South Africa Make History, Advance to World Cup Knockout Stage

South Africa secured a historic place in the FIFA World Cup knockout stage for the first time after edging South Korea 1-0 in their final Group A match on Tuesday.

Thapelo Maseko scored the decisive goal in the 63rd minute at Estadio Monterrey in Mexico, helping Bafana Bafana finish second in the group and book a place in the round of 32.

The victory marked a remarkable turnaround for South Africa, who opened their campaign with a 2-0 defeat to Mexico. Hugo Broos’ side will now face Canada in the next round on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Morocco also progressed after fighting back from an early setback to defeat Haiti 4-2 in their final Group C fixture.

The Atlas Lions recovered from an early error that gifted Haiti the opening goal, with strikes from Achraf Hakimi, Ismael Saibari, Soufiane Rahimi and Gessime Yaccine sealing the comeback victory.

Morocco finished second in the group on seven points, level with Brazil but behind on goal difference. Brazil secured top spot with a 3-0 win over Scotland, courtesy of a brace from Vinicius Jr and a goal from Matheus Cunha.

Morocco will face the winners of Group F in the knockout stage, with the Netherlands, Japan and Sweden still in contention for top spot.