Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Sipho Chaine has been named a Bafana Bafana captain as Pitso Mosimane tears up the traditional single-armband system. On Tuesday, 17 September 2026, the new national team coach named three co-captains ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The Three Bafana Bafana Captains
- Ronwen Williams — Mamelodi Sundowns goalkeeper
- Themba Zwane — Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder
- Sipho Chaine — Orlando Pirates goalkeeper
Why Mosimane Scrapped the Single Captain
Mosimane was direct about the thinking behind the change:
“So we won’t have one captain. We have a few captains, and I will choose sometimes a captain of the day.”
The practical logic is straightforward — an armband is useless on the bench. As Mosimane put it: “The captain must always be playing. If you stay with one captain, you can’t call on others, and there are a lot of players who have good leadership.”
He also pushed back on the idea that seniority decides leadership, noting: “If Mbappe is a captain, I think we can have a young captain too.”
What It Means for Chaine
For Chaine, this is recognition of a remarkable run of form. He has just reached 150 appearances for Orlando Pirates, has eight trophies with the club, and kept another clean sheet in the 2–0 win over Durban City — a match in which he was comfortably the best player on the pitch.
Being named alongside Williams, one of the most decorated goalkeepers in South African football, is a significant statement about where Chaine now sits in the national pecking order.
Next Up for Bafana Bafana
The announcement came as Mosimane named his squad for the 2027 AFCON qualifiers against Guinea and Eritrea. South Africa face Guinea on 26 September 2026 at the Orlando Amstel Arena, kick-off 18:00.
Betting Angle
- Goalkeeper battle: With two keepers in the captaincy group, Bafana starting-XI markets are genuinely open. Wait for the team sheet.
- Clean sheets: Whichever of Williams or Chaine starts, South Africa’s clean-sheet markets look strong against Eritrea.
- Home advantage: Guinea at the Orlando Amstel Arena is a fixture Bafana should be favourites for.
- New-coach bounce: Mosimane’s first competitive window — early results under a new coach often beat the pre-match price.
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Final Word
A rotating captaincy will divide opinion, but the reasoning holds up: leadership spread across three players who are all certain to feature, rather than concentrated in one who may not start. For Sipho Chaine, it caps a period in which he has gone from reliable club goalkeeper to one of the most important players in South African football.
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Sources
- Afrik-Foot — “Pirates star named Bafana captain as Mosimane shakes up leadership”
- TimesLIVE — “Chaine and Zwane for Bafana captaincy, Pitso reveals”
- iDiski Times — “Mosimane names three Bafana captains”
- Africa Soccer — “Mosimane names Williams, Zwane and Chaine as Bafana Bafana captains”
- FARPost — “Mosimane names three players in new Bafana captaincy group”
- Briefly — “Pitso Mosimane names Ronwen Williams, Zwane and Chaine as Bafana captains”
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