Salomon Kalou, Cote dlvoi during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, CAF President Announcement at Supersport Studios in Johannesburg on 6 November 2025 ©Nokwanda Zondi/BackpagePix
Friday Nov 07, 2025. 14:26
Ivorian legend Salomon Kalou says he is ‘putting my money on South Africa’ ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco.
Bafana Bafana will be looking to go one step further in Africa’s biggest football tournament after scooping bronze in the 2023 edition in the Ivory Coast, where the hosts were crowned champions.
Kalou, who lifted the 2015 AFCON title with Ivory Coast after scoring in a penalty shootout win over Ghana, has explained why he is backing Bafana heading into this year’s tournament.
“I think South Africa is coming back; they are doing very well, and they have qualified for the World Cup,” Kalou told reporters.
“They are getting back to the level that they used to show us. We know that football is big here, and there are big clubs with huge programmes for youth, and that is how you develop your local football – and South Africa is doing that very well.
“I won’t be surprised to see them continue to do well because in the last AFCON, they did very well, and they were one of the surprise team,” the UEFA Champions League and Premier League winner with Chelsea FC added.
“I am putting my money on South Africa, and they can be the surprise team at the tournament. Participating in AFCON is about representing your nation.”
Bafana are in Group B, and they are set to lock horns with Angola (December 22), Egypt (December 26) and Zimbabwe (December 29)