Sold out! 93,000 to watch first Pirates-Chiefs derby with a crowd in two years

The first Soweto derby to be played in front of a crowd since the return to stadiums after the shutdown of audiences due to Covid-19 has been sold out, organisers said on Tuesday.

Fourth-placed Orlando Pirates host fifth-placed Kaizer Chiefs in the DStv Premiership matchup at FNB Stadium on Saturday, and a crowd of about 93,000 will form easily the biggest attendance at a South African football match or sporting event in just over two years.

Stadium Management, the company that runs FNB Stadium, tweeted on Tuesday that Saturday’s derby is sold out.

“Tickets for the Soweto derby, Orlando Pirates vs Kaizer Chiefs, on October 29 are now sold out!” the company said.

The last time SA’s famous Soweto derby was played in front of a crowd was when a packed FNB witnessed a 1-0 win for Ernst Middendorp’s Chiefs over Josef Zinnbauer’s Pirates on February 29 2020.

That was just weeks before the Premier Soccer League (PSL) suspended all football in March for initially a week, and eventually five months, due to the global worsening of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since a return to play in August 2020, 10 derbies in all competitions were played in front of closed stadiums in the two years it took for a return of crowds in March this year.