Former Bafana Bafana striker calls out Premier Soccer League clubs for ‘peanut' salaries; Praises Mamelodi Sundowns for leading the way - ‘Until teams invest like them, it’ll be a one-horse race for the next coming six, seven years’

After spending 13 years playing abroad across Asia and Europe, former Bafana Bafana striker Dino Ndlovu returned home in March to join Marumo Gallants and share his wealth of experience. 

Having left South Africa in 2011, the well-travelled forward has now spoken out about a major issue in local football: the underpayment of players in the Premier Soccer League. Ndlovu pointed to the growing gap between most clubs and a well-run outfit like Mamelodi Sundowns, who continue to dominate thanks to their strong investment in players and infrastructure.

"For me in terms of sponsorship we need to give credit to the leadership of the league, they've done well to improve the league financially," Dino Ndlovu told Soccer Laduma.
"But what hurts me the most is, the league is growing financially but other football clubs still don't want to pay players, they pay players peanuts and for me that hurts the most.
"That's why you see there's a huge gap between the three teams in the PSL. Sundowns is up there because they are investing in their own players, they invest in their facilities but you've got teams who want players to go all out for them but they still don't want to pay players," the well-travelled striker added.

"For me in terms of the standard of the league, I'm quite convinced the league will be a one-race horse for the next coming six, seven years, until teams get it in their thick skulls that in order to get good players in their team, they need to invest, they need to pay players, invest in your own. Because you cannot invest on your own and expect good results.
"But football-wise it's interesting, I've seen we've got good young, up and coming players that made me fulfilled to come back and give experience to these players," Ndlovu concluded.

Before embarking on his international journey, Ndlovu began his professional career at Platinum Stars before securing a move to Mamelodi Sundowns in 2009. His time at Chloorkop included a loan spell at Bloemfontein Celtic during the 2010-11 season. 

In 2011, Ndlovu made his first move abroad, joining Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv in Israel — a transfer that marked the beginning of a globe-trotting career across various leagues in Asia and Europe.

However, he did make a brief return to South African football, with loan spells with SuperSport United in 2014 and Mpumalanga Black Aces in 2015.

With Ndlovu speaking out about the challenges South African players face, especially the struggle with low wages and lack of investment, questions remain about how PSL clubs will respond. 

Will other teams follow Mamelodi Sundowns’ example and start investing more in their players and infrastructure? For the future of local football, the pressure is on clubs to close the gap and create a more competitive, sustainable environment that truly values its talent.