AmaZulu owner Dr Sokhela confirms club sale

AmaZulu owner Dr Patrick Sokhela has revealed he has sold the club to businessman Sandile Zungu due to health reasons, making the announcement on Friday.

Zungu, who is also president of the Black Business Council, has acquired the club through his Zungu Investment Company, with the transaction subject to Premier Soccer League approval.

"I'm very happy that AmaZulu is still here," Dr Sokhela said, before revealing his reasons for selling. "I had a stroke, I was OK, but then I had a second one. Dr [Irvin] Khoza was helping me, he asked me to hold on, but I said to him I can't.

“AmaZulu is a big team and I want to go to the games again as a fan. I will support AmaZulu until I die. The fans must support the new owner, because if they don’t, the club will go down.”

Dr Sokhela has owned the club since 2005, when he bought the side from Sisa Bikisha.

“I am very pleased to be here, I have not been coerced into soccer. It is a game I love and the game of the people,” Zungu said.

“We are very excited, we know we can make a difference to not only the club, but also the community. Not only is it now the oldest team in the DStv Premiership with 88 years of history, but we want to grow it into the number one club in the country.

“AmaZulu has got to be the number one club in the country by its centenary in 2032. It could be a gradual build-up, but we must get there.”

Zungu confirmed that head coach Ayanda Dlamini will remain in charge of the side, and made a bold claim.

“If we don’t make it into the top four this season, then we have failed. We will have very specific discussions with the coach about what he needs to make this a winning squad, a fighting squad.”