{"id":2712,"date":"2026-06-19T06:39:05","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T06:39:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southfloridamovingguides.com\/?p=2712"},"modified":"2026-06-19T06:39:05","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T06:39:05","slug":"south-africa-keeps-its-world-cup-hopes-alive-with-a-1-1-draw-against-the-czech-republic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southfloridamovingguides.com\/?p=2712","title":{"rendered":"South Africa keeps its World Cup hopes alive with a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

ATLANTA (AP) \u2014 Teboho Mokoena started the game with tears in his eyes and finished it with a smile on his face after converting a second-half penalty in South Africa’s 1-1 draw with the Czech Republic on Thursday at the World Cup.<\/p>\n

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Thapelo Maseko\u2019s long range shot late in the match caught the hand of Czech opponent Pavel Sulc in the area.<\/p>\n

Mokoena, who was shown on camera with tears rolling down his cheeks during the pre-game national anthem, stepped up to the penalty spot and sent his shot low past Czech Republic goalkeeper Matej Kovar in the 83rd minute.<\/p>\n

The South Africa midfielder said he was overwhelmed before kick off, thinking about his late grandfather.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, wherever he is, he would be proud of me,” Mokoena said. “I just felt his presence in that moment. I thought if he was here, he would be proud of me because I know he believed in me when nobody believed in me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Michal Sadilek had given the Czechs the lead in the sixth minute at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Alexandr Sojka played in Sadilek and he slid a shot past goalkeeper Ronwen Williams.<\/p>\n

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Both teams lost their opening matches, and both knew another setback would seriously hinder their chances of reaching the round of 32.<\/p>\n

South Africa faced some strong criticism following its 2-0 loss to World Cup co-host Mexico, which raised the prospect of the country extending its run of never having advanced to the knockout phase of a World Cup \u2014 even as host in 2010.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we go on like that and if we can make another performance like today I think we have a chance to go in the second round,\u201d South Africa coach Hugo Broos said.<\/p>\n

South Africa will next face South Korea on Wednesday in Group A, but will be without Mokoena, who is suspended after picking up his second yellow card of the tournament.<\/p>\n

The Czechs lost to South Korea 2-1 in their opening match and will likely need to beat Mexico in their final game on Wednesday to advance.<\/p>\n

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___<\/p>\n

Associated Press writer R.J. Rico contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

James Robson is at https:\/\/x.com\/jamesalanrobson<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

AP World Cup: https:\/\/apnews.com\/fifa-world-cup<\/p>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ATLANTA (AP) \u2014 Teboho Mokoena started the game with tears in his eyes and finished it with a smile on his face after converting a second-half penalty in South Africa’s 1-1 draw with the Czech Republic on Thursday at the World Cup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2711,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nSouth Africa keeps its World Cup hopes alive with a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic - South Florida Moving Guides<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/southfloridamovingguides.com\/?p=2712\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"South Africa keeps its World Cup hopes alive with a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic - 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