From June to July 2010, South Africa became the first African country to host the World Cup. Did you know that South Africa was also the team that was banned by FIFA for the longest time because of its apartheid policy in the country?
It all started with the establishment of South Africa. South Africa's earliest indigenous people migrated from central Africa to the Bantu, Nguni and many other tribes. Although the tribes have wars with each other, they are generally isolated from the rest of the world, and they can maintain a peaceful pattern between them.
It was not until the advent of the Age of Discovery that South Africa's isolation was broken. Among them, the first to colonize here were Dutch colonists. They encouraged the Dutch and surrounding religiously persecuted Protestants to emigrate to South Africa, and generations of whites merged to form a new ethnic group, the Boers. The word Boer comes from the Dutch word Boer, i.e. farmer.
Later, through three Anglo-Dutch wars, the British defeated the Dutch and seized control of southern South Africa. At the beginning of the 20th century, Britain was in decline, and in order to maintain colonial hegemony, Britain granted South Africa self-government. Descendants of British immigrants and the Boers reached a compromise against the indigenous South Africans and formed white South Africans to occupy the Political Arena in South Africa.
After World War II, South Africa fully implemented the policy of apartheid. In 1958, South Africa joined FIFA and became a member of FIFA. However, soon after South Africa joined FIFA, it was because the domestic apartheid policy contradicted the FIFA "Non-Discrimination Fair Regulation". To this end, FIFA announced in 1961 the suspension of South Africa's FIFA membership. In addition to FIFA, SOUTH Africa's FIFA has also terminated south Africa's membership.
"White-only" signage that was once widely seen on the streets of South Africa
Even so, the white South African government not only did not relent, but instead intensified its apartheid policy. In 1976, FIFA, feeling ignored, announced the expulsion of South Africa from the FIFA family. At this point, South African football is far from the center of the world football stage.
It was not until 1990 that South Africa, struggling internally and externally, had to release Mandela and abolish apartheid. South Africa, which has diversified on the world football stage, has gradually been accepted by FIFA and NON-FA. South Africa ended a more than 30-year global ban.
In 1992, Mandela shook hands with South African President De Klerk in Davos, marking the end of apartheid and the return of South Africa to the world football scene
In July 1992, the first South African team of different skin colors and races welcomed its first opponent, Cameroon. In this campaign, South Africa beat the opponent 1-0 and won the first victory in more than 30 years of international competition. Since then, South Africa has used the local indigenous language of Nguni Bafana "(Bafana), i.e. the young man, the little boy as the official nickname of the team.
In 2010, south Africa, which achieved racial reconciliation, hosted the Football City Stadium for the first time in the World Cup
Returning to the international football scene, South Africa played in the African Cup of Nations, competing in the finals of the 1998 World Cup in France, the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, and the World Cup hosted on home in 2010. However, South Africa has participated in the World Cup three times and has never broken through from the group stage. At the 2010 World Cup, South Africa became the first and so far the only team that has not qualified from the group.