Sports Correspondent

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos was left visibly frustrated after his team was denied access to train at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, ahead of their crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifier Group C match against Benin. The match is set for Tuesday evening.

The South African team was blocked from using the stadium for a pre-match training session due to a scheduled game between Ivory Coast and Gambia on Monday night. The situation left Broos enraged, as he voiced his concerns during a press conference ahead of the game.

“First of all, I have to tell you that I’m really not satisfied with the decision that we can’t have a pre-match training in the stadium where the game takes place,” Broos stated. “I think this is a FIFA rule, that every team has the right to have a preliminary training before the game of 60 minutes in the stadium where you play, where the match takes place.”

The coach further expressed his dissatisfaction, saying, “Will that have an influence on the game? I don’t know. But I know if, tomorrow after the game, I’m not at the press conference, there will be a sanction, so we have to follow the rules, where are the rules now?”

Broos also pointed out the perceived unfairness in the situation, emphasizing that Benin, the opposition, had already trained at the stadium earlier due to their earlier arrival. “You will tell me, ‘Oh, it’s for both teams.’ I don’t think so. I think Benin has already trained in that stadium because they were here sooner than we were.”

The Bafana Bafana coach made it clear that he felt the situation was unfair, stating, “So it’s all nice to say, ‘Oh, follow the rules! Follow this!’ We have to follow everything, but we have the right to train in the stadium today where the match will take place, and we can’t, and that is not honest and that is not correct.”

Currently, Bafana Bafana are leading Group C with 10 points, while Benin sit in second place with 8 points.