Bafana Bafana are an embarrassment four years after hosting World Cup

Top-class stadiums are a proud legacy of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, but the national team have failed to build on promise shown in the tournament.

The side known as Bafana Bafana (the Boys), will be notable absentees when the 2014 global football showpiece kicks off in Brazil, having fared dismally in African qualifiers.

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A match-fixing scandal and a lack of youth development are other disappointments in the four years since the first World Cup staged by Africa.

But there is guarded optimism that the new South African Football Association (Safa) president Danny Jordaan can create a brighter future.

Jordaan was the public face of a failed 2006 World Cup bid, which Germany won. He refused to quit and South Africa narrowly defeated Morocco in an African contest for the 2010 finals.

Amid worldwide concerns, particularly over security, infrastructure and stadium-building deadlines, South Africa staged a superb World Cup, spoilt only by freezing evening temperatures at some venues.

The stadiums are a joy to behold – from Cape Town in the south-west to Nelspruit in the north-east beside the world-famous Kruger National Park. Cape Town Stadium has as its backdrop the spectacular Table Mountain. Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban boasts a visually arresting arch, the top of which can be reached by cable car or climbing hundreds of steps.

Once at the summit, there are breathtaking views of the city, its suburbs and the Indian Ocean.

The Soccer City stadium in Soweto is the biggest in Africa with a 90,000-plus capacity, and was the venue for the 2010 final in which Spain edged the Netherlands 1-0 after extra time.

However, to fill these stadiums, a successful national team is necessary. And Bafana are an embarrassment four years on from a dignified first-round exit, having beaten France and held Mexico.

Long-time assistant Pitso Mosimane replaced the Brazilian Carlos Parreira as coach following the finals and, after early promise, he made a shameful departure.

The coach did not understand the 2012 Cup of Nations qualifying rules and played for a home draw against Sierra Leone when a victory was required. South Africa drew and lost out to west Africans minnows Niger based on head-to-head records.

He survived that debacle only to be sacked after South Africa were held at home by Ethiopia in a 2014 World Cup qualifier.

Gordon Igesund, winner of the national league with a record four clubs, took over and a 1-0 away loss to Brazil on his debut suggested better times ahead. But disappointing tournament results have left Igesund clinging to his job with a two-year contract expiring in July.

Safa mandated that Igesund reach the 2013 Cup of Nations semi-finals, but hosts South Africa lost to Mali after a quarter-finals penalty shoot-out.

A defeat in Ethiopia meant Bafana did not even make the 10-nation play-offs for the Brazil World Cup.

Another humiliation came last January when South African hosted the African Nations Championship for home-based footballers and were expected to go all the way to the winners’ rostrum.

A first-round exit after losing to long-time nemesis Nigeria triggered a public and media outcry, with sports minister Fikile Mbalula labelling the team “a bunch of losers”.

Worse followed last March when Brazil came to Soweto for a friendly. Neymar scored three times and the clueless Bafana suffered a record 5-0 drubbing.

Many believed the debacle was inevitable, given a decades-old lack of interest in developing young talent.

The former South Africa and Leeds United captain Lucas Radebe expressed concern: “The problem is who comes next. Development, that is the challenge we have at the moment.”

While Jordaan ponders how to rejuvenate the national team and create new stars, there is another pressing issue in his “in” tray.

Fifa is probing allegations that convicted Singapore-based fraudster Wilson Perumal fixed four Bafana 2010 World Cup warm-up games riddled with controversial penalties to benefit Asian betting syndicates.

Perumal organised home friendlies against Thailand, Bulgaria, Colombia and Guatemala and persuaded Safa to use referees he brought from Kenya, Niger and Togo.

Who within the national body assisted Perumal is the burning question, and South Africa hope Fifa will provide the answer.

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