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Soccer Laduma
I joined Pirates with a pure heart
Masebe Qina: Hola OJ, you came through as one of the most naturally talented defenders South Africa has produced, and when you reflect on your journey, what moments define Mbulelo Mabizela the most for you?
7 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
EPL Season review
The 2025/26 season has concluded, and the Premier League delivered yet another spectacle.
1 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Arsenal Back on Top
Mikel Arteta cemented himself as an Arsenal icon after he guided the Gunners to the first Premier League title since the Invincibles in 2003/04.
7 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
I know how it will end
Zakhele Lepasa's career has required him to be strong all the time. It hasn't been a smooth journey, but one thing he has maintained throughout the time was having a strong mindset to overcome the difficult moments in his career. When he joined Siwelele FC at the start of the season, Lepasa had hoped his luck would finally change but that wasn't the case. Game time was hard to come by in the past season at Siwelele and he's had to support the guys who have been playing ahead of him at the club. Soccer Laduma's Tshepang Mailwane recently met up with the former Orlando Pirates striker at Siwelele training in Sunninghill, Johannesburg, to talk about his season and why he has not played much under head coach Lehlohonolo Seema.
6 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
From protest to progress?
How Chiefs changed the mood at Naturena
4 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Champions of Africa What Happens Next?
Mamelodi Sundowns are a club that is always planning for the future, so winning the CAF Champions League last weekend will by no means make them rest on their laurels. The club is, in fact, well into their preparations for next season and there will be a few changes to the team to ensure they defend their Champions League title and reclaim the Betway Premiership trophy they lost to Orlando Pirates. Soccer Laduma’s Tshepang Mailwane looks at what could happen next at the club, with some important decisions set to be made by management and the technical team.
5 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Ouaddou’s Pirates success sparks North African interest?
Fresh from delivering a historic Betway Premiership title to Orlando Pirates, head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou is believed to be attracting growing interest from North Africa following an extraordinary first season in charge of the Soweto giants.
1 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Still InTouch With... ANDRIES SEBOLA (PART 1)
At the peak of his career, Andries Sebola was one of the most prolific strikers in the PSL. Sebola began his professional career at Real Rovers, scoring 19 goals across all competitions during the 1994 NSL First Division (now Betway Premiership).
3 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Lebohang Maboe... From clubless to the World Cup?
It’s been a fairytale seven months for Lebohang Maboe at Kaizer Chiefs.
6 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Respect Ouaddou's achievements
It is not every season that we see such a massive impact from a coach at one of the three biggest clubs in the country, quite like what we have witnessed with Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou since taking charge of the team at the beginning of the season.
5 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Sundowns know how to win things
What I like the most is that Sundowns won their second star without winning our domestic league and that shows there’s competition in the country, especially if you look at the way Sundowns played in the CAF Champions League.
5 min |
May 28, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Allow kids to play
Most South African youth — kids who are still at school — must feel denied the opportunity to be the children they are supposed to be, because for one reason or another, the system has decided to do away with a primary focus on school sports.
5 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
I've found myself again
As a footballer, there comes a time when it's not only about the impact you make on the field, but off it too. Fortune Makaringe is making an impact off the field with his Foundation and touching the lives of children in schools with different projects that are aimed at developing and nurturing the leaders of tomorrow. On the field, Makaringe just completed the season with Leicesterford City in the Motsepe Foundation Championship after joining them early in 2026 as a free agent. Now that the season is over, the former Orlando Pirates and Cape Town City midfielder will be focused on the Fortune Makaringe Schools Festival coming up in July. Soccer Laduma's Tshepang Mailwane met up with the Vosloorus native in Johannesburg to talk about his Foundation, the schools festival, life at Leicesterford City and how Pirates have pushed Mamelodi Sundowns to the end for the Betway Premiership title.
6 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Real Madrid Lost Blancos?
The 2025/26 season has been one marred with moments, both on and off the pitch, that Real Madrid would perhaps like to forget. With the club looking to bring in a new manager capable of restoring order, unity, discipline and trophies, the Spanish giants now find themselves searching for answers after one of the most turbulent periods in recent memory.
6 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
He's blessed to be here
With the Motsepe Foundation Championship season reaching its climax and the promotion playoffs firmly in sight, Soccer Laduma’s Delmain Faver sat down with Cape Town City striker Dzenan Zajmovic for a candid and wide-ranging conversation. The Bosnian forward, who joined City in January, has been one of the standout performers in the division — scoring crucial late goals and leading a squad brimming with exciting young talent. Zajmovic spoke openly about the demands of the MFC, the players around him who give him the most confidence, and why he firmly believes Cape Town City will find their way back to the Betway Premiership.
8 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
I never take these things for granted
I’m writing this column all the way from Ivory Coast where I have been invited as one of the guests and legends to feature in Salomon Kalou’s legends’ game. You come from the dusty streets of Soweto, where it all began for you, and then you find yourself among the best on the continent. That’s so amazing! These things happen only when you look after your God-given talent and knowing where you want to go with your life. I’m experiencing and feeling everything, looking at the journey my football career has taken me, I had no idea how much some people appreciated me and Bafana Bafana throughout the continent, and all of that happened through sport, football to be specific. When the former president, Nelson Rholihlahla Mandela, may his soul rest in peace, said to us before the Afcon final in 1996, “You guys win this game and unite the country,” and it is when things like this happen that those words start to ring into my ears.
7 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Hard work always pays off
Emmanuel Jalai signed with Durban City in the January transfer window. In this interview with Soccer Laduma’s Siya Gijana, the Zimbabwe international opens about his football journey so far, his Betway Premiership knowledge and also reveals the advice he received from fellow Zimbabwean footballers who once featured in the South African top-flight league. The 27-year-old defender also talks about becoming the Nedbank Cup winner in less than five months after joining his new club, representing his country in the World Cup qualifiers, AFCON tournament and a lot more.
6 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
The man behind the philosophy
Soccer Laduma sits down with RB Leipzig Managing Director for Sport Marcel Schäfer in Leipzig to talk Red Bull DNA, what it takes to go from the fifth division to the Champions League, and why Africa; and South Africa in particular; is on their radar. The interview took place in Leipzig, where Soccer Laduma was among the invited media for an exclusive look at the club’s world-class facilities and Stadion ahead of their historic match against Mamelodi Sundowns on 29 May. Marcel Schäfer, a former Germany international, was appointed RB Leipzig’s Managing Director for Sport in June 2024, signing a four-year contract and taking up his role on 1 August that year. The 42-year-old oversees the club’s men’s first team, women’s team and academy; a remit that reflects the full scope of Red Bull’s football ambitions on the continent.
5 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
I will never disrespect the champions
For me, the first leg was more or less a 60/40 performance in favour of Sundowns and for them not to concede meant they have learnt from the previous semi-finals they have played.
5 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Where Pirates got it right
The season is finally coming to an end and Orlando Pirates are already guaranteed to have their best season statistically and it will go down as one of their most memorable seasons in the PSL era. To get to where they are today, the Soweto giants have done a lot of work behind the scenes, with management and the technical team making sure that they build a side capable of challenging for the biggest prize in local football, the Betway Premiership. Soccer Laduma looks into what made their season a success.
5 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Should Chiefs keep their co-coaches?
With just one game left to play in the Betway Premiership, Kaizer Chiefs have a big call to make on a head coach for next season. The contracts of current co-coaching duo, Cedric Kaze and Khalil Ben Youssef will expire on 30 June. The Burundian and Tunisian coaching duo have taken Amakhosi from the depths of a ninth-place finish in the 2024/25 season to a third-place finish this time around. Will qualification for continental action be enough to earn the pair another season at the helm? What are the pros and cons of continuing with the technical team for another season? Why have Chiefs not already secured a big-name coach before the season even ends, as is the case with Chelsea who have secured Xabi Alonso? Soccer Laduma investigates these key questions.
7 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Still InTouch With... MOKETE TSOTETSI (PART 3)
Mokete, here we go. Welcome back to the third and final instalment of the In Touch interview. We really appreciate having you with us. During your time at Kaizer Chiefs, you had so many international teammates. Who was the funniest of them all?
3 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
When the world watches, legends are born
With the 2026 FIFA World Cup days away, the Car Wash 2.0 Podcast asks the question that every South African football fan is thinking: can Bafana Bafana’s next generation become the icons that Modise, Tshabalala and Khune became in 2010?
7 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
InTouchWith... MALCOLM JACOBS - VENDA FC
Hola Malcolm, thanks for your time, brother. You've been around for a long time, so you probably have some good stories to share with us this week.
3 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Pirates on the brink of glory
Last week, I said it’s in Orlando Pirates’ hands.
4 min |
May 21, 2026
Soccer Laduma
CT City and Milford have a chance
When our leagues finish like this, it’s really good because it excites the supporters and everyone looks forward to the goals and results.
5 min |
May 14, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Every meeting was a war
SAFA National Vice President Bennett Bailey was elected unopposed for a third term as SAFA Cape Town President at the Regional Conference held recently at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). Bailey, who has been at the helm of Cape Town football since 2018, will lead the region for the next four years, supported by his Vice Presidents, Andrew Bothman, Nomonde Ndyoko and Linda Pistoli, among other executive members. The buildup to this year’s Regional Conference was far from smooth, as there were disputes and even an urgent court application along the way. In this interview with Soccer Laduma’s Mzoxolo Budaza, Bailey reflects on how far SAFA Cape Town has come under his leadership and discusses the organisation’s plans going forward.
10 min |
May 14, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Pirates cannot afford to be complacent
Hola Soccer Laduma readers
5 min |
May 14, 2026
Soccer Laduma
It was just a mess
Eight years ago, Itumeleng frequently circled in the closely followed South of Killarney Motswako FC in winger caught the eye of Kaizer the club in 2014. Under the Zwane, he transitioned a striker and thrived, in nine MultiChoice matches. His earned him recognition and the Amajita qualified for World Cup. after parting Amakhosi, Delmain caught up who has side of the Shopane was a name notebooks of those who African football. A product Soweto, the Taung-born Chiefs scouts and joined guidance of coach Arthur from a winger to scoring four goals Diski Challenge performances national a place in squad that the FIFA U20 Now, five years ways with Soccer Laduma's Faver has with Shopane, finally told his story.
7 min |
May 14, 2026
Soccer Laduma
Have Liverpool flattered to deceive?
No Liverpool fan could have imagined that the 2025/26 season would play out the way it did following the tremendous success of the previous season.
6 min |