Bafana Bafana strike late to confirm CHAN qualification

South African Football Association/Facebook

South Africa came back to snatch the final place at the 2024 African Nations Championship (CHAN) from regional rivals Malawi on Saturday with a 2-0 second leg victory in Pretoria.

Captain Neo Maema provided the decisive goal in the 87th minute to give Bafana Bafana a 2-1 aggregate victory over the Flames, who had won the first leg back home in Malawi a week earlier. Maema's goal came after sustained pressure from the hosts who were well in control once Victor Letsoalo opened the scoring with an opportunistic finish in the 12th minute to level the aggregate score.

South Africa will join eighteen other nations at the finals of the delayed tournament which will be hosted by East African nations Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania in August. It will be South Africa's first appearance at the CHAN finals in over ten years since they hosted the 2014 edition and went out in the group stage.

2024 African Nations Championship qualified teams

• Kenya (co-hosts)

• Uganda (co-hosts)

• Tanzania (co-hosts)

• Morocco

• Algeria

• Guinea

• Senegal

• Burkina Faso

• Mauritania

• Niger

• Nigeria

• Central African Republic

• DR Congo

• Equatorial Guinea

• Sudan

• Angola

• Madagascar

• Zambia

• South Africa