The Sport, Arts and Culture Department says it is looking forward to welcoming home Banyana Banyana on Tuesday. Banyana return from Morocco victorious following their win in the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) tournament.
In a statement, the department says the win on Saturday was a practical demonstration of the great strides taken by the women’s game on the continent.
The final score was 2-1 to South Africa.
SABC Sports senior reporter Lebohang Dube was at the stadium to cover Banyana’s crowning moment:
Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa is quoted in the statement as saying, “The fact that it was Banyana Banyana that remained standing when all was said and done, is particularly sweet. It feels good for South African football to once again reach the pinnacle of African football for the first time since 1996.”
“In addition to saluting Desiree Ellis and her conquering heroines, I also want to commend the SAFA leadership for having the presence of mind to offer incentives as an encouragement to the teams. Lastly, we are thankful to SASOL and other sponsors for believing in our women.”
The department has urged supporters to come to OR Tambo International Airport on Tuesday morning to “show your love”.
Meanwhile, the President of the South African Football Association Danny Jordaan has given the assurance that Banyana Banyana will get their R400 000 incentive each on their return from Morocco.
Jordaan says the team deserves recognition after its excellent performance in the tournament.
“We are gonna honour the commitment. Don’t worry about that, I will sit down with the captain and speak to her when they come back. They deserve the R400 000 and we are going to work hard to give them even more.”
The South African Football Coaches Association has also congratulated the team on the feat and urged football technicians in the country to do a proper analysis of how Banyana managed to conquer Africa to avoid the team falling into the same trap Bafana Bafana did after winning the 1996 Afcon.
The association has reiterated that local coaches deserve all the respect and chance to be in charge of local clubs and national teams, not because they are local coaches, but because they are capable coaches, if not better.
“As we congratulate Desiree and the girls, we also call upon the football technicians in this country to do a proper analysis of the factors that contributed to the success of this team. Failure to understand what worked and what didn’t work could mean we could repeat the same mistakes we repeated after Bafana Bafana had won the 1996 Afcon and things took a wrong turn from then on. We should avoid those mistakes this time around and ensure that we only get better from this as we prepare for the FIFA Women’s World Cup next year,” warns SAFCA President, Greg Mashilo.
Social media is abuzz with congratulatory messages and jubilation for Banyana Banyana following their win of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) trophy.
CONGRATULATIONS @Banyana_Banyana as the County we are very proud of you, weldone we will be waiting for to come back ❤️❤️❤️❤️ Good job ladies #WAFCON2022#banyana | Morocco | Bafana Bafana | The Soil | Noko Matlou | Casper | SAFA #Amakhosi4Life #TotalEnergiesWAFCON2022 pic.twitter.com/iyuYQG0FOP
— Dr Ronald Telekwa✌🏽🖤💛✌🏽 📀@king_Ron📀 (@KingRonDeDon) July 23, 2022
#banyana flowers to our Lady 💐💐💐🥳🥳🥳😍
Moment of glory Banyana🙌🙌 pic.twitter.com/EpZHepxAdK— 🎀 𝒞𝓁𝑒𝓂𝑒𝓃𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑒 🎀 ° (@ClementineNkuna) July 23, 2022
On behalf of all MEN in South Africa. We are nothing without the WOMEN #banyana pic.twitter.com/4nExeMdRmq
— Sbusiba (@Sbusiba1) July 23, 2022
On Tuesday when they came back, we need to give these ladies the hero’s welcome they deserve #banyana pic.twitter.com/ez9hBv7tVd
— Mamaponya Motsai (@mamaponyamotsai) July 23, 2022
