South Africa players during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations South Africa Training at TS Laarbi Ben Mbarek in Marrakech, Morocco on 28 December 2025 ©Alche Greeff/BackpagePix
Friday Feb 27, 2026. 11:00
Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has explained the reasoning for South Africa selecting Pachuca in Mexico as the team’s home base for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
South Africa will play two of its three group games in Mexico. The opening game against hosts Mexico will be held at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, while the country’s final group game will be played against South Korea at the Estadio BBVA Bancomer in Guadalupe.
Bafana will train at the renowned Universidad del Futbol, while they will stay at the Camino Real Pachuca hotel. Pachuca is roughly 90 kilometers from Mexico City.
Broos, who played for Belgium in the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, expressed his delight with the decision.
“I knew, I was experienced that before we should play that game against Mexico that we needed a high altitude camp. So I met the people from Pachuca already in Washington [after the draw]. They proposed to me the location here and I said to them, ‘Okay, we will see in the next weeks what we are going to do, what the best options are, and we will let you know.’
“So there were a few other options, but one thing was very important for me that the fact that we should be already in Mexico and start the high altitude camp and not having to do a trip again from I don’t know where to come here in Mexico a few days before the game,” said Broos, while in Pachuca, having inspected the facilities.
“I wanted to see also the facilities, because the facilities have to be good. So that’s why yesterday we had the visit of the location here in the university. I’m very pleased with the facilities.”
“That’s why we decided already yesterday together with my team manager that this will be our home, this will be our base camp for the World Cup in two, three months. I’m very happy that we found something that pleases us very much. The reception we received and the attention we received in the past days makes me happy too,” he stated.
With world class facilities, close proximity to the first match, and the ability to prepare at altitude, the location ticked all necessary boxes for Broos.
By Nic Gleeson