Mafori Cup 2026 | 14 July 2026
Venda FC — the club that traces its identity back to Venda Football Academy and now trades under the shorter Venda FC banner — have been drawn against fellow Motsepe Foundation Championship side Magesi FC in the second semi-final of the inaugural Mafori Cup. The pairing was confirmed at the tournament’s launch at The Ranch Hotel outside Polokwane on Monday, 14 July 2026. The Championship-versus-Championship semi-final kicks off at 11:00 on Saturday, 25 July at Seshego Stadium, with the winners meeting the survivor of the 09:00 Polokwane City–Sekhukhune United tie in the 15:00 final.
The Championship side of the draw
Both semi-finalists in this half of the bracket are Motsepe Foundation Championship clubs, which makes it a very different tactical exercise from the Premiership tie preceding it. Magesi FC’s route into the tournament follows a difficult end to the 2025/26 campaign, and Venda FC — recently rebranded from Venda Football Academy under owner Robinson Ramaite, who acquired the franchise in 2021 — are looking to use pre-season football to bed in the club’s newer identity in front of a Limpopo audience. Neither club needs to prove anything to the other tactically; what they need is 90 real minutes.
Prize money and platform
The Mafori Cup pays R250,000 to the winners, R150,000 to the runners-up, and R100,000 each to the two beaten semi-finalists. For a Championship-tier club, R100,000 in guaranteed pre-season prize money is not negligible — it moves the numbers on friendly-tour budgets and helps offset pre-season travel and camp costs. Progressing to the final would add either R100,000 or R250,000 to that guarantee, on top of the additional exposure of a SuperSport TV broadcast slot.
What the tournament gives Venda FC specifically
For a club still building name recognition under the Venda FC brand, a live broadcast from Seshego Stadium against a Championship rival is one of the best free platforms available. The tournament sits inside a broader Limpopo pre-season push — Polokwane City’s own participation drives local attendance, and the R50 ticket price keeps the terraces accessible. Whatever the football answer is on the pitch, the fixture gives Venda FC a national television window it will not have again until the Championship season proper opens.
