Sports department hands R5 million to Safa for Bafana and Banyana payments

Christmas has come early for Bafana Bafana and Banyana Banyana players after the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture advanced R5 million to the South African Football Association (Safa) to settle outstanding bonuses and appearance fees.

Yesterday, Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie said he could no longer stand by while Safa stands accused of failing to pay Bafana and Banyana players ahead of the festive season.

The matter came to a head last month when Safa were rocked by media reports that national team players were still awaiting payments after playing matches in the past few months.

Shortly afterwards, Bafana legend and former Manchester United strikers coach Benni McCarthy fired a broadside at Safa for failing to pay match fees.

He called on McKenzie to exert pressure on Safa to make sure the players do not play in the next international competitions while there were outstanding payments.

McKenzie said yesterday: “We cannot allow players to go into this festive season without payment, especially since they have done the country proud.

“The men’s team recently qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations, and we need them to focus on preparing for this challenge, as well as making sure we get to the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

“Banyana Banyana have also led the way, winning the African Women’s Championship in 2022 and going deep at the Fifa World Cup last year.

“We also demanded a turnaround strategy from Safa and our players made us proud.”

The sports department’s statement yesterday read: “Following reports that the South African Football Association (Safa) has become cash-strapped to pay player’s salaries ahead of the festive season, the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) has decided to advance the federation with R5 million.

“Minister Gayton Mckenzie wrote to the organisation to offer the advance, with the understanding that it will be subtracted from the grant paid in the 2025 financial year.

“This comes with the condition that Safa’s leadership would need to provide reasons for why their financial affairs are so troubled, together with a viable turnaround plan to avoid such a situation in the future. Safa agreed to the conditions, and thanked the Minister for the intervention.”

Some players have been waiting for player bonuses since September 2024 after Safa have been grappling with cash flow issues, leading to delays in disbursing match bonuses and salaries to players.