Hout Bay United launch ‘Legacy 500’ shirt fundraiser with £? R1m target

Hout Bay United FC are aiming to raise up to R1 million through an unusual shirt initiative that will allow 500 supporters, businesses and community members to place their own mark on the club’s jersey before the 2026/27 season.

The community club has launched “The Legacy 500”, a fundraising project built around a specially designed HBUFC shirt divided into 500 individual squares. Each square is available for R2,000 and can carry a participant’s name, company logo, message, drawing or autograph.

Once all 500 spaces have been claimed, everyone who has bought a square will receive a shirt.

The initiative offers Hout Bay United an alternative to the conventional model of selling the front of a football shirt to a single corporate sponsor. Instead, the club hopes to create a jersey representing hundreds of people with a direct connection to the team.

HBUFC count Jurgen Klopp, the current Germany national team coach, among their patrons. The club says the project is intended to show how a community football organisation can build meaningful financial support through its own supporters and local network, rather than depending solely on one major commercial partner.

If every square is sold, the campaign will generate R1 million. The funds are set to be reinvested directly into the club and its players, with the planned areas of support including nutrition, education, safe housing and local manufacturing.

The project’s wider message is that community football can create sustainable backing by making supporters active participants in a club’s story. Under the initiative, those who contribute will not simply see their names or designs displayed on a shirt; they will become part of an item intended to represent Hout Bay United’s collective identity.

The club believes the format can turn a standard fundraising exercise into a visible statement of community ownership. Rather than placing one company at the centre of the jersey, “The Legacy 500” gives 500 individuals or organisations the opportunity to be represented on it.

Hout Bay United are presenting the scheme as both a practical way to prepare for the 2026/27 season and a long-term investment in the club. The money raised will support day-to-day and developmental needs, including providing players with food and nutrition, educational opportunities and secure accommodation.

The design also includes local manufacturing among the areas that will benefit from the campaign, reinforcing the club’s focus on keeping the proceeds connected to its own football environment.

With each square priced at R2,000, the initiative depends on all 500 places being taken to reach its maximum target. If successful, the completed shirt will carry the names, images and messages of the supporters who helped fund it, creating a permanent record of their contribution to Hout Bay United FC.