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Cape Town Countdown D-10: Cape Town Football Scene - South Africa’s Player Development Factories
With the 2010 World Cup draw taking place in Cape Town on December 4, Goal.com has decided to take a look at the local football scene in the beautiful South African city.
Nov 25, 2009 11:13:25 AM
Cape Town, or the Mother City as it is affectionately known, is not just a tourism hub in South Africa. It is also a place of football, or rather the breeding ground for local talent in as far as the beautiful game is concerned.
Most people would think of Table Mountain, Robben Island and the Cape of Good Hope whenever they hear about the second most popular destination in the world, but football in the city is also a matter of pride and distinction.
The city boasts a number of teams who are well known for their player development and youth systems, namely Ajax Cape Town, Santos, Hellenics and FC Cape Town. Currently there are two teams from this city in the PSL (Premier Soccer League), with Ajax Cape Town and Santos providing one of the fiercest derbies in the South African top flight.
Formed back in 1999 after a merger between Seven Stars and Cape Town Spurs, Ajax Cape Town have quickly become well known for their effective youth development scheme, following in the footsteps of their illustrious namesake team in the Netherlands. Ajax basically pioneered a youth development structure on the African continent in-line with some of the best systems in Europe.
Their main objective is to become leaders in African football as a whole; from marketing objectives, technical know-how and the use of state of the art facilities, to effective management and administration. The side is assisted by Ajax Amsterdam, who are the Cape Town team’s partners and shareholders.
The Urban Warriors, as Ajax are popularly known, are driven by the motto, 'No youth, no future', a simple Dutch viewpoint that has allowed the Cape Town side to find stars of the game all over the country and attract foreign players as well.
Formed 1982 and previously known as Lightbodys Santos FC, Santos are the other PSL club based in Cape Town. The team has a great deal of support within the Western Cape.
Their establishment took place despite a hefty storm of financial and political difficulties, with the main problem being access to basic football facilities in a city with strong rugby and cricket roots.
It was their commitment to non-racial sport and an unrivalled passion for the game from chairman Goolam Allie and players such as Edries Burton, Donnie Ronnie and Rodney Reiners that finally saw the team become a success.
Santos eventually became known as the People's Team because of the club’s ethos of community involvement and non-racial focus, ideas that allowed them to finally thrive in the Cape Town area.
Hellenic are one of the Mother City’s football forces who will forever be remembered for producing talents like South Africa midfield maestro Lance Davids and SuperSport United’s current master tactician Gavin Hunt. Hellenic are one of South Africa's oldest professional clubs.
Owned by Greek people, the club were one of the last teams left over from the days of whites-only professional football in South Africa. Their last game in the Mother City was a 2-2 draw with Lamontville Golden Arrows, a result that guaranteed relegation. Premier United then took over Hellenic's place in the top flight of South African football.
At their height in the 1960s and 1970s, the Cape Town club regularly attracted crowds of around 40,000 and had players like George Best, Gordon Banks and former England captain Bobby Moore playing for them in one-off guest appearance matches.
They were champions in 1971, the same year a rival black professional league was first created. But when the white and black leagues amalgamated in 1976, support for clubs like Hellenic collapsed dramatically as white supporters stayed away from mixed football.
FC Cape Town are the other club based in the city, but they are currently playing in the second flight after coming close to being promoted for the 2009-2010 season – losing out in the play-offs. Their biggest challenge at the moment is trying to keep hold of their best players, as local sides Santos and Ajax continue to poach their talents.
The Mother City will play its part in hosting the 2010 tournament with pride as it now has one of the world’s best state of the art football venues, the Cape Town Stadium in Green Point, which is set to hold one of the semi-final matches at next year’s tournament. The Athlone Stadium and Newlands - which is normally a rugby ground - will serve as training venues for teams based in the Mother City.
Clyde Tlou & Peter Pedroncelli, Goal.com
Most people would think of Table Mountain, Robben Island and the Cape of Good Hope whenever they hear about the second most popular destination in the world, but football in the city is also a matter of pride and distinction.
The city boasts a number of teams who are well known for their player development and youth systems, namely Ajax Cape Town, Santos, Hellenics and FC Cape Town. Currently there are two teams from this city in the PSL (Premier Soccer League), with Ajax Cape Town and Santos providing one of the fiercest derbies in the South African top flight.
Formed back in 1999 after a merger between Seven Stars and Cape Town Spurs, Ajax Cape Town have quickly become well known for their effective youth development scheme, following in the footsteps of their illustrious namesake team in the Netherlands. Ajax basically pioneered a youth development structure on the African continent in-line with some of the best systems in Europe.
Their main objective is to become leaders in African football as a whole; from marketing objectives, technical know-how and the use of state of the art facilities, to effective management and administration. The side is assisted by Ajax Amsterdam, who are the Cape Town team’s partners and shareholders.
The Urban Warriors, as Ajax are popularly known, are driven by the motto, 'No youth, no future', a simple Dutch viewpoint that has allowed the Cape Town side to find stars of the game all over the country and attract foreign players as well.
Formed 1982 and previously known as Lightbodys Santos FC, Santos are the other PSL club based in Cape Town. The team has a great deal of support within the Western Cape.
Their establishment took place despite a hefty storm of financial and political difficulties, with the main problem being access to basic football facilities in a city with strong rugby and cricket roots.
It was their commitment to non-racial sport and an unrivalled passion for the game from chairman Goolam Allie and players such as Edries Burton, Donnie Ronnie and Rodney Reiners that finally saw the team become a success.
Santos eventually became known as the People's Team because of the club’s ethos of community involvement and non-racial focus, ideas that allowed them to finally thrive in the Cape Town area.
Hellenic are one of the Mother City’s football forces who will forever be remembered for producing talents like South Africa midfield maestro Lance Davids and SuperSport United’s current master tactician Gavin Hunt. Hellenic are one of South Africa's oldest professional clubs.
Owned by Greek people, the club were one of the last teams left over from the days of whites-only professional football in South Africa. Their last game in the Mother City was a 2-2 draw with Lamontville Golden Arrows, a result that guaranteed relegation. Premier United then took over Hellenic's place in the top flight of South African football.
At their height in the 1960s and 1970s, the Cape Town club regularly attracted crowds of around 40,000 and had players like George Best, Gordon Banks and former England captain Bobby Moore playing for them in one-off guest appearance matches.
They were champions in 1971, the same year a rival black professional league was first created. But when the white and black leagues amalgamated in 1976, support for clubs like Hellenic collapsed dramatically as white supporters stayed away from mixed football.
FC Cape Town are the other club based in the city, but they are currently playing in the second flight after coming close to being promoted for the 2009-2010 season – losing out in the play-offs. Their biggest challenge at the moment is trying to keep hold of their best players, as local sides Santos and Ajax continue to poach their talents.
The Mother City will play its part in hosting the 2010 tournament with pride as it now has one of the world’s best state of the art football venues, the Cape Town Stadium in Green Point, which is set to hold one of the semi-final matches at next year’s tournament. The Athlone Stadium and Newlands - which is normally a rugby ground - will serve as training venues for teams based in the Mother City.
Clyde Tlou & Peter Pedroncelli, Goal.com
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