The final of the 2024 Nedbank Cup will be staged at the magnificent Mbombela Stadium, an iconic venue that was built ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup as a legacy for South African football and has been widely used in the local game ever since.
Orlando Pirates will meet Mamelodi Sundowns in the decider on June 1 (kick-off 15h00), each in their sixth Nedbank Cup decider since 2008 and for The Buccaneers, a second in the Mpumalanga province.
The Mbombela Stadium hosted the 2011 Nedbank Cup final when Orlando Pirates took on second-tier Black Leopards.
An own goal from Pirates defender Rooi Mahamutsa had Leopards in front, but goals from Isaac Chansa and Thulasizwe Mbuyane (two) saw The Buccaneers rally late on to win.
Pirates have also already played there in the Nedbank Cup this season, it was the scene of their emphatic 6-0 Last 32 win over fourth-tier Crystal Lake back in February.
Ironically, both Pirates and Sundowns will also play there in the coming days to get a further feel for the venue.
Pirates travel to face TS Galaxy in the DStv Premiership on Saturday, while Sundowns make the same trip on Tuesday to clash with The Rockets in another league fixture.
The first official match played at the venue was a pre-2010 World Cup warm-up clash between South Africa and Thailand on 16 May, 2010, which Bafana Bafana won 4-0. Bafana have played 10 time at the venue down the years and never lost (W6 D4).
Galaxy are the current football tenants, but Mpumalanga Black Aces also used the venue for a spell before they sold their topflight status ahead of the 2016/17 Premier Soccer League season.
Several other teams have occasionally taken games there as an alternate venue, including SuperSport United and BidVest Wits.
One of the most famous matches played at the venue was a 6-1 league victory for SuperSport United over Pirates in 2016, in which The Buccaneers led 1-0 at halftime. Pirates coach Muhsin Ertugral resigned on live television after the game in what is an unhappy memory for The Ghost.
The stadium hosted four matches during the 2010 World Cup, with the likes of Italy, Australia, Serbia and the Ivory Coast all featuring. New Zealand held the Italians to a shock 1-1 draw that would eventually see the defending champions go out in the group stage.
It was also a major venue for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, with eight matches held there, including a quarter-final and semi-final. Burkina Faso famously stunned Ghana on penalties in the semis, though they would go on to lose the final to Nigeria.
The capacity of the stadium is 43,500 with the seats split into three tiers and the bowl design helping to keep fans close to the action on the pitch.
The stadium has a unique African-themed design that is a tribute to the nearby Kruger National Park. The 18 roof supports resemble giraffes and the black and white seat pattern is that of a Zebra.
It is the 12th different venue to be used for a Nedbank Cup final in the 17 years of the competition since 2008.
Last year’s final venue was Loftus Stadium in Pretoria, where Pirates defeated Sekhukhune United 2-1. And the year before that the decider was played at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in Phokeng in the North West province as Sundowns defeated Marumo Gallants by the same scoreline.
Selecting a stadium to host the decider is not as cut and dried as it might seem and there are a number of factors at play.
The first of these is that it is usually in a neutral province, unless both teams are from the same one. An example of this would be the Orlando Stadium, which in 2012 hosted SuperSport United defeating Mamelodi Sundowns.
The only other time the final was staged in Orlando, it was not a neutral venue, though there were extenuating circumstances.
This was for the 2020 decider when Sundowns beat Bloemfontein Celtic, but domestic football was being played in the Gauteng bio-bubble and so organisers had no other choice.
Other occasions when there was not a neutral venue was in the inaugural season in 2008 as Sundowns beat Mpumalanga Black Aces at the Johannesburg Stadium, and in 2010 when the newly rebuilt FNB Stadium played host to BidVest Wits against AmaZulu.
It was a match to showcase the new venue and South Africa’s readiness for the FIFA World Cup that was to be played that year.
There is just one 2010 World Cup venue that has not yet hosted the Nedbank Cup decider since 2008 – Ellis Park in Johannesburg.
The magnificent Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban has played host to four finals (2013, 2014, 2017, 2019) and is the most used venue.
The Orlando Stadium (2012, 2020) was the only venue to have hosted multiple finals before the Mbombela Stadium (2011, 2024) has been added to that list this year.
Other finals have been played at the Johannesburg Stadium (2008), Rand Stadium (2009), FNB Stadium (2010), Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium (2015), Peter Mokaba Stadium (2016), Cape Town Stadium (2018), Free State Stadium (2021), Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace (2022) and Loftus Stadium.
NEDBANK CUP FINAL VENUES
2008 – Johannesburg Stadium
2009 – Rand Stadium
2010 – FNB Stadium
2011 – Mbombela Stadium
2012 – Orlando Stadium
2013 – Moses Mabhida Stadium
2014 – Moses Mabhida Stadium
2015 – Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
2016 – Peter Mokaba Stadium
2017 – Moses Mabhida Stadium
2018 – Cape Town Stadium
2019 – Moses Mabhida Stadium
2020 – Orlando Stadium
2021 – Free State Stadium
2022 – Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace
2023 – Loftus Stadium
2024 – Mbombela Stadium
SOURCED FROM THE NEDBANK CUP WEBSITE.
