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LEGIONS of supporters descend on soccer stadiums wherever they play,
some with faces painted in the colours of their team. They come
chanting songs, beating drums, blowing horns and whistling to spur on
their heroes.
 On
the one hand: Orlando Pirates, known affectionately as 'the ghosts' or
the Mighty Buccaneers, with their menacing black and white skull and
crossbones symbol.
On the other hand: Kaizer Chiefs, otherwise known as the
Amakhosi, with a more regal two-fingerer peace sign and distinctive
bright gold colours.
The two Jo'burg teams have triggered excitement and intense rivalry
whenever they have played over the last three decades. South Africans
have played soccer for over a century. However, it was only in the
1970s that a non-racial professional league was established, indeed
soccer was the first major team sport to become fully non-racial. So
passionate are South Africans about soccer that many consider it the
national sport, pulling in a far larger following than any other game,
especially among black South Africans.
As the economic hub of the country, Johannesburg teams have always
dominated the local premier league. Their strategic location enables
them to attract much sought after sponsorship and thus secure the best
players money can buy. Of the 18 teams currently in the local premier
league, five are based in Jo'burg. The biggest teams in the country are
the arch rivals, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates, both rooted in
Johannesburg's Soweto.
Established in 1937, Pirates has for decades been a symbol of civic
pride in Orlando township where it originated. Born in the midst of
urban squalor, where most football teams played what was then called
'street soccer', it became a symbol of black sporting prowess.
Pirates is the longest surviving black team. It had its first
heyday in the amateur league of the 1950s when it won virtually every
accolade and every trophy. As a professional club, Pirates has
performed consistently well, except in the late 1980s and early 1990s
when it went through a dry spell. The glorious period for the team in
the professional league was in the 1970s. The club won the National
Professional Soccer League title in 1971, 1973, 1975 and 1976. Since
the 1970s, Pirates has won more than 20 trophies.
The worst period in the team's history came in 1985 when it was split
into two factions, following a similar breakaway in the professional
league. However, the club's fortunes have since improved. As the
reigning league champion, Pirates remains to date, the team to beat in
South Africa. Its crowning moment came in 1995 when it became the first
South African team to win the African Champions Cup Winners trophy. The
team followed this up by winning the African Super Cup Winners cup the
following year.
Other major Johannesburg teams such as Kaizer Chiefs and Jomo Cosmos owe their genesis to Orlando Pirates.
Kaizer Chiefs was established in 1970 as a break-away team from Orlando
Pirates. Under the leadership of its managing director, Kaizer Motaung,
many disillusioned Pirates players left to form a new club. Motaung was
at the time one of the most distinguished Orlando Pirates stars.
Motaung had left Pirates to ply his trade in the North American Soccer
League and on his return, he recruited a group of his old teammates and
they toured the country playing exhibition games. The tour was so
successful that the team was never disbanded. Today, 'Amakhosi,' as
they are affectionately called by their fanatical supporters, command
by far the biggest following in the country.
Jubilant Kaizer Chiefs supporters routing for their heroes
Originally from Phefeni in Soweto, Chiefs now has its headquarters in Naturena, south of Johannesburg. Perhaps because the identity of the team revolves around the personality of its flamboyant MD, the team has
never suffered from factionalism or internal divisions. Everywhere they
play, whether home or away games, their bright yellow colours decorate
the stadium. This popularity has brought wealth to the team, as
sponsors always consider it a worthwhile investment.
Chiefs is a renowned collector of treasures in the league, having won the league on eight occasions, as well as 50-odd other trophies. The
team's biggest achievement however is the African Cup Winners Cup,
which they won in the 2000 season.
For more information on Chiefs, visit their website at: www.kaizerchiefs.com
Wits University is the team with the longest history in the
city, dating back to 1922. It was originally established as a
university soccer team but from 1961 it began playing semi-professional
soccer in the second division of the white National Football League
(NFL), moving up to the first division in 1976.
In 1978, the team was one of the first NFL teams to join the non-racial
National Professional Soccer League, entering with a bang to win the
coveted Mainstay Cup by beating the much more fancied Chiefs, as well
as finishing second in the league. It was not until 1984 that the club
lifted a trophy again after winning the BP Top Eight. The glorious
moment however came in 1995 when the team won both the BP and the Coca
Cola cup. To read more about Wits, visit: http://www.witsfc.tierranet.com/
The legendary Jomo Sono who has been appointed
the technical director of the national squad
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Jomo Cosmos has a more recent genesis. The team's claim to fame is that
it is owned by a man who, in his day, was the most illustrious player
in the country. Jomo Sono, known as 'the black prince', is arguably the
most accomplished player South Africa has had. He played for Pirates
and in the USA before moving on to establish his own team in 1983.
As a club manager and coach, Sono has made a name for himself
by his ability to spot talent. He is by far the country's most
successful talent scout, having discovered many of the big-name players
in the country who went on to play for overseas teams. The team's
support base remains modest though. Its major achievement to date is
winning the league in 1987 and the Bob Save Super Bowl in 1990.
Another Johannesburg team steeped in history is Moroka Swallows
Limited - also known as 'The Birds'. Established in 1947, Swallows were
the archrivals of Pirates throughout the 1950s. The club reached its
peak in the 1970s, when it gained a reputation for playing entertaining
football. The league title has eluded the team, but they have had
better luck with trophies, winning four cups in the 1970s and the Iwisa
Charity Spectacular in 1992. As I write, in early 2002, Moroka Swallows
occupies the first position on the log.
The team has been dogged by infighting and splits since the
1960s, compounded by financial problems. Its supporters are mainly
older people who still cherish memories of the team's invincibility in
the 1970s. The youth of today don't share this sense of nostalgia and
as such the team's support base has dwindled considerably over the
years.
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