South African billionaire Sandile Zungu loses the SAFA presidency by 157 votes to 82

Sandile Zungu lost his bid for the presidency of the South African Football Association on Saturday, taking 82 votes to Danny Jordaan's 157 at the elective congress at Vodaworld in Midrand.

Jordaan secured a fourth term. He has led the association since 2013, when he replaced Kirsten Nematandani, and will be close to 80 by the end of the four-year term he has just won.

Zungu had campaigned on governance. He promised to restore integrity to the organisation, fix grassroots football, and prioritise women's and schools' football, and his candidacy drew heavy public attention in the weeks before the vote.

The two-to-one margin settles a contest that had been unusually bitter. SAFA said before the congress that several delegates had received death threats, intimidation and harassment, and that it had reported the matter to police.

Jordaan gave no interviews during the campaign.

What Zungu was challenging was an incumbent facing criminal charges. Jordaan appears in court in November on allegations of fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud and theft involving more than 1.3 million rand of SAFA funds. He was arrested in November 2024 in connection with the case and appeared in court on Aug. 27, when the matter was postponed.

The eligibility fight came earlier. The association's governance committee chairman Victor Mogajane confirmed on Aug. 28 that both nominations had been received and both candidates were eligible, after a 20-day vetting process and an earlier challenge to Zungu's standing from the legal committee. A third contender, Bailey, withdrew in Zungu's favour.

Ria Ledwaba also endorsed him.

The loss leaves Zungu with the businesses and the club. He bought AmaZulu in October 2020, and the Durban side plays in the Premier Soccer League. He founded Zungu Investments Company in 2002, chairs EOH Holdings, the Black Business Council and the Presidential BEE Advisory Council, and sits on the boards of Grindrod and Novus Holdings.

His consortium Sizekhaya Holdings took over the South African National Lottery licence on June 1 this year, and his investment company acquired Sumitomo's 54% interest in the Ambatovy nickel mine in Madagascar in May.

Jordaan's immediate problem is the national team. Bafana Bafana begin qualifying for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations at the end of the month against Guinea and Eritrea, and the new national executive committee has to give coach Pitso Mosimane adequate preparation.