23 July 2019 – All roads lead to the North West Province for the 2019 edition of the SAFA/SAB U21 League National Championships, kicking off on 29 July until 3 August 2019.
Ten (10) teams, made up of nine provinces and the invited University Sport South Africa (USSA), will battle it out for the top spot. This year the competition will take place in Mahikeng.
The group stages will be played at the North West University grounds from 29 – 31 July, while the semi-finals and finals are scheduled for the Montshioa Stadium on 1 and 3 August
“It is that time of the year again when we bear witness to South African talent on display in the annual SAFA/SAB U21 League National Championship. We are all aware that this by far the biggest and most successful grassroots development league, which has produced several players who have gone on to carve their careers and big leagues – the 2017/18 PSL Football of the Season, Percy Tau comes to mind, so does the Young Player of the Season, Siphesihle Ndlovu,” said SAFA President Danny Jordaan.
“These players, and many others we have haven’t mentioned, could not have done without the help of SAB who have stood the test of time when it comes to supporting South Africa football development. We cannot thank them enough for their efforts and we would also like to take this opportunity to convey our gratitude to the North West Province for hosting us this year. We are confident it will be another exciting tournament like it was the case in Durban last year.”
The SAFA/SAB U21 League National Championship pits the nine provincial champions as well as a university select side against one another in a display of the finest grassroots football the country has on offer – North West, Free State, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, Limpopo, Western Cape, Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu Natal and USSA.
The group phase will be played on a round-robin basis with the teams divided into two groups (Group A and Group B).
The top two teams from each group will qualify for semifinals, which will be followed by the knockout phase to determine the finalists.
The games come courtesy of the North West municipality.
The matches will kickoff at 09h00 from Monday to Thursday, and will have later start of 10h00 on Friday and Saturday.
The SAFA/SAB U21 League National Championship is a hub for identification of players in South Africa, where scouts from the ABSA Premier Soccer League come in numbers to identify talent.
USSA won the title when they defeated Mpumalanga 2-1 in a tense final at the King Zwelithini Stadium in Umlazi. This was USSA’s third title in the competition – they lifted the trophy in 2011 and 2016. This was also their third final in a row, as they finished runners up to Gauteng in 2017.
For a copy of this year’s fixture, CLICK HERE
HISTORY OF THE SAFA/SAB U21 LEAGUE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
CHAMPIONS RUNNER-UP THIRD PLACE FOURTH PLACE
2008-2009 Free State Northern Cape Limpopo Gauteng
2009-2010 Eastern Cape North West Gauteng Western Cape
2010-2011 USSA Gauteng Mpumalanga Free State
2011-2012 Gauteng USSA Mpumalanga Kwazulu-Natal
2012-2013 Western Cape Mpumalanga Kwazulu-Natal Limpopo
2013-2014 Free State North West
2014-2015 Free State Mpumalanga USSA Limpopo
2015-2016 USSA Free State Gauteng Limpopo
2016-2017 Gauteng USSA Mpumalanga Western Cape
2017-2018 USSA Mpumalanga Gauteng Limpopo