Moses Mabhida Stadium has become a popular venue for cup finals in South African football and many have questioned why this is the case. This is more so the case when two giants are about to clash in a final, such as this weekend where Orlando Pirates will attempt to defend their MTN8 title against Mamelodi Sundowns. Traditionally, the Big Three have fans from all around the country, who would never miss an opportunity to watch their team at the local stadium. So, what goes into picking a venue for a knockout competition final? Does Moses Mabhida have an unfair advantage or being granted special favours, as it were? In this week’s Siya Special, Soccer Laduma looks into why the iconic 2010 World Cup venue is so popular with the Premier Soccer League and its cup competition sponsors.
What The Siya Crew Has Been Told…
The Premier Soccer League has come under fire, at times, for the many finals that have been played at Moses Mabhida Stadium, which will once again host the MTN8 final between giants Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns this weekend. While it may appear to be a straight-forward decision to the public – based on the number of times Moses Mabhida has been picked – the Siya crew understands that there are quite a number of factors that are considered before deciding where a cup final will be played. If it were so simple, the PSL would announce a venue before the start of each competition, but the League has a way of doing things to ensure they find the right venue to host the different tournament finals. Sponsors, as Soccer Laduma has been informed, also have a say in the process of picking a venue for the final, but the final decision, as further investigation revealed, rests with the PSL. The clubs that qualify for the final also impact where it will be played. For a category A match, which involves the big guns of South African football, it’s likely that one of the World Cup stadium venues will be picked. This publication spoke to a few insiders, from the PSL and its sponsors, to get a clear idea of how things work.
