After Bafana Bafana were knocked out from the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, there is still one South African competing at the tournament in Morocco.
Former Mamelodi Sundowns conditioning coach Riedoh Berdien is still at the tournament as part of Tom Saintfiet’s coaching staff at Mali, working as Head of Strength & Conditioning.
Berdien and Saintfiet have a long history of working together, previously working at Togo, Trinidad, Philippines and most recently The Gambia between 2018 and 2023.
However, when Saintfiet, who had a brief stint with Free State Stars in 2014, joined The Eagles in September 2024, Berdien followed his mentor, while also working for Tanzanian giants Simba SC at club level.
Mali qualified for the knockout stages after playing three draws in the group stages, including a 1-1 with Morocco which ended the hosts 19-match winning streak. Mali also drew 1-1 with Zambia and 0-0 with Comoros to secure their path to the knockouts.
In the Last 16, Mali played to another draw with Tunisia, but beat the Eagles of Carthage on penalties.
“It means a lot being in the Last 8, it means that the coaching team is doing something right. It’s great being recognised, being with the giants of African football,” Berdien told this publication.
“AFCON 2025 has been a great experience, fantastically organized, top quality training fields with high sport science performances Centre’s.
“The people from Casablanca, Rabat and Tanger was fantastic very welcoming and friendly. It’s really shows the true potential of Africas progression in world football.”
Mali now face Senegal in the quarter-final on Friday, as Berdien will hope his AFCON journey can continue.
South African referee Abongile Tom is also still at the tournament but obviously not competing for the title.
