Orlando Pirates have a rich cup history and will be looking to create even more when they face Mamelodi Sundowns on Saturday in the MTN8 final at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban.
It will 66th time that the Buccaneers contest a cup final in the history of the professional game in the country with 33 wins and 32 defeats.
Since 2020, however, Pirates have won eight and lost two of the finals they have competed in.
Here is a list of all Pirates’ past cup finals:
1971 Life Challenge Cup: The first cup final in NPSL history was inevitably between Kaizer Chiefs and Pirates. Chiefs won the replay 2-1 at Orlando Stadium after the first game ended 2-2.
1972 Champion of Champions: Chiefs fielded the unregistered Shaka Ngcobo in the first leg, which ended 3-3. Pirates refused to play the game again but lost the second leg 7-3. A replay was ordered, and Chiefs won 2-0.
1972 BP Top Eight: A third final in a row between Chiefs and Pirates, this time with Bucks winning 3-2 and Elias Mokopane scoring the winner.
1973 Life Challenge Cup: Pirates registered an emphatic 5-2 triumph over Zulu Royals at the Orlando Stadium with a pair of goals for both MacDonald Skosana and Simon Mothoa.
1974 BP Top Eight: A thrilling two-legged tussle against Moroka Swallows Ltd, with the Birds 3-1 victors in the first leg in Port Elizabeth but Pirates storming back to take the trophy by winning 6-3 in the return tie at Orlando.
1974 Champion of Champions: Pirates played amateur Manchester City in the final and were held 2-2 at Atteridgeville in the first leg but with a return 9-1 in the most one-sided final in SA Cup history.
1974 Life Challenge Cup: Third cup success in a row for Pirates as Jomo Sono scored the only goal of the final against AmaZulu.
1974 (Dec) BP Top Eight Cup: A second top eight competition in the season, with Chiefs winning both legs at the Orlando Stadium against Pirates for a 6-2 aggregate triumph.
1975 Champion of Champions: Pirates lost 3-0 to Chiefs in the first leg in Umlazi and then got a further hammering in the return at Orlando when they went down 4-1.
1975 Life Challenge Cup: Webster Lichaba scored in extra time to see Pirates keep their trophy with a 2-1 win over Chiefs at the Orlando Stadium.
1976 Champion of Champions: Pirates won the first leg over Chiefs 1-0 in KwaMashu and with the score 3-3 in extra time in the return, rioting stopped play with Pirates declared the winners.
1976 Benson & Hedges Cup: Pule Ntsoelengoe scored the only goal as Chiefs beat Pirates 1-0 at Umlazi.
1977 Champion of Champions: Umlazi hosted the first leg which Chiefs won 1-0 with Milton Nkosi sent off for Pirates and the second leg one week later at Orlando saw Chiefs compete a 3-1 aggregate triumph.
1977 Benson & Hedges Cup: Chiefs and Pirates again contested the final of the FA Cup with AmaKhosi’s Ebson Mugoyo scoring the game’s only goal.
1977 BP Top Challenge Cup: Pirates beat Benoni 3-0 in the first leg of the final at KwaMashu with a double from Webster Lichaba and although they lost the return 3-2 at Orlando, won the trophy on aggregate.
1978 Champion of Champions: Pirates had amateur giantkillers Seshego Stonebreakers in the final and won 4-1 on aggregate over the two legs played at Atteridgeville and Orlando.
1979 BP Top Eight Cup: Pirates crashed heavily to Swallows in the first leg in KwaMashu, going down 3-0 and a 2-1 success in the return did not make up the aggregate deficit.
1980 BP Top Eight Cup: A second successive top eight final but again defeat for Bucs after a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the final at Durban’s New Kingsmead stadium. Witbank Aces scored the only goal of the return at Orlando in extra time to snatch the trophy.
1980 Mainstay Cup: Jomo Sono returned from playing club football in Canada to inspire Pirates to a 3-2 victory over Swallows and was carried shoulder high at the end of the match. Sono scored the winner just after halftime after Phil Venter fouled Webster Lichaba to give Pirates a decisive penalty.
1981 BP Top Eight Cup: Walter da Silva was coach as Henry ‘Mtofi’ Khumalo scored a hat-trick in the second leg of the final at Orlando to see Pirates come from behind and edge Chiefs 3-2 on aggregate.
1981 Mainstay Cup: A replay was needed after a 1-1 draw in the first game. It was 1-1 in the replay at Orlando as well before Chiefs scored twice in the last 30 minutes to take the trophy with a 3-1 scoreline.
1982 Champion of Champions: Chiefs won their fourth successive title and completed the grand slam, adding the Champions of Champions title to the league championship, Mainstay Cup and Top Eight Cup won in the previous months. The 1-1 draw at Orlando completed a 3-2 aggregate triumph for the AmaKhosi.
1983 BP Top Eight Cup: Pirates beat Highlands Park to lift the trophy. After a goalless draw in the first leg in Durban, Kagiso Mogale and Henry Khumalo scored for Bucs to win 2-0 in the second leg.
1983 Champion of Champions: Pirates took a second trophy in the space of a month by edging Chiefs 2-1 on aggregate. The first leg in Durban was goalless, and Eric Chauke netted the winner in the second leg at Orlando.
1984 Mainstay Cup: Ellis Park was overflowing with excited spectators as Teenage Dladla’s penalty handed Chiefs a narrow 1-0 victory over Pirates.
1987 JPS Knockout Cup: After missing out on the previous 10 domestic cup finals, Pirates met Bush Bucks in a thrilling three-part final. The aggregate score after two legs was 3-3, so a replay was hosted at Ellis Park, where Pirates, coached by Jingles Perreira, lost 2-1.
1988 BoB Save Super Bowl: Pirates’ first silverware in five years as Lawrence Maake scored in extra time of the replay at Ellis Park to edge Chiefs 2-1. The first game had ended goalless after extra time.
1990 JPS Knockout Cup: Mamelodi Sundowns won the first leg 1-0 at King’s Park in Durban and then held Pirates, coached by Englishman Dave Roberts, to a 1-1 draw at Soccer City in the return.
1991 Caste Challenge: Chiefs had the upper hand on Pirates as they went two-up after 20 minutes but eventually won 2-1 with Basil Steenkamp scoring a late consolation goal for the side coached by Manny Pinheiro.
1992 Caste Challenge: Pirates came from behind to beat Sundowns 2-1 at Soccer City with Bashin Mahlangu equalising with an 85th-minute penalty and the Zairian international Gento Kambala ensuring success in extra time.
1993 BP Top Eight Cup: Mahlangu and Kambala were again scorers after Nick Seshweni netted the opener against his old club, Witbank Aces, as Pirates won the final at Soccer City.
1995 Coca-Cola Cup: Pirates lost 1-0 in the final at Soccer City to Wits University, for whom the Nigerian striker Benson Otiti scored the game’s only goal.
1995 African Champions Cup: After drawing 2-2 at home in the first leg against ASEC Abidjan at Soccer City, coach Joe Frickleton was fired and assistant Ronald Mkhandawire took over for the return in the Ivory Coast. There, against all odds, a breakaway goal from Jerry Sikhosana saw Pirates become the first South African club to win a continental title.
1996 BP Top Eight Cup: Pirates and QwaQwa Stars drew 1-1 in Durban, so they had a replay in Bloemfontein where Jerry Sikhosana, Andries Sebola, and Helman Mkhalele netted the goals in a comprehensive 3-0 triumph.
1996 BoB Save Super Bowl: The first trophy of the new PSL and a second for Pirates within the calendar year under Russian coach Viktor Bondarenko as they beat Jomo Cosmos 1-0 with Andries Sebola scoring two minutes from time.
1998 BoB Save Super Bowl: Pirates and Sundowns drew the final at Soccer City, but there was no time for an immediate replay, so the two clubs came back two months later, after Bafana’s World Cup debut at France ’98, to also play out a 1-1 draw in the replay before Sundowns won on penalties.
2000 BP Top Eight Cup: Pirates won the only South African cup final settled by a ‘golden goal’ when they beat Ajax Cape Town at Soccer City with Thabo Mngomeni’s penalty in extra time settling the outcome 2-1 in the Buccaneers’ favour.
2000 Rothmans Cup: Ajax and Pirates played each other in a second successive cup final and drew 1-1 at Soccer City. The replay was five days later at the same venue, and this time saw Ajax win emphatically 4-1.
2006 Bob Save Super Bowl: A long wait for Pirates to win a trophy came against Chiefs at King’s Park in Durban, but there were no goals in the game, with Chiefs taking the trophy 5-3 on post-match spot kicks.
2007 SAA Supa 8: Sundowns beat Pirates, then coached by the Congolese Bibey Mutombo, with an early goal from Brent Carelse at King’s Park.
2008 Telkom Knockout: There was no coming back for Pirates at the Chatsworth Stadium after Ajax went 2-0 up in 16 minutes, and although there was a consolation goal scored by Siphelele Mthembu, Ruud Krol’s team ended up on the losing side.
2010 MTN8: Start of a dominant post-World Cup season for Pirates as they edged Swallows on post-match penalties at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, as Daine Klate converted an 11th-minute penalty and then in the shootout, Lucky Lekgwathi rammed home the winning kick.
2010 Telkom Knockout: A stinging loss for Pirates at Soccer City as Chiefs beat them 3-0, but the Buccaneers won the league title and reached all three cup finals in the 2010-11 season.
2011 Nedbank Cup: Pirates became the first ‘double’ winners in 13 years as they came from behind to beat second division Black Leopards 3-1 at Mbombela Stadium. After
Rooi Mahamutsa’s own goal, Isaac Chansa and Thulasizwe Mbuyane’s double ensured a first Pirates double since 1975.
2011 MTN8: New coach Julio Leal got off to the perfect start as Pirates edged Chiefs at Soccer City to retain the MTN8 title, with Oupa Manyisa netting a 107th-minute winner.
2011 Telkom Knockout: A fifth final in a row for the Bucs as Mbuyane scored after three minutes, and Klate and Chansa added two more in the last quarter-hour, to beat Bidvest Wits 3-1 at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, but Leal got fired soon after.
2013 MTN8: The first of two successive finals against Platinum Stars, which Pirates both lost in upset results. They needed a late equaliser from Thabo Matlaba to draw 1-1 in Durban but Stars won 3-1 on penalties after extra time.
2013 Telkom Knockout: At the Mbombela Stadium, skipper Lekgwathi had Pirates in a halftime lead but Botswana international Mogakolodi Ngele scored twice in the last 12 minutes to see Stars shock Pirates again.
2013 African Champions League: In the group phase, Pirates inflicted the heaviest home defeat suffered by Al Ahly in African club competition, but the Cairo giants took revenge in the final. Mohamed Aboutrika curled home an exquisite free kick with Matlaba equalising late in stoppage time for a 1-1 draw at home in the first leg. The return in Cairo saw Ahly win 2-0 to take the title.
2014 Nedbank Cup: A fourth final in a single season for the Buccaneers, who had a newly arrived coach in Vladimir Vermezovic. Jabulani Shongwe gave Wits the lead at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, before a brace from Kermit Erasmus and another from Sifiso Myeni sealed the cup for Pirates.
2014 MTN8: The first meeting at the Moses Mabhida Stadium between the Soweto giants and Chiefs, punishing some poor defending as centre-back Tefu Mashamaite was allowed to head home unmarked from a free kick for the game’s only goal.
2015 African Confederation Cup: Eric Tinkler was in charge as Pirates hosted the first leg against Etoile Sahel but failed to make it count. Thamsanqa Gabuza had Bucs ahead at the Orlando Stadium, but they gave up a goal four minutes from the end. A solitary goal for the hosts in the second leg in Sousse ensured a 2-1 aggregate triumph for the Tunisians.
2016 Nedbank Cup: Luvuyo Memela gave Pirates an early lead over SuperSport United in Polokwane but found themselves 3-1 down at halftime. A Clayton Daniels own goal early in the second period, as well as an injury to opposing keeper Ronwen Williams, set up a pulsating finish, but Pirates could not grab an equaliser.
2017 Nedbank Cup: SuperSport beat Pirates for a second successive year in the final, this time played in Durban, in an emphatic 4-1 thumping. Oupa Manyisa netted a late consolation for Pirates from the spot and it was no surprise when Swedish coach Kjell Jonevret left after.
2018 Telkom Knockout: A fifth successive cup final loss for Pirates but arguably the most embarrassing as lowly Baroka edged them 3-2 on post-match penalties. Twice Pirates had to come back to make it 1-1 after 90 minutes and 2-2 after extra time.
2020 MTN8: The silverware drought was broken in Durban as Deon Hotto and Thembinkosi Lorch (penalty) scored for a 2-1 victory after Bloemfontein Celtic had taken a shock third-minute lead.
2022 African Confederation Cup: Pirates came out second best in Uyo, Nigeria after losing 5-4 on penalties following a 1-1 draw against Renaissance Berkane from Morocco. The teams could not be separated before extra time, when Berkane took the lead from a penalty, only for Lorch to equalise after 117 minutes. But he then missed his spot-kick in the shoot-out to go from hero to villain in a massive blow to co-coaches Fadlu Davids and Mandla Ncikazi.
2022 MTN8: Monnapule Saleng proved the hero at the Moses Mabhida Stadium with his 25th-minute goal to beat AmaZulu 1-0 and give Spanish coach José Riveiro his first trophy.
2023 Nedbank Cup: A controversial last-minute goal from Terrence Dzvukamanja saw Pirates fight back from behind at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria to beat Sekhukhune United 2-1 and win the Nedbank Cup for the first time in nine years.
2023 MTN8: The clash against Sundowns in Durban ended goalless and went to penalties where Pirates won 3-1 with Sipho Chaine saving two efforts in the shootout.
2024 Nedbank Cup: Pirates edged Sundowns again for cup silverware, this time in Nelspruit where Relebohile Mofokeng’s last-minute goal goes down as one of the best winners yet seen in a South African cup final.
2024 MTN8: Pirates were behind after 12 minutes against Stellenbosch at the Moses Mabhida Stadium but Saleng equalised before halftime and then there were two late goals from Tshegofatso Mabasa and Mofokeng to ensure trophy success.
2025 Nedbank Cup: Chiefs ended a 10-year wait for a trophy, made all the more sweeter that it came against their old rivals Pirates, denying The Buccaneers a hat-trick of title wins.
2025 MTN8: Pirates won the top eight for an unprecedented fourth time in a row with a 3-0 win over Stellenbosch in Nelspruit, although it was not as emphatic as the scoreline suggested with the goals all coming in extra time.
2025 Carling Knockout: New coach Abdeslam Ouaddou’s dream first season continued as Mofokeng’s goal in extra time in Polokwane ensured a 1-0 triumph over Marumo Gallants.