PIC: Samir Nurkovic of TS Galaxy scores past Sifiso Mlungwana of Lamontville Golden Arrows

SUPERSPORT UNITED VS CAPE TOWN CITY
Feb 20, 19h00 – Lucas Moripe Stadium
* Cape Town City have never been past the quarterfinals of the Nedbank Cup and have exited in the first round in the last two years – on both occasions to Royal AM.  
* SuperSport were back-to-back winners in 2016 and 2017 but have exited in the first round in five of the six years since then, including last season to third-tier Dondol Stars. 
* SuperSport won 1-0 when these teams met in the DStv Premiership earlier this season. Etiosa Ighodaro got the only goal in August.

NB LA MASIA VS MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

Feb 20, 19h00 – Dobsonville Stadium
* NB La Masia are making their debut in the Nedbank Cup Last 32. They beat Baroka FC 4-2 on penalties in the preliminary round after a thrilling 3-3 draw.
* NB La Masia are coached by Daine Klate, who won the Nedbank Cup competition three times as a player – 2005 with SuperSport United, and 2011 and 2014 with Orlando Pirates.
* Mamelodi Sundowns have lost only one of their last 17 Nedbank Cup fixtures (W15 D1). That was a 2-1 quarterfinal defeat at Stellenbosch FC in April 2023. Their striker Peter Shalulile is the leading scorer in the competition with 14 goals since 2008. 

HIGHLANDS PARK VS SEKHUKHUNE UNITED

Feb 21, 19h00 – Dobsonville Stadium
* Highlands Park are in the ABC Motsepe League after selling their topflight status to 2019 Nedbank Cup champions TS Galaxy in 2020. They still have veteran goalkeeper Tapuwa Kapini between the sticks, as well as the same ownership group.
* Sekhukhune were beaten finalists last season, taking the lead against Orlando Pirates in the decider to succumbing to a late winner from Terrence Dzvukamanja. It was their first major cup final.
* Sekhukhune also faced SAFA opposition in the Last 32 in 2023. They beat fourth-tier Liver Brothers 6-0 for what remains a club record win.

UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA VS CAPE TOWN SPURS

Feb 21, 19h00 – Tuks Stadium
* Second-tier AmaTuks defeated what was then Ajax Cape Town in the 2009 Nedbank Cup semifinals, their shock 2-1 win setting up a final with Moroka Swallows, which they lost. They have twice been to the quarterfinals since then, but that is as far as they got.

* Cape Town Spurs were beaten finalists in 2015, losing on penalties to Mamelodi Sundowns, but have lofted this trophy twice before in 1995 and 2007.

* Cape Town Spurs have won only one of their 17 matches in all competitions this season (D1 L15). That was a 2-1 home league success against Orlando Pirates in November.     

AMAZULU VS ROYAL AM
Feb 22, 19h00 – King Zwelithini Stadium

* AmaZulu have made the final of the Nedbank Cup competition on six occasions since the 1970s, but never won. The last time was in 2010 when they went down 3-0 to BidVest Wits.

* Royal AM have three quarterfinal appearances in the last four years, advancing to the semis on one of those occasions. Their only Last 32 exit was in 2021 when they lost to second-tier Pretoria Callies.

* These two sides have met on six previous occasions with a win each and four draws. Usuthu claimed a 3-0 succession their league clash December.

STELLENBOSCH FC VS PRETORIA CALLIES
Feb 23, 19h00 – Danie Craven Stadium
* Stellenbosch had a poor record in the Nedbank Cup until last season when they reached the semifinals but lost on penalties at home to Sekhukhune United. They knocked out defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns along the way.
* Pretoria Callies, one of the oldest clubs in the country having been formed in 1898, have also been to a Nedbank Cup semifinal, but lost 1-0 to Chippa United in 2021. 
* Stellenbosch were recently crowned Carling Knockout champions when they beat TS Galaxy on penalties in the final, a first major trophy for the ambitious Winelands club.

LAMONTVILLE GOLDEN ARROWS VS TS GALAXY

Feb 23, 19h00 – Mpumalanga Stadium
* This is a repeat of the 2019 semifinal when then second-tier TS Galaxy tunned Golden Arrows 3-1 after extra-time and went on to shock Kaizer Chiefs in the final to become the first and only winner of the Nedbank Cup from outside the topflight. 
* Golden Arrows have gone out in the first round in three of the last four seasons, including to fourth-tier Vaal University of Technology in 2020. All three of those first round exits have been on penalties. They have not lost a fixture outright in the Last 32 since 2018 (0-3 vs Kaizer Chiefs).
* TS Galaxy have not got past the second round since they lifted the trophy in 2019. Last season they lost an extraordinary Last 16 clash against Stellenbosch FC 6-3.

FC RAVENS VS SPAIN FC

Feb 24, 15h00 – Princess Magogo Stadium

* FC Ravens play in the Eastern Cape ABC Motsepe League and are based in Bizana, though with no local venue suitable and the Mthatha Stadium ruled out, they will play this home tie in Durban.
* FC Ravens coach Sibusiso Mapompo played in the 2016 Nedbank Cup for Mthatha Bucks in a 1-0 loss at Cape Town club Santos. Iqraam Rayners, who top-scored in 2023 Nedbank Cup, got the only goal.
* Spain FC earned promotion from South Africa’s fourth tier last season. They won their stream in the SAFA Bojanala Regional League in the North West province. They are coached by Steve Ndaba.

SAFA MPUMALANGA VS ORLANDO PIRATES
Feb 24, 15h00 – Mbombela Stadium

* Orlando Pirates’ opponents have yet to be revealed but will be one of SAFA Mpumalanga sides Crystal Lake or Middelburg United. The former won the provincial playoff, but the latter have sought arbitration.

* Orlando Pirates have lost to lower league opponents before. They were famously beaten 4-1 by Free State third-tier side Maluti FET College in 2013. It remains one of the biggest shocks in South African football history.

* That is the only time that Orlando Pirates have lost a Last 32 game outright since 2008. The other three times they have exited at this stage of the competition have all been via penalty shoot-out.

PLATINUM CITY ROVERS VS MOROKA SWALLOWS
Feb 24, 15h00 – Isak Steyl Stadium

* Moroka Swallows have not gone past the second round of the Nedbank Cup since they lifted the trophy in 2009, when they beat second-tier University of Pretoria 1-0 in the decider at the Rand Stadium. 

* Moroka Swallows have only lost to lower league opponents once in the Nedbank Cup, a famous 2-1 defeat at the hands of then third-tier Baroka FC in the second round in 2011. 

* Platinum City Rovers debuted in the Nedbank Cup in 2016 but were then known as Polokwane City Rovers. They lost 5-0 in the first round to University of Pretoria.

JDR STARS VS HUNGRY LIONS

Feb 24, 15h00 – Giant Stadium
* JDR Stars have only ever met second-tier opponents in the Nedbank Cup, they beat University of Pretoria 2-1 in the Last 32 in 2021 and then exited in the next round to Pretoria Callies on penalties after a 0-0 draw. The irony is that stars are based in Pretoria themselves!
* Hungry Lions also reached the second round on their only other Nedbank Cup appearance in 2020. They edged Jomo Cosmos 1-0 but then lost on penalties to topflight Baroka FC in the Last 16.
* These two sides have met five times before with Lions dominating the head-to-head 4-1, including a 2-1 away win in the league earlier this season in December. All previous clashes were in the Motsepe Foundation Championship.

RICHARDS BAY VS POLOKWANE CITY

Feb 24, 18h00 – King Zwelithini Stadium

* Richards Bay have exited in the Last 32 in the last two years but to be fair on both occasions they fell to mighty Mamelodi Sundowns. In 2021, while still in the second-tier, they ousted Kaizer Chiefs 2-1 at this stage.
* Polokwane City have been dumped out of the Nedbank Cup in the first round in four of the last five years. Their best run in the competitions was to the quarterfinals in 2013 and 2016, losing to Kaizer Chiefs and Baroka FC respectively.  
* These sides have met on six previous occasions and there have been two wins each to go with two draws. Polokwane City won 1-0 away when the teams met in the league earlier this campaign.

D’GENERAL VS MADRIDTAS

Feb 25, 15h00 – Free State Stadium
* D’General coach Morena Lothane guided Mathaithai to the Nedbank Cup Last 16 in 2023. They lost 6-0 to Mamelodi Sundowns. The team is based in Botshabelo and play in the Free State ABC Motsepe League Stream A.

* Madridtas purchased the third-tier status of famous Limpopo club Black Leopards ahead of the 2023/24 season, following the latter’s relegation in the previous campaign. The Tshifudi-based side are coached by Mashudu Mudau and play in the Limpopo ABC Motsepe League Stream A.
* D’General have Lebohang Sefali and several other players from Mathaithai in their squad, so have previous Nedbank Cup experience. The same cannot be said for Spain FC. Both clubs are making their debut. 

NC PROFESSIONALS VS CHIPPA UNITED

Feb 25, 15h00 – Mxolisi Dicky Jacobs Stadium

* Northern Cape side NC Professionals are appearing in the Nedbank Cup for the third time. They lost in the Last 32 on both previous occasions, to Mbombela United (1-2) in 2019 and Mathaithai (0-2) in 2022. 
* Chippa United were beaten finalists in the Nedbank Cup in 2021, losing 1-0 to TTM (who became Marumo Gallants) in the final. They also reached the semifinals in 2017 and 2019, so have some pedigree in this competition.  

* Chippa United have twice met amateur sides before – they lost on penalties to Natal United in 2015 after a 0-0 draw and beat Phiva Young Stars 2-0 in 2018. In all they have exited to lower league sides on four occasions going out to second-tier United FC (2011) and University of Pretoria (2022).

MARITZBURG UNITED VS PAARL UNITED

Feb 25, 15h00 – Princess Magogo Stadium

* Maritzburg United were beaten finalists in the 2018 Nedbank Cup, going down 1-0 to Free State Stars in Cape Town. They have not been past the second round since then, losing in the Last 32 on three occasions.
* Maritzburg United have twice before faced amateur opposition in the Nedbank Cup, beating Tembu Royals (3-1) in 2013 and Swallows FC (3-1) in 2018. They are now a lower leag8eu team themselves having been relegated at the end of the 2022/23 topflight season.   

* Paarl United are a fourth-tier side and make their debut in the Nedbank Cup. The beat ABC Motsepe League side Maties 1-0 in the provincial final in what was seen as a huge shock. They are coached by Malunga Siyaka.

KAIZER CHIEFS VS MILFORD FC

Feb 25, 18h00 – FNB Stadium

* Kaizer Chiefs were last Nedbank Cup champions in 2013 and have appeared in the final twice since 2008, losing to second-tier TS Galaxy in 2019. This current run is their longest without lifting the trophy in the competition’s history.
* Kaizer Chiefs have lost to lower league opposition in the Nedbank Cup six times since 2008, more than any other topflight club. Chiefs have done out in the Last 32 in tow of the last three seasons, including to second-tier Richards Bay in 2021. 

* Milford FC debuted in the Nedbank Cup as a third-tier side in 2016, losing 2-1 to fellow KwaZulu-Natal outfit Lamontville Golden Arrows in the Last 32. They are playing their first season in the second-tier after purchasing the status of Uthongathi.