When Mamelodi Sundowns lifted the league trophy for a record 15th time—and for the eighth season in a row—some local football fans and pundits couldn’t help but ask: Is it time for Financial Fair Play in South Africa?
The discussion isn’t new, but Sundowns’ ongoing dominance has brought it roaring back. One of the voices leading the call is popular Metro FM Podcast Monday analyst and Switch-On website host, Nadim Lukhele.
Nadim sums it up well:
“Looking at Mamelodi Sundowns’ dominance in the transfer market, it’s becoming clear that no other PSL team can keep up financially. While Sundowns have done well on and off the field, the gap between them and the rest is growing wider each season. Introducing Financial Fair Play in the PSL would give other teams a fair shot—not by punishing success, but by promoting balance, sustainability, and local talent development.”
So, what exactly is Financial Fair Play (FFP), and would it even work in the PSL?
What Is Financial Fair Play?
FFP is a set of rules introduced by UEFA around 2010 to prevent clubs from spending beyond their means. The message was simple: don’t spend more than you earn!
Clubs were allowed a maximum loss of £60 million over three years, and by 2025/26 UEFA plans to introduce a spending cap: clubs can spend no more than 70% of their revenue on transfers, wages, and agent fees.
Those breaking the rules face heavy penalties:
- Fines
- Withholding of prize money
- Squad size limits
- Transfer bans
- Even bans from the Champions League or other European competitions
Big clubs like Manchester City, PSG, AC Milan, and Galatasaray have all faced UEFA’s wrath at one point.
Could Financial Fair Play Work in South Africa?
Let’s take a closer look at the numbers.
South African clubs don’t publicly disclose their finances, but according to reports, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates both bring in over R100 million per season. Much of this comes from their headline sponsor Vodacom, reportedly paying around R100 million a year to each club.
Add additional sponsors, gate-takings, and merchandise sales, and these giants comfortably surpass the R100 million mark. Mamelodi Sundowns, thanks to multiple sponsors, prize money from winning domestic and continental competitions, and soon from their FIFA Club World Cup participation in 2025, also likely clears R100 million easily.
Now, under UEFA-style rules where clubs can only spend 70% of revenue on transfers, Chiefs, Pirates, and Sundowns would each be capped at spending around R70 million a season.
But what about the smaller PSL clubs?
Many of them don’t have corporate sponsors. They survive mainly on the PSL grant of R24 million per season. That would limit their transfer spending to just R16.8 million a season under the same 70% rule.
For context:
- A quality PSL player transfer often costs R10 million.
- The “big three” clubs could sign six to seven players per season.
- Smaller clubs could barely afford one or two players.
And that’s assuming smaller clubs don’t have to spend their entire grant just to keep the lights on. According to TS Galaxy owner Tim Sukazi, running a PSL club costs more than R2 million per month. That’s over R24 million a year, meaning many clubs already operate at a loss and rely on their owners’ contributions to stay afloat.
The Bottom Line
While Financial Fair Play sounds fair in theory, it could do more harm than good in the PSL. It wouldn’t reduce Sundowns’ dominance; if anything, it might cripple smaller clubs further. Sundowns would still have an edge with prize money from CAF and FIFA tournaments plus big sponsorships.
So, maybe the question for Nadim Lukhele and others is not “Should we have Financial Fair Play?” but rather “How can it be tailored to work in South Africa?”
A one-size-fits-all UEFA model might not fit the unique challenges and realities of the PSL. Perhaps a locally designed version could encourage balance without punishing smaller teams for simply surviving.
