Premier Soccer League (PSL) chairman Irvin Khoza revealed the staggering viewership numbers of PSL matches that have even surpassed the Fifa World Cup and the Rugby World Cup finals.
Khoza mentioned that the 2022/23 MTN8 final between Orlando Pirates v Mamelodi Sundowns, and last season’s Nedbank Cup final between Kaizer Chiefs and the Buccaneers, had attracted the highest viewership in the history of the PSL.
In the October 2023 final, Pirates defeated Sundowns 3-1 via penalties after a goalless draw, while Amakhosi nailed Pirates 2-1 in the Ke Yona final in May.
Both finals were played at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban.
“I cannot stop talking about the achievements we have made in terms of making sure that the content that we produce becomes more attractive. Again, I want to juxtapose the success of the PSL – when Pirates played against Sundowns in the final of the MTN8, they achieved a viewership of 9,5-million viewership, which was an unbelievable achievement,” said Khoza.
He revealed the mind-blowing numbers at the 2024/25 PSL Awards, where the league’s and cup tournament best performers were honoured and bestowed with accolades and trophies.
Last year, Khoza mentioned to selected journalists that when the Buccaneers defeated the Brazilians in that 2023 final, the viewership surpassed that of the final of the 2023 Rugby World Cup between the Springboks and New Zealand in France, which the Boks won.
“In the 2024/25 Nedbank Cup final between Chiefs and Pirates, the viewership was 9,9 million, bigger than the 2022 Fifa World Cup final between Argentina and France [in Qatar].
“This tells the story that from the soccer content that we produce, we have a product, and the challenge that remains for us is how we manage the product.
“The PSL will be coming up with a product guide, to make sure that we do not lose the trend, which is showing upward movement, or that we do not lose our success story of 40 years ago when we started,” added Khoza.
