Johannesburg, April 27: Football World Cup hosts South Africa will play Jamaica on Wednesday evening in Germany in one of the team’s last warm-up games before the June-July tournament, the South African Football Association (SAFA) said Tuesday.
SAFA CEO Leslie Sedibe told Johannesburg’s 702 radio station that the federation had scrambled to secure a team to play against after China pulled out of a planned friendly at the weekend.
Jamaica’s team was already on its way to Frankfurt for Wednesday’s game in Offenbach Kickers’ Stadium, he said.
Sedibe said China cited travel difficulties related to the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud that shut down European airspace for nearly a week this month.
South Africa has been preparing for the World Cup in Germany but has only played one international friendly since arriving in the country on April 13.
Last week’s game against North Korea ended in a goalless draw.
Bafana Bafana (Boys Boys), as South Africa are known, last played Jamaica in November. That game in Bloemfontein also ended in a 0-0 score.
–Agencies