Kaizer Chiefs v Mamelodi Sundowns ticket sales surge ahead of Soccer City showdown

Stadium Management's managing director, Bertie Grobbelaar, has revealed that a whopping 27 000 tickets have already been sold by Monday morning for the blockbuster Kaizer Chiefs versus Mamelodi Sundowns Betway Premiership showdown at Soccer City on Wednesday.

At a media conference on Monday, Grobbelaar shared insights into the preparations for this crunch fixture. The big decision will be made on Tuesday regarding whether to cap sales at 45 000 or go all out for 60 000 tickets.

“It’s a strange discussion to have today, but determining the capacity for Wednesday’s match is quite the challenge,” Grobbelaar stated enthusiastically. “Right now, we’re sitting at about 27 000 ticket sales.”

He went on to explain their thought process: “We’ve presented two plans to the ESSPC (Event Safety and Security Planning Committee) — one for 45 000 and another for 60 000. Just to put things in perspective, we always prioritise safety and security, but we also have to balance the commercial elements of our planning.”

Grobbelaaar stated: “If we choose a 60 000 capacity rather than 45 000, there will be an additional cost difference of R500 000 associated with city services, JMPD, medical support, and security companies. As we speak, a safety and security planning committee meeting is underway.

"In discussions with the host club (Chiefs), with their support, we've decided to make our final call on this by 12 o’clock on Tuesday.”

“It’s an interesting situation to host this fixture on a Wednesday evening at 7.30pm. People will need to travel, and with it being the end of the month and payday in between, we have to consider all possible scenarios.”

"For now, they’re navigating the unknowns of the planning, but a decision will be made on Tuesday.”

“This decision obviously impacts a wide range of factors — gate access, traffic and transport management, and parking allocations. We’re fully prepared for both scenarios, and we’ve presented all plans to the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality for approval.”