The 2011 Vodacom Challenge will see English Premiership giants Tottenham Hotspur take on Orlando Pirates FC and Kaizer Chiefs from July 16-23 in a return for one of the most prestigious international club competitions on the global footballing calendar.
The Vodacom Challenge took a break in 2010 due to the FIFA World Cup™, but is now back to deliver world-class football on behalf of a world-class network!
Tottenham Hotspur will be hoping to reclaim the title they won in 2007, their last appearance in the competition, while title holders Kaizer Chiefs will aim for a repeat of their 2009 triumph, when they beat the English side Manchester City 1-0 in the final.
Such has been the quality of the opposition since its inaugural year in 1999 that the Vodacom Challenge is now among the foremost pre-season competitions in the world, having also twice hosted European giants Manchester United in recent years. And the return of Tottenham Hotspur will only add to the legend.
Indeed, the competition is a chance for the best of South Africa to challenge the best of the rest of the footballing world and provides thrilling entertainment for fans across the country.
Tottenham Hotspur, who can boast not only two South African’s within their current squad in Steven Pienaar and Bongani Khumalo, but also the likes of PFA Player of the Year Gareth Bale, as voted for by professional footballers across England, Dutch maestro Rafael van der Vaart, Croatian playmaker Luka Modri?, English wing-wizard Aaron Lennon and with the artistry of French defender, William Gallas.
There is a special relationship between Tottenham Hotspur and South Africa and the Club has a long-term partnership with SOS Children’s Villages in South Africa having funded the Tottenham Hotspur House in the SOS Children’s Village in Rustenburg.
This will be the fourth time that Tottenham Hotspur has been to South African shores, having first visited the country in 1963 as holders of the European Cup Winners’ Cup, and then again in 2003 to support South Africa’s bid for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™. After that they made their 2007 appearance at the Vodacom Challenge.
The 2011 tournament will be a huge celebration of football and once more organisers have opted to take the matches around the country.
All four match venues for the 2011 Vodacom Challenge were used during the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and provide world-class facilities for the players and supporters alike.
The tournament will kick-off at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane when Kaizer Chiefs take on Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, July 16 (15h00 kick off).
It is a fitting place to start, given that in the last edition of the Vodacom Challenge in 2009, Orlando Pirates took on Manchester City at the old Peter Mokaba Stadium, in the shadow of the new venue as it was still being built.
The action then moves on to the Mbombela Stadium in Mbombela on Tuesday, July 19 (20h15 kick off) as Orlando Pirates meet Tottenham Hotspur in a repeat of the 2007 Final that was won 3-0 by the visiting English side.
It is the first time that Mbombela will host a Vodacom Challenge match, a new venue to add to the fantastic arenas that have been used in the past.
The all-important Soweto Derby to determine the finalists to meet Tottenham Hotspur in the tournament will be played at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Thursday, July 21 (20h15 kick off).
This year’s Final will be played at Coca-Cola Park in Johannesburg on Saturday, July 23 (15h00 kick off), where the trophy will be handed to the winning captain to usher in a new champion of this most prestigious of international club competitions.
The match will no doubt be an emotional occasion, coming 10 years on from the tragic events of April 11, 2001, at the then Ellis Park stadium after a stampede during a Soweto Derby between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs.
Tickets for the matches go on sale at the end of May and can be purchased through Computicket, Shoprite, Checkers and Checkers Hyper with prices ranging from R50 to R150.
Related: Vodacom Challenge Web Site.
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