There are enough competitions on the South African football calendar to keep the most fanatical of football fans happy.

WHETHER it is the instant agony and ecstasy of knockout competitions or the fierce drawn-out rivalry of the league, there is plenty for South African fans to cheer about.

With competitions like the Nedbank Cup, Telkom Charity Cup, Telkom Knockout, Vodacom Challenge and the South African Airways (SAA) Supa8, the local football calendar is almost as crowded as the world’s biggest leagues.

Kjetil Siem, the Premier Soccer League (PSL) Chief Executive Officer, said: “I said it when I started my job late last year that I would like to see the league ranked right behind if not among the world’s biggest leagues.

“Because we are not linked to the rest of the African calendar it would be very difficult to say whether we are the best in Africa or not. Nevertheless we have the best football calendar and sponsors are lining up to sponsor the PSL. These include blue-chip companies who want to be part of the league,” adds Siem.

The Absa Premiership runs from August until May and winning the league is always the true test of a champion team but during this time there are also the five lucrative and exciting cup competitions.

Absa Premiership
For the first time in the history of South African soccer, Absa, the new sponsors of the PSL, will award a total of R29 450 000 in prize money to the 16 teams participating in the premiership. This amount is three times more than the previous prize money pot.

The premiership features the 16 top teams from around the country which. during the course of a season play each other twice on a home and away basis.
Each team receives a monthly grant of R1-million with the eventual winners pocketing R10-million.

The winners of the league and the second-placed team advance to the MTN Confederation of African Football (Caf) Champions League while the third-placed team and the Nedbank Cup champions advance to the Caf Confederation Cup, which is the African version of the Uefa Cup.

The bottom team is automatically relegated to the National First Division.

Telkom Charity Cup
The Telkom Charity Cup is a unique one-day football tournament featuring four teams. In this case it is democracy rather than dribbling that counts as supporters vote for which teams they would like to take part.

For weeks football fans vote by phoning in or by sending SMSs. The four teams with the most votes qualify to take part in this pre-season tournament.

The aim of the tournament is to raise money for charity through the votes and gate takings. A number of charities that work with children, the aged, the infirm and the disabled are the beneficiaries.

Vodacom Challenge
Another pre-season tournament is the Vodacom Challenge. It features the Soweto giants, Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, and an invited European team. This year English Premiership frontrunners Manchester United will take on the local heroes.

The tournament comprises four matches. Manchester United will play each of the local teams, who will then take on each other in a match to decide who will face Manchester United in the final.

The popular Soweto teams use this tournament to parade their new signings for the season.

SAA Supa8
Previously known as the BP Top 8, the SAA Supa8 features teams that finished in the top eight at the end of the previous premiership season.

In the first round of the competition the winners of the previous season plays the team that finished eighth, second place plays seventh, third plays sixth and fourth plays fifth.

The winner of the competition pockets R1.3-million.

Telkom Knockout
The Telkom Knockout was dubbed the richest knockout competition until the Nedbank Cup was launched recently. It features all 16 premiership teams and the winner takes away R4.25-million.

In true knockout fashion in all matches there has to be a winner on the day.

Nedbank Cup
With a total prize money of R19.3-million, R6-million for the winners, R2.5-million for the runners-up and R1-million for the losing semi-finalists, the Nedbank Cup is the richest knockout competition on the African continent.

The Nedbank Cup is the South African version of the English FA Cup. It carries a “David versus Goliath” theme with the minnows getting to take on the giants and every year produces some astonishing upsets.

The competition features 16 PSL teams, eight National First Division teams, as well as eight teams from the amateur ranks, which compete for the prize money of R2.5 million. The winner also qualifies for the African competititon, the Caf Confederation Cup.

The teams are not seeded at any stage and the first 16 sides drawn out of the hat receive a home-ground advantage. There are no longer any replays in the tournament and any games which end in a draw after 90 minutes are subject to 30 minutes of extra time followed by penalties if necessary.