'This Is Not A Holiday' – Hugo Broos Emphasizes Seriousness Ahead Of Crucial Friendly

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos has demanded full focus intensity and commitment from his team ahead of upcoming AFCON preparations.

Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has made it clear that Saturday’s international friendly against Zambia will be treated with the same intensity and purpose as a FIFA World Cup or Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier.

The South African senior men’s national team, already qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, will host regional rivals Zambia at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha on 15 November 2025, as part of their final preparations for the upcoming AFCON tournament in Morocco. Kick-off is scheduled for 3pm CAT.

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In an interview, Broos stressed that his squad must approach the game with full focus. 

“We are preparing for the friendly game against Zambia on Saturday. But for me, friendly games do not exist,” said Broos as per SuperSport.

 “Every match demands full focus and commitment. We play to win, and this one is no different.”

The upcoming fixture offers Broos a final opportunity to assess players before naming his AFCON squad. 

“Losing on Saturday would not be acceptable. I expect every player to approach this game with the same seriousness as a qualifier. This is not a holiday. It’s also my last chance to assess a few players more closely before finalising the squad,” he added.

Broos demands full intensity

Speaking at the Bafana Bafana camp in Johannesburg on Monday, Broos made his expectations clear.

 “This is not a friendly game. I want to see again [the] Bafana Bafana [that] I saw the last months and years. A team who has a good mentality, who wants to win the game, who [is] going for every ball, for every meter,” he said.

South Africa’s last friendly was against Mozambique on 10 June in Polokwane, with most of their recent fixtures being FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

 Broos explained that qualifiers naturally made it easier to keep players motivated, hence his determination to treat the Zambia clash as a competitive encounter.

“When did we play our last friendly game? I don’t remember, but it’s quite a long time, so all the other games were qualifiers. So then the concentration of focus is easier to do than before a friendly game,” he said.

Broos also made it clear that the match is not simply an opportunity to tweak tactics. Instead, it is about cementing Bafana Bafana’s reputation on the continental stage.

“Yeah, you can always improve, but I don’t think that you take a friendly game to improve something, not at this moment,” said Broos. 

“This is a game to confirm again how good we are and what a good team we are, and that is, that confirmation I want to see, I want to see Saturday. I think the most important thing for Saturday is that you play a good game and that we play on our level, like we did in the previous years.”

Final preparations in full swing

Bafana Bafana will remain in Johannesburg until Friday morning before traveling to Gqeberha for the fixture.

The squad has been training intensively under Broos, with the coach emphasizing that focus and discipline are key to maintaining South Africa’s strong form ahead of AFCON 2025.