South Africa (National Football)

South African soccer player Luke Fleurs, 24, was killed in a carjacking Wednesday night.

Police officials told reporters Thursday that Fleurs died after being shot in the chest at a gas station and the assailants drove off with his vehicle.

"While waiting to be served by the attendant, he was confronted by two armed males," police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo said.

South African Football Association president Danny Jordaan issued a statement about Fleurs' death.

"We woke up to the heartbreaking and devastating news of the passing of this young life. This is such a huge loss for his family, friends, his teammates and football in general. We are all grieving this young man's passing. May his dear soul Rest in Peace," Jordaan said in the statement.

Masondo noted that no arrests have been made at this point.

Per Wycliffe Muia of the BBC News, the Premier League announced all top-flight and second-tier matches this weekend will observe a moment of silence before kickoff in Fleurs' memory.

Fleurs began his youth career in 2013 with Ubuntu Cape Town in the National First Division. He joined the senior club after turning 17 in 2017 before signing with SuperSport United in May 2018.

After spending five years with SuperSport United, Fleurs joined the Kaizer Chiefs on a two-year deal in October.

Fleurs was also a member of the South African national team at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. It was the country's third-ever appearance in the Olympics.

What a goal in the South Africa v Cameroon game. pic.twitter.com/o7LBkwB4Qr

— TopDonn (@TopDonn) March 26, 2016

South Africa's Africa Cup of Nations qualifier with Cameroon on Saturday was lit up by an incredible goal from Hlompho Kekana.

The scores were level at 1-1 four minutes into the second half when Kekana picked the ball up halfway inside his own half.

The midfielder drove forward, but instead of trying to find a team-mate on the counter-attack, he decided to have a shot on goal from all of 60 yards.

And didn't he hit it well. The powerful strike flew over the stranded goalkeeper and into the back of the net, giving South Africa the lead in extraordinary fashion.

[Twitter]

For the second Cup of Nations in a row, Mali progress to the semifinals after eliminating the host nation on penalties. While Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s tears sparked a thousand images in 2012, this time around it is South Africa who endure insufferable heartache in front of their own supporters.

In the early stages, it seemed almost unthinkable that South Africa would capitulate. They began as they had done in their last two group games, proactive and energetic, rather than the hapless bunch who flopped against Cape Verde in the tournament opener.

Mali, in contrast, were lethargic and laborious, struggling to find a tempo to their passing game and looking to be heading toward the exit door.

Their future looked to be sealed when Tokelo Rantie put the hosts ahead just after the hour mark. At this point, with Bafana in the ascendancy and controlling every kick, the West Africans looked devoid of ideas.

The opening goal was worth a mention: Khune, brave and often imperious in the South African net, claimed a cross before kicking the ball forward and prompting an incisive and almost decisive counterattack.

The home side nearly doubled its lead in the second half, with Lehlohonolo Majoro failing to get a shot off when played through.

#Mali Does victory and progression have potential to unite & nourish a population becoming accustomed to the most devastating of tragedies?

— Ed Dove (@EddyDove) February 2, 2013

Moments later, the South Africans paid for their profligacy, with lax defending allowing Malian captain and talisman Seydou Keita to ghost in and level the game with a header from point-blank range.

From then on, the game struggled to spark once more, both sides aware of the consequences of conceding once again—South African confidence dented after conceding, and Mali content just to be back on even terms.

A penalty shootout soon felt inevitable, as the tension within Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium mounted to reflect the anticipated drama of the occasion.

Despite a bold early finish from Siphiwe Tshabalala, who entered the fray as a substitute for Bernard Parker in extra time, it was the hosts who capitulated first under pressure—Majoro’s penalty, blazed into the crowd, came after Diakité had saved from Oldham’s Dean Furman and May Mahlangu.

Whilst international tournaments can often lost their verve and charm when the hosts are eliminated, Bafana Bafana can take some solace from their unfancied team battling their way out of the group, providing memorable moments along the way.

Few expected anything of the side, and for them to progress from the disappointment of the opening fixture is a relief, if not a point of celebration.

Few of the world’s nations are as beleaguered as Mali right now, and their victory and Afcon progression have the potential to unite and nourish a population becoming accustomed to the most devastating of tragedies.

They will advance to contest a semifinal with either Nigeria or Cote d’Ivoire.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXaygEYOjp4,28

The hosts of the 2013 African Cup of Nations are through to the quarterfinals as South Africa fought hard to draw 2-2 with Morocco. The North African side will be heartbroken as they led twice, but failed to take several great chances to put the game to bed. 

Three minutes after South Africa's second equaliser, Cape Verde went 2-1 up against Angola in the other game in the group to take second place and see Morocco exit the competition.

Morocco looked to be a far more organised side than the hosts, and they deservedly took the lead on 10 minutes with a header from Issam El Adoua. South Africa had failed to clear their lines from the corner and went on to have two very dubious penalty claims waved away by the referee.

Morocco should have doubled their lead when Itumeleng Khune came rushing out of the Bafana Bafana goal to challenge Kamel Chafni. Unfortunately for the Moroccan, the keeper made a good tackle and hoofed the ball out for a throw-in, despite being 30 yards from his goal line.

South Africa's sloppy defending saw them go in 1-0 down at halftime, but they had begun to gain some attacking momentum. Bernard Parker forced a save from Nadir Lamyaghri in the Moroccan goal as the keeper managed to tip his curling effort wide of the post.

Then came the equaliser—an unstoppable curling shot from May Mahlangu straight into the top corner. Morocco had gone from leading Group A to exiting the tournament in a matter of minutes.

When Mehdi Namli put them back in front they were back on top of the group as Cape Verde equalised against Angola. Morocco were going through as group winners once more.

Not even three minutes later it was all changed again as Siyabonga Sangweni drew the tournament hosts level for a second time with another superb curling effort, this one ending up in the bottom corner. 

The fatal blow for the Atlas Lions came on 90 minutes through no fault of their own, when Cape Verde took the lead against Angola. With only a few minutes of stoppage time to salvage their quarterfinal dreams they looked for a third goal, but South Africa were perfectly comfortable running down the clock.

The final whistle saw the host nation through as group winners with Morocco finishing third with three points from as many games.

South Africa will have to wait until Group B is concluded to find out who their opponents will be. With both Ghana and the Democratic Republic of Congo in that group, Bafana Bafana will need to tighten up at the back to avoid exiting the competition in the next round.

So, the first week of the 29th Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in South Africa has already been and gone in a flash, and to those of you who have stayed away from its opening salvos—for whatever reason—well, you have missed an eye-catching start to the proceedings in the Rainbow Nation.

Make no mistake about it: The Afcon is a much-maligned international football tournament.

It's the poor relative to the Fifa World Cup, the UEFA European Championship or South America’s Copa America; a completion that forever seems to be associated with players getting injured, returning to their clubs late, and sometimes not at all, of poor practice facilities and inadequate medical support and a general lack or organisation—a view not helped either by what happened in the 2010 event when the Togo team bus was attacked by terrorists.

Europe’s all-powerful clubs, the financial epicentre of world football, are also no fans either of this biannual celebration of all that is good about African football (a feeling that has certainly grown by the staging of back-to-back Afcons in 2012 and 2013), and are ever reluctant to lose key personnel for up to three weeks at such a critical juncture in the season.

However, these one-eyed, club-dominated views should be seen for exactly what they are: selfish. Especially when looked at alongside those of the players, fans, coaches and administrators themselves who make up these tournaments; which, lest we not forget, are the equivalent of a Euros, say, for nations in Europe, or a Copa for those countries in South America.

And those raft of negative stories that always seem to be associated with the Afcons, well, you only need to have been following the opening week’s events in South Africa to know that these could not be further from the truth, as anything and everything seems to have already taken place.

However, for those who are longstanding fans of African football, this will come as no surprise at all.

As always, we have been treated to a feast of fast-flowing, high-quality football, even if the competition did take just a little while to get going—including waiting a whole day and three games for our first goal, and a further match for our first actual result, but anyone who has lived and watched football on this great continent (like I have) will know, things always take a little while to get moving.

Likewise—and the opening week’s action has done nothing to dispel this view whatsoever—anyone who knows anything at all about the Afcons knows that this will be a tournament full of energy, colour and life (both on and off the pitch); thrills, spills and drama, with totally unforeseen upsets along the way; and will be competition where you should definitely expect the unexpected, and sometimes all of these things in the space of just one match.

Right from the off we had the amazing and heartwarming story of the tiny island of Cape Verde making their Afcon debut, and what’s more, they only went and held hosts South Africa to a draw, meaning that Bafana Bafana had still not won a match at the Afcons since 2004, an unwanted stat that they managed to correct by beating Angola 2-0 in their second group game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnzFixlYSM0

We then witnessed Ethiopia’s first appearance in the competition in 31 years on Matchday 3 in a game not remembered for the remarkable scoreline—a scarcely believable 1-1 draw with holders Zambia—but for the unusual sight of Walya Antelopes goalkeeper Jemal Tassew being sent off while also being stretchered off the pitch at the same time following an X-rated tackle.

Like I said earlier, expect the unexpected…

And that is just the half of it, as we have also had the usual mixture of rank, bad defending and late, late goals alongside some moments of sheer brilliance and artistry from a collection of some of planet football’s best and most accomplished performers. Players like Yaya Toure, Emmanuel Adebayor, Didier Drogba, Asamoah Gyan, Seydou Keita, John Obi Mikel and Younes Belhanda managed by interesting, wise and colourful coaching characters such as Zambia’s Herve Renard, Algeria’s Vahid Halilhodzic and last but not least, DR Congo’s Claude Le Roy, Mr Afcon himself, a veteran of a record seven finals and a winner all the way back in 1988 with Cameroon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CCJqjv4FIk

My own personal favourite moment from the opening seven days has been hard to choose, wavering between Burkina Faso’s 4-0 win over Ethiopia on Friday—their first Afcon triumph in 22 attempts dating back to 1998—or the collapsing goal fiasco in Saturday night’s Togo versus Algeria contest.

In spite of those great moments, for me it has to be Zambia goalkeeper Kennedy Mweene’s perfectly-taken late penalty to earn the holders a much-needed point against Nigeria on the same day.

So, a week gone, two more to go and already we have a number of delicious and intriguing plots and subplots that are beginning to bubble up on the surface for us to follow right through to final at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Feb 10.

We have all the ingredients that in essence are needed to make an entertaining, eye-catching and memorable international football tournament and which so often are seen lacking in the Afcon’s so-called bigger and better, but in actual fact more sterile, rival competitions throughout the world.

Soccer is a sport filled with vibrance, energy and color.

The green of the grass. The black and white of the ball.

From the Reds to Les Bleus, La Blaugrana to Los Blancos and the Rossoneri to the Nerazzurri.

From Alexi Lalas' red hair and beard to Mario Balotelli's bleach-blonde mohawk.

What better tournament to capture the brilliance and liveliness of the sport than the Africa Cup of Nations?

Check out some of the coolest photos from the African confederation's little get together in South Africa. We'll be updating it daily.

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A Togo fan celebrates his side's 1-1 draw with Tunisia that catapulted Les Eperviers into the quarterfinals.

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Didier Drogba has led the Ivory Coast into the tourney quarterfinals as the top team from Group D. 

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Nigeria earned a much needed 2-0 win over Ethiopia, thanks in no small part to a brace from Chelsea's Victor Moses.

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Zambia's Nathan Sinkala (left) and Aristide Bance from Burkina Faso go up hard for a header during the two sides' final group stage match. The nil-nil draw left Burkina Faso as the top side in Group C, while it left the reigning AFCON champions headed home early.

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Ghana's Christian Atsu scores his side's second goal against Niger on the way to a 3-0 win at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. The victory clinched the Black Stars the top spot in Group B and a quarterfinal matchup against Cape Verde.

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Is a booking deserved for an on-pitch wedgie? Samba Sow of Mali certainly deserved one with this "tackle" on Congo's Youssouf Mulumbu during their 1-1 draw in Durban.

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Based on this shot of South Africa manager Gordon Igesund, you wouldn't know the Bafana Bafana earned a 2-2 draw on Sunday against Morocco, propelling them into the quarterfinals.

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Angola's Manucho Diniz (left) goes at it with Platini of Cape Verde during the Tubarões Azuis' (or Blue Sharks') 2-1 victory on Sunday.

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Emmanuel Adebayor of Togo gets down and dirty with Algeria's Essaid Belkalem as the two vie for a head ball. Togo earned a 2-0 victory to keep their hopes alive for a spot in the quarterfinals.

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Yaya Toure of Ivory Coast celebrates his goal against Tunisia in Saturday's 3-0 win for the Elephants.

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Burkina Faso's Aristide Bance (left) goes up for a header with an Ethiopian defender in his side's commanding 4-0 win in Nelspruit on Friday.

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Ethiopian fans manage to enjoy the atmosphere at Mbombela Stadium despite their side's 4-0 defeat at the hands of Burkina Faso.

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Zambian goalkeeper Kennedy Mweene celebrates his late penalty-kick goal that earned his nation a 1-1 draw against Nigeria. 

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Sweat flies off the heads of Larrys Mabiala of the Congo (left) and Niger's Modibo Sidibe as they vie for a header during Thursday's 0-0 draw at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth.

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Ghana's Wakaso Mubarak scores the lone goal from the penalty stripe in his nation's 1-0 victory over Mali.

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Youssef El-Arabi of Morocco celebrates his 78th-minute equalizer against Cape Verde on Jan. 23.

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Cape Verde's Luis Soares looks delighted with his side's 1-1 draw against Morocco.

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Bernard Parker of South Africa takes on the Angolan defense during the hosts' 2-0 win Wednesday, a victory that sent South Africa to the top of Group A.

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Lehlohonolo Majoro demonstrates his beheading of Angola after scoring Bafana Bafana's second goal in their 2-0 win on Jan. 23.

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South Africa has experienced the traditional host-nation boost in getting off to an excellent start in Group A. Here, they celebrate Majoro's goal against Angola as their fans cheer them on.

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As we suggested, the South African fans are passionate about their side.

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Ex-Chelsea man Didier Drogba cracks a free kick in the Ivory Coast's 2-1 opening victory over Togo. Arsenal winger Gervinho scored in the 88th minute to earn the Elephants the three points.

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Aymen Abdennour of Tunisia and Islam Slimani of Algeria battle for the ball during their opening match in Rustenburg. Tunisia escaped with a 1-0 win thanks to a second-half injury-time goal from Youssef Msakni.

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Nigeria celebrates Emmanuel Emenike's 23rd-minute goal as Burkina Faso's goateed midfielder Mohamed Koffi looks on in disgust. Les Etalons (the Stallions) fought back, however, and earned a draw with a 94th-minute equalizer.

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Zambia opened its AFCON scoring account with this first-half injury-time tally against Ethiopia from Collins Mbesuma.

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"Ow, my head!" Niger's Kassali Daouda seems to cry out—in the hope of drawing a foul—as Mali's Seydou Keita scores the game-winner in both sides' tourney opener in Port Elizabeth.

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Colorfully kitted Congolese striker Tresor Mputu celebrates his 53rd-minute tally against Ghana on Jan. 20. Congo earned a 2-2 draw against one of the pre-tournament favorites.

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Ryan Mendes of Cape Verde attempts a tricky offensive move against onrushing South African midfielder Reneilwe Letsholonyane in the opening match of AFCON at the National Stadium in Johannesburg. 

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In case you haven't watched—or heard—any of the AFCON matches so far, vuvuzelas are still all the rage in South Africa.

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Fireworks were just one of the highlights of the tournament's opening ceremony at the National Stadium on Jan. 19.

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Performers and their plastic balls form a cool-looking South African flag during the opening ceremony in Johannesburg.

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A near-empty National Stadium in Johannesburg before Saturday's opening ceremony.

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Keep coming back for new photos every day during the Africa Cup of Nations!

The host country South Africa was back in action on Wednesday, looking to take control of Group A with a win over Angola, while Morocco and Cape Verde would come into play desiring three points but knowing a draw would keep them in the running to advance.

In many ways, Group A is the least compelling of the four groups, as none of the tournament favorites are in play here. Still, with host nation South Africa hoping to put on a good show for the home fans and teams like Morocco and Cape Verde featuring plenty of talent, there are many compelling storylines here.

On Wednesday, the story of Group A became a little bit more clear. Let's take a look back at Wednesday's action.

South Africa Defeats Angola, 2-0

The host country put itself in an excellent position to advance with a victory over Angola, getting goals from Siyabonga Sangweni and Lehlohonolo Majoro and sitting in a good standing with four points now in Group A.

Truthfully, this was a pretty dominant performance by South Africa, and the host side managed not only to win, but also score the first two goals of the tournament.

Sangweni tallied in the 30th minute, sending in a pretty half-volley (for a defender) past keeper Lama, who had no chance to make a play on the shot. South Africa would dominate the rest of the half, and Angola were lucky to be down just one.

The game would open up in the second half a bit as winger Mateus started causing the South Africans trouble down the flank. But Bafana Bafana would withstand his assaults, and would be the next to score when substitution Majoro would score just two minutes into his afternoon.

He was set free after finding himself on the end of a lovely long pass. He would make a defender miss and beat Lama, giving South Africa a 2-0 lead.

While Angola would threaten here or there the rest of the way, South Africa would hold them off, setting up a key game against Morocco to close group play. It would be a surprise if South Africa failed to advance out of this group.

Morocco and Cape Verde Draw, 1-1

For Cape Verde, this day would be an historic one, as the team would score its first-ever goal in a major competition. It would also be a somewhat disappointing day, as the country would fail to hold its first-half lead and finish with its second draw in group play.

Platini would open the scoring in the 36th minute, sending a cheeky chip over the keeper after being played in by Ryan Mendes. History had been made, and suddenly the Cape Verde faithful were optimistic their side might pull off a surprising upset, too.

Cape Verde was certainly the stronger side in the first half, and the same old story seemed to being playing for Morocco—a talented team underperforming.

But the Moroccans would awaken in the second half, namely in the last 20 minutes of play, and Youssef El-Arabi would reward the side for its hard work, slotting home the equalizer from the penalty area off an Abdelaziz Barrada pass.

Morocco would continue to apply the pressure late, but Cape Verde would hang on for the draw, giving itself a chance to advance to the quarterfinals.

South Africa is in the driver's seat in the group, needing only a tie against Morocco to advance. Meanwhile, Morocco (two points), Cape Verde (two points) and Angola (one point) all remain alive and could advance to the quarters.

It should be a fun day of soccer when Group A concludes.