There are more than 270 registered professional, semi-professional and amateur football clubs in the current South African soccer league system. However, the actual number of the teams in the country is considered to be much bigger. According to the statistics, about 1.5 million people in South Africa are the registered soccer players, and more than 4.5 million South Africans play football just for fun. That’s about 10% of the overall country’s population!
Every fan believes that he/she supports the best team in the country. But what sides have a proven right to call themselves the best of the best? Keep reading this article to figure it out.
The most titled club
If talking about the biggest amount of the PSL trophies, Mamelodi Sundowns are the absolute leaders. However, the biggest overall number of trophies in the country belongs to Kaizer Chiefs. They became the national champions 12 times — 4 times in the PSL, thrice in the NSL, and 5 times in the NPSL. As for the domestic cups, the team has 41 — 15 MTN8 trophies, 13 Telkom Knockout trophies, and 13 Nedbank Cups. Add to this one major international trophy (the African Cup Winners’ Cup of 2001) and several unofficial cup competitions’ trophies, and you will get the most successful team in the South African history with 68 pieces of silverware in total.
The most successful club in the international arena
As for the international performances, the two leaders at a time can be highlighted. These are the Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns. The former club won the CAF Champions League in 1995, after a strained final with ASEC Abidjan from Ivory Coast. Having done that, Pirates went on to win the CAF Super Cup in 1996. They reached the Champions League final once more in 2013 but lost to the Egyptian Al-Ahly. Moreover, in 2015 the club became runners-up of CAF Confederation Cup after a final loss to Tunisian Etoile du Sahel.
As for the latter club, they have the same international trophies set as the Pirates do. Having lost the CAF Champions League final in 2001, they returned to the competition’s final in 2016 and won it. A year after that, Sundowns lifted the CAF Super Cup.
The richest club
Sundowns again. Founded in 1970 and owned by Patrice Motsepe, the team has a net worth of approximately $11 million. So, it’s no wonder that the club can afford the comparatively expensive signings. For example, during the 2018 summer transfer window, Sundowns signed such players as Jose Ali Meza and Phakamani Mahlambi. Only these two signings made the club spend about R26 million in total.
By the way, the players’ salaries in the club are also quite high. For example, the midfielder Oupa Manyisa is believed to take home about R300,000 monthly.
The oldest club
You definitely know this club, as they won the PSL in the 2016/17 season. Yes, it is the Bidvest Wits FC. Founded in 1921 by the students of the Wits University, the club now competes in the top-flight league of the South African football. However, the close partnership with the University of the Witwatersrand remains among the team’s main priorities.
During its more than 90-year history, the club managed to win 1 PSL title, 2 Nedbank Cups, 3 Telkom Knockout trophies, and 3 MTN8 titles. Among team’s honors is also one NFD title, obtained in 2006.
The most popular club
As for the moment of writing, the title of the most popular club can be fairly given to Bloemfontein Celtic. The team is lucky to have a really great support, as the green and white crowd of their fans always sings all the match long. As for now, Bloem Celtic have an average attendance of 25000 spectators per match, even though the capacity of the club’s home stadium is only 20000. That means that Siwelele are also well-supported when playing away on the bigger stadiums.
Have you found your favorite club(s) in this article? Or, maybe, you are the fan of the other team? Anyway, I’ve got something interesting for you. You can not only enjoy the matches of your favorite clubs — you can earn money for your passion for football! How? Place soccer bets with one of the modern and convenient betting platforms, such as YesPlay.
On YesPlay, you can bet on many events in which the top-notch South African teams participate. Enjoy betting on the ABSA Prem, predict the results of the MTN8, and don’t miss the Nedbank Cup. Moreover, there are also many other bright tournaments on the YesPlay’s site, which involve South Africans’ favorite clubs. Explore them all!
