Safa looks to the future after settling Desiree Ellis contract stalemate

South African Football Association (Safa) boss Danny Jordaan confirmed on Thursday, 30 October, that Banyana Banyana head coach Desiree Ellis has finally put pen to paper on her new contract. 

“I am happy that everything is settled. You could see from her support for the U-17s and giving them a message of support that she is back,” Jordaan said at a farewell breakfast for the U-17 men’s side, who will be competing in the U-17 World Cup in Qatar. 

Earlier in October, the soccer federation’s national executive committee agreed to the technical committee’s recommendation to offer long-time Banyana Banyana coach Ellis a new four-year contract.

However, the process was not seamless, with Ellis said to be displeased with Safa’s proposed remuneration package. 

While contract negotiations are a norm in any workplace context, it was the timing of the Ellis/Safa discussions that caused the most concern. 

Ellis has been working on a month-to-month basis for over a year after her previous contract expired. So, the pertinent question was why it took South Africa’s soccer governing body until just before a crucial Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) qualifier to set the wheels in motion. This question remains unanswered. 

All is well that ends well

Thankfully, Banyana Banyana are through to Wafcon 2026 after downing the Democratic Republic of Congo 2-1 on aggregate after two matches – despite Ellis being away from the steering wheel as negotiations between her and the association continued.  

Ellis, a former Banyana Banyana captain and founding member, has been permanent head coach since 2018. Before that, she was assistant coach to Vera Pauw and was then appointed interim head coach for two years after Pauw’s departure.

Banyana Banyana failed to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, which piled pressure on Ellis. There were calls for a change in coaching after that, a new voice in the dressing room.

A poor showing during Banyana Banyana’s defence of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) title they won in 2022 further pressured Ellis. South Africa finished fourth at the Morocco-hosted tournament in July 2025, after losing 4-3 on penalties to Ghana in the bronze medal match. 

Rebuilding phase

Nevertheless, Safa has backed the 62-year-old to revitalise the team. Veterans of the current crop of Banyana Banyana players – such as Noko Matlou, Janine van Wyk and Jermaine Seoposenwe – have walked away from the team in recent years. It’s important to find their replacements for next year and beyond. 

“We must now focus because we have to rebuild Banyana. We have to look at young players, other alternatives and build the team. It’s not going to be easy [at next year’s Wafcon]” Jordaan said.

“Wafcon is going to have many teams that are going to be very difficult to beat. We must rebuild. We are always focusing on Morocco and Nigeria, but they are not the only two [threats to our ambitions]. Ghana has got a strong team and Senegal is coming up,” the Safa president added. 

“So, it’s going to be difficult. We must not rest on our laurels [just because of what we’ve done in the past]. That’s the message I’ve given her [Ellis]. We will sit down with her to say, ‘What is your strategy, how do we move forward and how do we strengthen the team?’.”

Scheduling headache

Following the win over the DRC, stand-in coach and Ellis’s assistant, Thinasonke Mbuli, said one of the tricky aspects of the team’s preparations for next year’s Wafcon in Morocco will be the fact that it starts in March, three months earlier than previous editions.

That has likely has to do with the fact that the men’s soccer World Cup is in June 2026, so the Wafcon organisers are trying to avoid a clash with that mega tournament. 

The problem with the March start of Wafcon is that the domestic women’s league – the Hollywoodbets Super League – usually begins at that time as well. Jordaan says Safa will meet with all the relevant stakeholders to decide how to best handle the scheduling headache  to provide Banyana Banyana with the best opportunity to perform well in Morocco.   

“It’s possible, because the league is totally under the control of Safa. We just have to sit down and see how we can deal with this issue,” Jordaan said. DM