South African super fans Botha Msila and Dinah “Lady D” Matli are ready to swim in the sea of red at Cairo International Stadium when Bafana Bafana take on hosts Egypt tonight.
The two will be among a handful of South Africans who are set to take their seats at the 75 000-capacity majestic Cairo arena that will host the Africa Cup of Nations last 16 fixture, with the stadium expected to be filled to the brim.
“We are geared up for it,” declared the duo ahead of the 9pm kick-off.
“It will be a nice experience considering that it will just be a few of us against the home fans,” said Matli from Seshego in Limpopo.
Msila added: “There is no doubt that we’ll be a drop in the ocean against the Egyptians fans but we’ll still shout our lungs out. We are driven by passion.”
Msila and Matli have for the past fortnight been mobilising fans at Bafana’s group stage venue of Al Salam.
Their cause was aided by marketing company Brand South Africa, through its initiative of “Play Your Part” with Msila tasked with the coordination on match days.
The agency provided tickets, lunch, transport and t-shirts for the group that supported Bafana in their opening two matches, which were played before disappointing crowds in Salam City.
Cairo’s largest stadium will most certainly swallow Msila and Matli who have been left behind after veteran Kaizer Chiefs fan Saddam Maake and Machaka Masilo returned home after the group stages.