PIC: Lesiba Nku of Marumo Gallants celebrates a goal in the CAF Confederation Cup

Marumo Gallants will play their final CAF Confederation Cup group stage match against DR Congo side Saint Eloi Lupopo on Sunday having already sealed a place in the quarterfinals of the competition this season.
The Limpopo side are flying the country’s flag in Africa having earned their place in the Confederation Cup via the Nedbank Cup for the second year in a row.
They debuted on the continent in the 2021/22 season after winning the Nedbank Cup the previous campaign, which qualifies clubs to play in the prestigious competition.
They fell just short of the group stages on that occasion, but learnt much and were back again in 2022/23 despite finishing runners-up to Mamelodi Sundowns in the Nedbank Cup final last term.
That is because Sundowns had already sealed a place in the CAF Champions League after winning the DStv Premiership.

Gallants are no longer in the Nedbank Cup this season, but with Sundowns nailed on to play in the CAF Champions League in 2023/24 with their runaway lead at the top of the DStv Premiership, which will very shortly deliver them another domestic title, perhaps as soon as this weekend, and Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates very much in CAF club competition contention via the league, just making the final this year may again prove enough for an African adventure. 

It has happened a number of times before. Black Leopards qualified for African competition in 2012 despite losing the 2011 Nedbank Cup decider to Orlando Pirates, who had qualified for the Champions League.

The same was true in 2014 when SuperSport United qualified despite losing to Kaizer Chiefs in the Nedbank Cup final the year before, Ajax Cape Town (2016) likewise after losing to Sundowns, and Bloemfontein Celtic (2020-21) after losing the final to The Brazilians. 

Here is a list of the teams that have qualified for the Confederation Cup via the Nedbank Cup and how they fared.

2009 MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

Sundowns had a bye through the first round before a handsome 9-1 aggregate success over Mauritian side AS Vacoas-Phoenix. They came up against top DR Congo side AS Vita Club after that and following a 2-2 draw at home, lost 1-0 in Kinshasa with South African Chris O’Loughlin in charge of the Congolese.

2010 MOROKA SWALLOWS

Swallows defeated Mauritian side Pamplemousse SC in the first round after comfortable 2-1 and 3-0 successes, but came unstuck against CAPS United in the second stage, drawing 1-1 away but then losing 1-0 at home.

2011 BIDVEST WITS

For the third year running the Nedbank Cup champions were ousted in the second round as Wits defeated St Marienne from Reunion 4-1 on aggregate, despite a surprise 1-0 defeat away from home. They then lost to Madagascan side AS Adema in the second round, following a 1-1 draw at home and a 2-0 loss away.

2012 BLACK LEOPARDS

Leopards took their place in the competition as Nedbank Cup winners Orlando Pirates, who beat Lidoda Duvha 3-1 in the final, also qualified for the Champions League competition. And what a ride it was for the Limpopo side! They defeated Zimbabwean side Motor Action in the first round 3-1 in aggregate, before coming through a tough second round tie with DR Congo side St Eloi Lupopo 6-4. When they lost 3-1 away at Nigerian side Warri Wolves, it appeared their run was over, but they claimed a 2-0 success in the home leg and advanced on the away goals rule. That set up a meeting with top Sudanese side, where they lost 3-2 away, and were held to a 0-0 draw at home to end their group phase dreams.

2013 SUPERSPORT UNITED

United edged DR Congo side Don Bosco 4-3 on aggregate in the first round and then got the better of Angolan side Petro Atletico 2-0. But they came unstuck against Egyptian outfit ENPPI with a 3-1 aggregate loss.

2014 SUPERSPORT UNITED

United were back again despite their 1-0 Nedbank Cup final loss to Kaizer Chiefs as the letter entered the Champions League competition. Matsatsantsa ousted Gaborone United from Botswana in the first round 3-0 on aggregate, before beating AFC Leopards from Kenya 4-2. That set up a meeting with Tunisian giants Etoile du Sahel, which the North Africans won 5-1 on aggregate.

2015 ORLANDO PIRATES

Pirates came ever so close to lifting the Confederation Cup trophy but suffered a 2-1 aggregate loss to Etoile du Sahel in the final. They beat Uganda Revenue Authority (4-3 on aggregate), FC Mounana from Gabon (5-2) and AS Kaloum from Guinea (6-1) to reach the pool stages. They started with a 1-0 win over AC Leopards from Congo-Brazzaville, before a 2-1 loss to Egypt¹s Zamalek set them back. However, back-to-back wins over CS Sfaxien (1-0 and 2-0) got their campaign back on track and when they defeated Leopards 2-0 had booked their semifinal spot and could afford a 4-1 loss to Zamalek in their final pool match. Pirates then claimed 1-0 and 4-3 successes over Egyptian giants Al Ahly in the semifinals, before falling at the final hurdle against the Tunisians.

2016 AJAX CAPE TOWN

Ajax competed in the competition as Nedbank Cup champions Mamelodi Sundowns took part in the Champions League, which they would ultimately go on and win. But Ajax fell at the first hurdle despite gaining an excellent 2-1 away win at Angolan side Sagrada Esperanca. They lost the home leg 2-0 and were beaten on aggregate.

2017 SUPERSPORT UNITED

SuperSport took their place by virtue of winning the Nedbank Cup in 2016 and did not disappoint, playing a massive 18 games in the competition as they made it all the way through to the final. They would end as unlucky 2-1 losers to DR Congo side TP Mazembe in the final despite dominating large parts of both legs. Striker Jeremy Brockie finished as top scorer in the Confederation Cup with 10 goals. 

2018 SUPERSPORT UNITED

SuperSport returned to the Confederation Cup by virtue of their back-to-back Nedbank Cup wins, again claiming the 2017 title by beating Orlando Pirates once more. Having made the final the year before, they found the going tougher this time round, but beat Petro Atletico 2-1 on aggregate in the first round. That set up a play-off clash with Kenyan side Gor Mahia, but after a 2-2 aggregate draw, Matsatsantsa bowed out on the away goals rule.  

2018-19 FREE STATE STARS

A change in the timing of the Confederation Cup saw it move from the traditional February-November to August-May. Free State Stars were South Africa’s representatives after they beat Maritzburg United 1-0 in the 2018 Nedbank Cup decider. Their adventure would not last long though as they were drawn with Rwandan side Mukura Victory Sports. A 0-0 home draw was followed by a 1-0 away defeat in East Africa.

2019-20 TS GALAXY

TS Galaxy made history by becoming the first second-tier side to lift the Nedbank Cup when they defeated Kaizer Chiefs in the 2019 decider. The club were barely a year old then, but now had the challenge of taking their brand onto the African continent as well. They started with a pair of 1-0 wins over Seychelles side Saint Louis Suns United, and followed that up with a superb 4-1 aggregate win over CNaPS Sport from Madagascar, again both ties resulting in wins. That set up a play-off clash with Nigerian giants Enyimba and it proved a bridge too far as Galaxy last 4-1 on aggregate. 

2020-21 BLOEMFONTEIN CELTIC

Celtic were the fourth beaten finalists to win their place in the competition since 2008 and made it to the second round on what was their debut in African club competition. They came up against DR Congo outfit AS Maniema Union and claimed something of a surprise 2-0 win away in Kindu despite sending what was a second-string side as the squad battled a hectic fixture schedule. The return match was won by the visitors by the same scoreline, sending the match to penalties where Celtic triumphed 3-2. That set up a second round meeting with Nigerian outfit Rivers United that was complicated by the fact that Celtic could not enter the west African nation without going through two weeks of quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They lost the home leg 2-0 and then played the away game in neutral Benin, losing 3-0 to go down 5-0 on aggregate and end their African adventure.      

2021-22 MARUMO GALLANTS

Gallants had won the Nedbank Cup the year before while the club was still using the name Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila. They caused quite a stir in the Confederation Cup that followed, coming within a whisker of making the pool stages. They saw off the challenge of Equatorial Guinea side Futuro Kings 4-2 on aggregate, but then faced the might of DR Congo side AS Vita Club. Not many gave them a chance, but after a 2-1 home win they scrambled a 1-1 draw on the road with a late, late equaliser from Sibusiso Nkosi. That set up another meeting with a DR Congo side, this time TP Mazembe. They lost 1-0 in Lubumbashi after an own goal from skipper Lehlohonolo Nonyane, and were held to a 0-0 draw at home to bow out. But it was an excellent campaign from the Limpopo side nonetheless.