiming he was unhappy because white-owned clubs were no longer part of the top flight.
But beneath the noise, the football questions refused to go away.
Results don’t lie
Strip away emotion and fan loyalty, and the recent record is sobering.
Mamelodi Sundowns, once Africa’s benchmark during the Khama Billiat era, have failed to lift the CAF Champions League for several seasons. Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs have struggled both domestically and on the continent.
South Africa’s much-talked-about 27-match unbeaten run ended quietly with a 1–0 defeat to Egypt, and critics argue Broos padded that streak by avoiding heavyweight opponents.
Whether fair or not, the AFCON exit brought reality crashing back.
The uncomfortable truth
Broos’ message isn’t an attack on the PSL. It’s a warning.
If Bafana players must play in big leagues, then pathways must open, standards must rise, and tough conversations must happen, even when they make fans uncomfortable.
Africa’s top teams are increasingly built around players hardened in Europe’s elite leagues. Until South Africa follows that route more consistently, progress may remain frustratingly slow. The money is there. The exposure is there.
Now, the football must catch up.
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