THE SOWETO DERBY
Next match
2026-05-03 (tentative) · FNB Stadium, Johannesburg
15:30 SAST
RIVALRY IN 60s
Historical Record
106
Total competitive meetings
Kaizer Chiefs vs Orlando Pirates is the fixture that stops South Africa. Gauteng traffic thins on Soweto Derby Saturdays, braais across the country are tuned to SuperSport, and the streets around FNB Stadium — 'Soccer City' — fill with 90,000 people in gold-and-black and black-and-white four hours before kick-off. It is the biggest football match in South Africa and one of the three most-watched club matches on the African continent.
The rivalry is founder-story personal. Kaizer Motaung left Orlando Pirates in 1970 to start his own club, Kaizer XI — later renamed Kaizer Chiefs. Everything that has followed over 55+ years — 100+ meetings, the 2001 stampede tragedy at Ellis Park, the FNB Stadium 90,000 sellouts, the Bafana Bafana squads built out of the derby's rivalries — sits on top of that original split between a player and his former club.
All-time record across NSL, PSL, MTN8, Nedbank Cup, Telkom Knockout, Charity matches (per Wikipedia's Soweto Derby article). Orlando Pirates hold a meaningful lead on wins; Chiefs are the established modern-era ticket seller.
LEGENDARY SCORERS
The heroes who defined the derby across generations.
MEMORABLE NIGHTS
VIBRANCE OF SOUTH AFRICA
Chiefs fans — 'Amakhosi' in isiZulu, the club's official nickname — wear gold and black and carry themselves as the older, establishment side of Johannesburg football despite being the younger of the two clubs. Their pre-match chant 'Khosi Khosi Yeth'' (Chief, Chief, our Chief) is sung standing on seats. Their drum section sits in the South End of FNB Stadium and plays a tempo that rises and falls depending on pressure on the team.
Pirates fans — 'Happy People' in the official branding, 'The Ghost' in street slang — wear black and white and carry skull-and-crossbones iconography on flags and T-shirts. The chant book is older and more musical: songs date to the 1970s and are passed down without written lyric sheets. The 'Buccaneers' brass band, unofficial but omnipresent, plays the 'Ghost march' for every Pirates goal.
Derby Chants & Traditions
Ghost march
Pirates' unofficial brass band plays a specific march after every Pirates goal at a Soweto Derby. It is older than the PSL itself — first documented at a 1978 NSL derby.
Khosi Khosi Yeth'
Chiefs' pre-match chant, sung standing on seats 15 minutes before kick-off. The sound at FNB Stadium is the first thing new Bafana Bafana players remember about their first Soweto Derby.
Ball hand-off
When a former derby player joins or leaves either club, the referee ceremonially hands the ball to them at the centre circle pre-kick-off. Siphiwe Tshabalala's 2018 farewell used it; so did Benni McCarthy's 2013.
Ellis Park memorial
Every 11 April — the anniversary of the 2001 stampede — both sets of supporters observe a one-minute silence at matches that week. Most PSL grounds do the same.
Safety & Logistics
Wear neutral colours if travelling within Johannesburg on derby day — Soweto-area taxi-rank conflicts have been documented since the 1990s. Once inside FNB Stadium, segregated blocks make colour display safe.
Segregation is enforced at both FNB Stadium and Orlando Stadium. Home supporters enter through the North and West gates; away supporters through the designated Gate E. Do not cross into the wrong block.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) deploys 1,200+ officers at FNB Stadium Soweto Derbies — the largest single-match police deployment in South African sport. Comply with any direction; the post-Ellis Park protocol is zero-tolerance on crowd-crush conditions.
In Johannesburg: avoid the Bree Street taxi rank 3 hours before and after kick-off. At FNB Stadium: use the Gauteng Rea Vaya bus rapid-transit stop rather than private car — parking fills 90 minutes before kick-off.
Keep phone and cash separate. FNB Stadium turnstile crushes have a documented pickpocket problem; use the official PSL app for digital tickets rather than paper.
Netcare + ER24 + Gauteng Department of Health run on-site trauma clinics at every Soweto Derby. Free for emergency cases; every major entrance has a defibrillator station.
FNB Stadium (Soccer City)
Johannesburg · Capacity: 94,736
FNB Stadium is the default Soweto Derby venue — Africa's largest football stadium and the 2010 FIFA World Cup final venue. Orlando Stadium (40,000 capacity) hosts selected derbies, typically when Pirates are the designated home side.
WHERE TO WATCH
SuperSport (DStv) · SABC Sport (free-to-air one angle)
SuperSport GOtv — every Soweto Derby since 1999
DStv Now international streaming (account required)
SuperSport USA / Fubo add-on
kaizerchiefs.com (when hosting) · orlandopiratesfc.com (when hosting)
TICKETS
PSL Official Ticketing — Computicket
The PSL manages Soweto Derby ticketing via Computicket and both clubs' official portals. Prices range ZAR 80 (away end) to ZAR 1,200 (VIP). Derby-day tickets often sell out in under 48 hours when released.
Buy on official site open_in_newExpect a premium
Expect 3–4× normal PSL pricing on Soweto Derby day. Standard home-end seats cost ZAR 80 for an ordinary PSL fixture but ZAR 200–300 for Chiefs vs Pirates. VIP boxes at FNB Stadium sell out 6–10 weeks in advance. Sabbatical corporate blocks (the 'Champagne Boxes') can reach ZAR 15,000 per seat for 10-person suites.
RECENT FORM
Kaizer Chiefs
Orlando Pirates
Read More On This Derby
Quick FAQ
What is the Soweto Derby?
The Soweto Derby is the Kaizer Chiefs vs Orlando Pirates football fixture — South Africa's biggest domestic derby and one of the most-watched club fixtures on the African continent. First played on 24 January 1970 after Kaizer Motaung left Pirates to found Chiefs. The rivalry runs across the PSL, cup competitions and friendly fixtures and averages 90,000 attendance at FNB Stadium.
When was the Soweto Derby first played?
24 January 1970, the year Kaizer Chiefs was founded. Club owner Kaizer Motaung had been an Orlando Pirates star; he left to start his own club and the first Soweto Derby followed within months. Pirates won that inaugural match 1–0.
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Last updated 2026-04-21 · written by Naledi Mokoena.