Ahead of Bafana Bafana’s opening match against Mexico in the 2026 Fifa World Cup on June 11, learners from Brakpan Primary School showed their unwavering support for the national team.

Dressed in shirts of various colours, learners from Grade R to Grade Seven gathered on the school grounds to form a giant South African flag and a soccer ball.

Grade One teacher Gwen van Jaarsveld, who coordinated the initiative, told the Brakpan Herald that the school wanted to do something special to mark the occasion.

The result was a spectacular display of national pride.

“The World Cup is not an everyday thing, and we didn’t just want the children to come to school in their supporter shirts,” she said.

Van Jaarsveld explained that it took about an hour and a half to position the learners correctly, with assistance from another teacher who had a bird’s-eye view of the formation.

“We were on the phone, and she would tell me which child needed to be moved and where,” she said.

Despite Bafana Bafana’s 2-0 loss to Mexico, South Africans remain firmly behind the team as they prepare for their next World Cup fixture against Czechia on June 18.

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