The English FA have announced that the Sven Goran Eriksson¿s men will play South Africa in Durban next May, at the request of former South African president Nelson Mandela.
Mr Mandela has long been advocating such a match, which will be England's first ever in South Africa.
England manager, Eriksson, expressed his delight to Sky Sports, saying: "I'm delighted to be leading England into this historic fixture."
"Football is such a popular sport in South Africa and I'm sure it will be a fantastic occasion. We will look forward to it very much."
Director of International Strategy for the FA, David Davies echoed those sentiments and pointed to the timing of the friendly as valuable preparation for England's European Qualifier against Slovakia.
"This will honour the commitment made by English football in the summer of 2001 that we would play in South Africa by June 2003," said Davies.
"The match will form an integral part of the preparation for our important European Qualifier against Slovakia in June of that year and the balance between rest and preparation will be something that Sven will be planning carefully.
"The fixture is a celebration of the new relationship that has emerged between South Africa and England in the wake of the 2006 World Cup bids made by both countries. South Africa will be a big force in world football in years to come and we are delighted to be forging such close links.
"We also fully recognise the social responsibilities that we have in visiting the country and will be conducting goodwill visits in Johannesburg and Durban ahead of the match itself."
In the one previous meeting between the two sides at Old Trafford, England won by two goals to one.