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South Africa continue their preparation for the 2026 World Cup when they welcome Nicaragua for an international friendly this Friday night.
The Bafana Bafana are looking forward to their first World Cup since hosting the event back in 2010.
Nicaragua, on the other hand, are simply looking to secure their first win since November 2025.
Read our prediction, preview and betting tips for the game below, and make sure to check out our today's betting tips page for more of our expert predictions.
South Africa vs. Nicaragua key stats
- South Africa are preparing for their first World Cup since 2010.
- Nicaragua have lost five of their last six outings.
- South Africa have only managed one win from their last five matches.
South Africa vs. Nicaragua preview: Bafana Bafana step up World Cup prep
South Africa vs Nicaragua — Tale of the Tape
| South Africa | vs | Nicaragua |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Position (WCQs) | 4th |
| 18 | Points | 4 |
| 15 | Goals For | 4 |
| 9 | Goals Against | 12 |
| 2nd/1st | Home / Away Rank | 4th/4th |
South Africa will be sharing the same World Cup group as Mexico, Czechia and South Korea this summer, with the African outfit looking to progress to the knockout stage of the tournament for the first time ever.
In order to progress to uncharted territory, Hugo Broos and his men will need to improve on their current run of results, which consists of one win from five previous outings.
Looking at their last run in a major tournament, South Africa reached the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations at the start of the year, beating the likes of ZImbabwe and Angola, before being beaten by Cameroon.
Bafana Bafana have since played two international friendlies – both against Panama – though the team failed to impress as they followed up their 1-1 draw in Durban with a really disappointing 2-1 defeat in Cape Town.
Looking ahead to their latest test, the hosts are expected to be without Ronwen Williams, Khuliso Mudau, Aubrey Modiba, Teboho Mokoena and Jayden Adams, who all competed for the Mamelodi Sundowns in the CAF Champions League.
Nicaragua are also expected to make changes for Friday’s encounter, with Juan Cruz Real naming a very young squad that primarily consists of players between 20 and 25 years of age.
Ranked 131st by FIFA, the Central American side will be looking to find a positive result as they attempt to climb those rankings.
The national side did progress to the third stage of the CONCACAF World Cup qualifying stage, though that was where their journey came to an end.
Nicaragua collected four points from six games, and conceded 12 goals across their four defeats to Haiti, Costa Rica and Honduras.
The attention now turns to South Africa, with Cruz Real’s men looking to build some confidence ahead of their clash with Paraguay on June 5.
South Africa vs. Nicaragua form guide & betting tips
| South Africa | vs | Nicaragua |
|---|---|---|
LWLDL |
Form | LLWLL |
| 6 | Goals For | 4 |
| 8 | Goals Against | 12 |
LWLDL |
Form (All Comps) | LLWLL |
Whispers predicts: South Africa 1-0 Nicaragua
Both teams are set to make a lot of changes for Friday’s encounter, making it difficult to predict the outcome.
Under 2.5 goals looks like the smart play at 5/4, given this bet has landed in two of South Africa’s previous three international friendlies.
We are also backing both teams not to score are a reasonable price of 4/5 with most bookmakers – a selection which has proved successful in four of Nicaragua’s previous six outings.
For serious value, we recommend checking out the correct score market, with bookmakers offering 6/1 odds on South Africa to win the match 1-0.
> Under 2.5 goals at 5/4 (2.25) | Likelihood: Probable
> Both teams to score – No at 4/5 (1.80) | Likelihood: Probable
> Correct score South Africa 1-0 Nicaragua at 6/1 (7.0) | Likelihood: Outsider