Ajax cries foul over Chiefs ‘deal’
Ajax Cape Town is unhappy at the prospect of Kaizer Chiefs playing three of their home games at Cape Town Stadium.
|||Local football club Ajax Cape Town is objecting vociferously to talks between the city and Kaizer Chiefs that may see the PSL giants play at least three of their home games at Cape Town Stadium.
Ajax’s chairman Ari Efstathiou said last night he had it under “good authority” that the events were already a done deal.
“I think it’s a snub for Cape Town and Capetonians. This is a stadium built by residents, for the people of Cape Town, and now the city is inviting outside teams to use the ground,” said the chairman.
He warned that Ajax may find a new venue, moving their home games against Chiefs and Orlando Pirates to Port Elizabeth or East London.
“So we will have this ridiculous situation of the Cape Town club going to play outside the city, and an outside club from Joburg using the Cape Town stadium,” Efstathiou said.
The City of Cape Town’s Mayco member for tourism, events and economic development Garreth Bloor confirmed the city was in negotiations with “various parties” to ensure that the stadium was financially viable, but he did not say whether the Chiefs may play more games in the city.
Responding to Efstathiou’s warning that Ajax may move its bumper home games against Pirates and Chiefs to a new venue, the city said the Cape Town club had a three-year agreement to play all of their home matches at the city’s stadium. “The matches to be played at Cape Town Stadium for this season have already been agreed to and published by the PSL.”
He said other promoters had also booked the stadium and hosted events. None of these contracts had exclusivity clauses.
Kaizer Chiefs plays their home games at the FNB Stadium in Soweto and draws some of the biggest crowds in the PSL.
The Chiefs’ visits to Cape Town Stadium during their away clashes against Ajax have been lucrative for the city, attracting tens of thousands of spectators.
Kaizer Chiefs spokesperson Vina Maphosa did not want to comment on the possibility of the team moving some of their home games to Cape Town. – Cape Argus
*kieran legg@inl.co.za