South Africa has participated in the FIFA World Cup three times: in 1998, 2002, and as the host nation in 2010.
Despite three appearances, South Africa has never advanced beyond the first round. The team's first attempt to qualify was for the 1994 World Cup, where they finished second in their group behind Nigeria, who qualified for the tournament. Their debut World Cup appearance was in France 1998, six years after being readmitted to the global football community. In that tournament, despite suffering a 3–0 defeat to France in their opening match, South Africa drew with Denmark and Saudi Arabia, finishing third in their group and thus being eliminated.
The 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan was expected to be a breakthrough for Bafana Bafana, but they were again eliminated in the group stage. Although they managed a 1–0 win over Slovenia for their first-ever World Cup victory and drew with Paraguay, they finished third in their group, losing
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Appearances: 3
Wins:
Group stage
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