The South African Football Association (SAFA) has confirmed that Desiree
Ellis has officially signed a new contract to continue as the head coach of
Banyana Banyana, ending a period of uncertainty.
SAFA president Danny Jordaan made the announcement, confirming that the 2022
Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) winning coach has finally put pen to
paper. Ellis was notably absent from the bench during Banyana’s recent
successful WAFCON qualifiers against the Democratic Republic of Congo while
negotiations were ongoing.
“Yes, she signed a contract. You saw her here today, she is happy and
everything is fine,” Jordaan stated at a farewell breakfast for the national
under-17 team. “I am happy everything is settled… She is back.”
With the contract situation resolved, the focus now shifts to the future.
Jordaan emphasized the critical task of rebuilding the squad ahead of the
next WAFCON in Morocco, which promises to be highly competitive.
“We must focus because we have to rebuild Banyana. We have to look at young
players and build the team. It’s not going to be easy,” Jordaan said. “AFCON
is going to have many women’s teams that are going to be difficult. We are
focusing on Morocco and Nigeria, but Ghana are also a strong team and
Senegal is coming up.”
The president confirmed that the next step is to align on a forward-looking
strategy. “We will sit down with her to say ‘what is your strategy, how do
we move forward and how do we strengthen the team?'”
The new deal, reportedly a four-year contract, provides stability for Ellis,
who had been working without a formal contract for some time. Having led the
team to a historic World Cup round of 16 in 2023, she can now fully focus on
her next major objective: defending Banyana’s continental title in Morocco.
