South Africa and Rwanda are vying to topple Benin on top of Group C on the 2026 Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) World Cup qualification slug outs in their respective fixtures on Friday, Mar. 21, 2025.
Friday | March 21 2025
he 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification swung back into the fray this week in various parts of the world. The are two fixtures in Group C commencing concurrently tonight.
Today, South Africa (SA) hosts Lesotho in search of three points at Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane at 18h00.
SA occupies the 3rd position behind Rwanda in Group C with both teams boosting seven points after playing four games. These countries are separated by goal difference in the standings.
This is the 5th face-off in a group of six nations scheduled to encounter each other in a home-and-away fixtures totalling 10 invigorating match battles.
The odds
Lesotho, the “Mountain Kingdom” team, is 4th on the mini-log with five points in four games on the scoreboard. It has a mountain to climb playing away in the northern sphere of South Africa this evening.
However, a draw may be the best possible outcome for them. But if Lesotho overcomes the odds today and squeeze out a win, it will increase their points to seven.
For the host though, this tie against a lowly rated nation presents a perfect opportunity to leverage on this advantage and collect maximum points to improve their standings.
Benin and Zimbabwe share spoils in Group C
Benin was held to a 2-2 draw by Zimbabwe on Thursday night and tops this particular group with eight points flowing from six games played. Zimbabwe are bottom of the table with merely three points in six fixtures.
A win for South Africa will catapult it to the summit with 10 points provided Rwanda drops points.
Rwanda welcomes Nigeria
In another Group C FIFA World Cup qualifier clash, Nigeria travels to Kigali to face Rwanda at Amahoro Stadium in Gasabo district. The kick off for this duel is 18h00.
Rwanda needs a win to keep up with Benin and go top of the group. Meanwhile a win for Nigeria may see them move to 4th as they lie 5ht in the current group standings having garnered three points so far in four games. A victory away in Kigali will push Nigeria to six points.
2026 FIFA World Cup host nations
The 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup will be held in the United South, Canada and Mexico in 2026 and will feature 48 countries for the first time since its inception.
Tonight, all the countries in contention will go out guns blazing to secure victories in their quests to improve chances of qualifying for FIFA 2026, the biggest sporting spectacle globally.