Polokwane City choose old Peter Mokaba Stadium for Kaizer Chiefs clash

Polokwane City will host Kaizer Chiefs at the old Peter Mokaba Stadium despite municipal officials confirming that the New Peter Mokaba Stadium is ready to stage football matches this season.

The decision was made by Polokwane City in consultation with the Premier Soccer League (PSL), according to Mantlako Sebaka, the municipality’s manager for Sport and Recreation.

The New Peter Mokaba Stadium is home to Betway Premiership club Sekhukhune United and is also used by Polokwane City. However, City have opted to move their fixture against Chiefs to the neighbouring older venue, which is also owned by Polokwane Municipality.

“The New Peter Mokaba Stadium is ready pitch wise, facility wise and amenity wise,” Sebaka told iDiski Times.

“So, we are good to go. And secondly, the Polokwane City football club match against Kaizer Chiefs football club is going to be played at the old stadium, a decision that was taken by the club together with the PSL.

“For us we had hoped that the match could be played in the new stadium but nevertheless Polokwane City is a club member of the PSL and Polokwane municipality is not a club member.

“We are just a host city discharging our responsibility of ensuring that the people of Polokwane and the surrounding they get to enjoy the sport and sport development in general.”

The New Peter Mokaba Stadium, a 2010 FIFA World Cup venue, was unavailable at the beginning of the 2026/27 season while its pitch underwent rehabilitation.

During that period, Sekhukhune United played their home matches at Seshego Stadium. Polokwane City, also known as Rise and Shine, initially used the same venue before returning to their preferred ground once the New Peter Mokaba Stadium had been restored and cleared to host matches again.

Municipal officials had hoped the larger, newer stadium would be selected for the meeting with Kaizer Chiefs. Sebaka said, however, that the municipality’s role was to provide a suitable venue and support football in the city, rather than determine where a PSL club’s fixture should be played.

Polokwane City’s choice means the highly anticipated meeting with Amakhosi will take place at the old Peter Mokaba Stadium, even though the larger facility next door has now been declared ready in terms of its pitch, facilities and amenities.

The match follows discussion around whether Kaizer Chiefs’ first goal in a previous fixture should have stood, with Hlungwani offering an explanation. Faiz also recalled what Duba told him before a free-kick, according to related coverage by iDiski Times.

The report was written by Lethabo Kganyago (@KganyagoLee).

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