Pitso Mosimane was confirmed as South Africa coach on Tuesday, 24 days after the national football association approved his appointment.
On August 8, association president Danny Jordaan said, “we need to tie up some loose ends”, but the delay was unexpectedly long.
Mosimane succeeds Belgian Hugo Broos, 74, who retired after leading South Africa to the knockout stages of a World Cup for the first time in North America this year.
Mosimane has just 23 days to prepare the national team for their first 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier, at home to Guinea.
While Guinea failed to reach the 2025 AFCON tournament in Morocco, they boast one of the top Europe-based African strikers in Serhou Guirassy of Borussia Dortmund.
Former South Africa striker Mosimane, 62, will be taking charge of Bafana Bafana (The Boys) a second time after an unsuccessful two-year stint from 2010.
Under his leadership, South Africa failed to qualify for the 2012 AFCON, and he was fired after a home draw against Ethiopia in a 2014 World Cup qualifier.
The AFCON failure was embarrassing as the team celebrated after a draw with Sierra Leone, believing they had qualified, only to discover later they misunderstood the head-to-head rule.
Mosimane was much more successful at club level, winning the CAF Champions League once with Pretoria-based Mamelodi Sundowns, then twice with Cairo outfit Al Ahly.
He also won the CAF Super Cup three times. His six titles make him the most successful black coach in CAF club competitions. Portuguese Manuel Jose won eight with Ahly.
After three seasons at Ahly, Mosimane also coached in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.
His second South Africa contract runs until the 2030 World Cup in Morocco, Portugal and Spain.
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