PIC: The Cape Stadium played host to the 2018 Nedbank Cup final

One of the questions that will be answered soon is just where the 2023 Nedbank Cup final will be staged.

Nedbank has been a leader in taking football around the country, with no less than 11 different final venues used in the past 15 years. That is truly taking the game to the people.
Last year’s final venue was the magnificent Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in Phokeng in the North West province.
It was a fitting stage for the magnificent decider as Mamelodi Sundowns edged Marumo Gallants 2-1 as they scored the winner through Thapelo Morena right at the end of extra-time, just as it seemed the game would go to penalties.
It was an enthralling encounter for the fans in attendance, and there will no doubt be eager eyes on where this year’s decider will be played.

But selecting a stadium to host the decider is not as cut and dried as it might seem and there are a number of factors at play.

The first of these is that it is usually in a neutral province, unless both teams are from the same one. An example of this would be the Orlando Stadium, which in 2012 hosted SuperSport United defeating Mamelodi Sundowns.

The only other time the final was staged in Orlando, it was not a neutral venue, though there were extenuating circumstances.

This was for the 2020 decider when Sundowns beat Bloemfontein Celtic, but domestic football was being played in the Gauteng bio-bubble and so organisers had no other choice. 

Other occasions when there was not a neutral venue was in the inaugural season in 2008 as Sundowns beat Mpumalanga Black Aces at the Johannesburg Stadium, and in 2010 when the newly rebuilt FNB Stadium played host to BidVest Wits against AmaZulu.

It was a match to showcase the new venue and South Africa’s readiness for the FIFA World Cup that was to be played that year. 

That shows it is not a hard and fast rule, and sometimes there are other factors that make a particular stadium the most viable candidate. 

There are still two of the venues used for the 2010 World Cup that have not hosted the Nedbank Cup decider since 2008 – Ellis Park in Johannesburg and Loftus Stadium in Pretoria.    

The magnificent Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban has played host to four finals (2013, 2014, 2017, 2019) and is the most used venue.

The Orlando Stadium (2012, 2020) is the only venue to have hosted multiple finals, with the others going to the Johannesburg Stadium (2008), Rand Stadium (2009), FNB Stadium (2010), Mbombela Stadium (2011), Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium (2015), Peter Mokaba Stadium (2016), Cape Town Stadium (2018), Free State Stadium (2021) and Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace (2022).

This year’s decider is scheduled to be played on May 27, with the competition currently at the quarterfinal stage.

There are four teams left in the draw from Gauteng, and one each from the Eastern Cape. KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Western Cape. 

PREVIOUS NEDBANK CUP FINAL VENUES 

2008 - Johannesburg Stadium

2009 - Rand Stadium

2010 - FNB Stadium

2011 - Mbombela Stadium

2012 - Orlando Stadium

2013 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2014 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2015 - Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium

2016 - Peter Mokaba Stadium

2017 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2018 - Cape Town Stadium

2019 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2020 - Orlando Stadium

2021 - Free State Stadium

2022 - Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace