Celebrities battle for soccer championship trophy: Hip-hop vs Maskandi
SANDTON – “We, as artists, decided that we needed to do something active which resonates with our profession.”
While America has the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game where retired athletes, actors and musicians compete in a friendly game of basketball, South Africa took a similar route but changed the formula to accommodate the local sports culture.
Local musicians, presenters, actors and soccer legends took time out of their busy schedule to compete against each other in a friendly game of soccer. The match lived up to its expectations of entertainment, excitement and drama as it left fans hanging on the edge of their seats and supporters cheering for their favourite artists.
Discovery Soccer Park, located in Sandton, hosted a celebrity soccer match-off on August 10. The event was organised by rapper Big Zulu and by maskandi artist Khuzani Mpungose.
The setup of the soccer teams was based on the two genres: hip-hop and maskandi. The lineup for both sides left many questioning which genre would win. From the Maskandi team’s side, players such as Ngalo Vee, Siya Nkomo, Phumudzo Manenzhe and Mapensela Ndlovu all displayed high-quality soccer abilities when playing.
Key players from the Hip-Hop team were Big Zulu, Blackie, Sjava, Reneilwe ‘Yeye’ Letsholonyane, Lindough and AKA, who provided a spectacular assist for Big Zulu in the first half of the match.
Despite the lead, the match ended in 2–2 draw as Maskandi team player, Siya Nkomo, led his team to a great comeback by scoring two goals within three minutes of the second half. The draw between the two teams led to a penalty shootout where individual brilliance from musician Donald Moatshe and rapper AKA contributed to a 4–3 victory for the
Hip-Hop team.
Rapper Riky Rick said, “It feels good to win. It’s been a tough month so it’s good to start off the week with a great match followed by a win – respect to the opposition for the great game.”
Maskandi captain Ngelo Vee explained where his team excelled and lacked during the game. “Tactically, we were much disciplined, it’s just that we lacked a couple of things, because we did not train together.
“Individual brilliance came into play and it was effective. Our bench and starting 11 were strong, but they [Hip-Hop team] played smart and also capitalised on our mistakes, which was frustrating but a lovely experience nevertheless.”
Actor Mapensela Ndlovu added, “It was my first time playing with the team and against the opposition. The experience was good and the match was nice. We need more events like this one.”
The atmosphere on the pitch was nothing short of amazing as both teams embraced each other and celebrated together.
Khuzani Mpungose, one of the organisers of the event, shared his views on how the event came into being. “We as artists decided that we needed to do something active which resonates with our profession.
“We like to entertain the people, so we came up with this fascinating idea to introduce the music industry to sport. This is the first of its kind in South Africa, and we hope to continue and develop the event.”
