Bafana Bafana could be heading to Bangkok next month after securing an invite to the 2018 King’s Cup in Thailand.
The competition, which has been running for 50 years, takes place every year in the Thai capital and is run by the Football Association of Thailand.
Players such as Peter Schmeichel, Brian Laudrup, Henrik Larsson, Robert Lewandowski and Brazilian legends like Ronaldinho, Cafu, Roberto Carlos and Rivaldo have all graced the tournament in the past, and there is now the possibility of South Africa taking place for the first time.
Hosts, Thailand, as well as Gabon, Slovakia and the United Arab Emirates have already been confirmed for this year’s edition, meaning that the Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Marek Hamsik are likely to be in attendance, while Bafana could potentially become a fifth nation.
According to Siya sources, Stuart Baxter has received an invite to the King’s Cup at the end of March, and it is thought that – as an invitational tournament – the majority of the costs could be covered by the hosts.
At this point in time it remains to be seen whether the South African Football Association will accept the invitation from FAT, but it would offer Baxter a good opportunity to take a look at the new generation of Mzansi’s players.
South Africa haven’t faced non-African opponents since back in October 2015 when they took on Costa Rica and Honduras, and the King’s Cup could give them a chance to take on nations from both Asia and Europe as well as Africa. There has been no word about whether SAFA are interested or not.
