South Africa’s Bafana Bafana fought back from a goal down to salvage a crucial 1-1 draw against Czechia in their second Group A fixture of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at the Atlanta Stadium on Thursday.

A late penalty converted by Teboho Mokoena ensured Hugo Broos’ men walked away with a share of the spoils after enduring an early setback in the United States.

Desperate to bounce back from their matchday one defeats, both sides started with high intensity, but it was the Europeans who broke the deadlock inside the opening six minutes.

Adam Hlozek showed immense awareness to keep the ball in play before cutting it back for Alexandr Sojka. The midfielder subsequently fed Michal Sadílek, who clinically poked home from close range to beat Ronwen Williams.

The early goal visibly rattled the South Africans, but Bafana Bafana gradually grew into the encounter, utilising Williams’ long-range distribution to bypass the physical Czech press. Despite enjoying a decent spell of possession toward the end of the first half, they struggled to test Matěj Kovář in the Czech goal.

The second half saw Broos ring the changes, introducing Relebohile Mofokeng to spark life into the final third. The tactical tweak paid dividends as South Africa began to ask serious questions of the Czech backline.

Bafana Bafana’s relentless pressure finally paid off in the 82nd minute, when they were awarded a penalty after a defensive infraction in the box. Mokoena stepped up to the plate, calmly sending Kovář the wrong way to ignite wild celebrations in the South African dugout.

The final minutes of the match dissolved into an end-to-end affair. Czechia came agonisingly close to snatching a stoppage-time winner when Lukáš Provod fizzed an angled drive across the face of the goal, but South Africa held firm to secure their first point of the tournament.

The result keeps Group A finely poised heading into the final round of matches, with both teams retaining a mathematical chance of progression to the round of 16.