Richards Bay appoint Pantev after being impressed by his African coaching record

Richards Bay FC chairman Sifiso ‘Jomo’ Biyela says Dimitar Nikolaev Pantev’s experience of winning trophies across Africa convinced the club to appoint him as their new head coach.

The Bulgarian was confirmed as the Natal Rich Boyz manager earlier this week, replacing Ronnie Gabriel, who resigned after a difficult start to the season.

Richards Bay collected three draws and lost four of their opening seven Betway Premiership matches before Gabriel’s departure.

Pantev arrives with recent success in several African competitions. He led Gaborone United to the 2024/25 Botswana Premier League title and guided Jwaneng Galaxy FC to the 2025/26 National Cup.

He also took Tanzanian club Simba SC to the group stages of the 2025 CAF Champions League and helped Botswana’s Orapa United reach the group phase of the 2024 CAF Confederation Cup.

Biyela said the club received a number of coaching applications after Gabriel left, but Pantev’s record stood out during the recruitment process.

Speaking on Ukhozi FM’s Prime Time Sport with Victor Molefe, Biyela said: “We looked at his experience, a lot of wanted to take over.

“The funny thing is when you lose once just once, you’ll receive CV’s on WhatsApp. What I do, I just block that person.

“This time, we had several CV’s and we received a call from someone who told us about the coach and said look at his CV and we were impressed.”

The chairman said Richards Bay interviewed Pantev before deciding that his approach would suit the club.

“We interviewed him and we’re happy about his style of play and we believe he’ll fit,” he added.

“He won leagues in his country, in Cameroon, Botswana and also did well in Tanzania.”

Pantev’s appointment represents a change of direction for Richards Bay, who had previously relied on local coaches.

Biyela said that was an important factor in the club’s decision to look overseas for a new manager.

“We felt let’s change this time around because we have been coached by local coaches,” he said.