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| Full name | Orlando Pirates Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames |
| ||
| Short name | Pirates | ||
| Founded | 1937; 88 years ago (1937), asOrlando Boys Club | ||
| Ground | Orlando Stadium | ||
| Capacity | 37,313[1] | ||
| Chairman | Irvin Khoza | ||
| Manager | Abdeslam Ouaddou | ||
| League | Betway Premiership | ||
| 2024–25 | 2nd of 16 | ||
| Website | orlandopiratesfc.com | ||
 Current season | |||
Orlando Pirates Football Club, referred to as simplyPirates, is a South African professionalfootball club based inOrlando, Soweto that plays in the top-tier system ofFootball in South Africa known asBetway Premiership. The team plays its home matches atOrlando Stadium in Soweto.[2]
The club was founded in 1937 and was originally based in Orlando, Soweto.[3] Orlando Pirates are the first club since the inception of thePremier Soccer League in 1996 to have won three major trophies in a single season back to back, having won the domestic leagueABSA Premiership, the domestic cupNedbank Cup and the Top 8 CupMTN 8 during the ABSA Premiership 2010–11 season and domestic league ABSA Premiership, the League CupTelkom Knockout and the Top 8 Cup MTN 8 during the ABSA Premiership 2011–12 season.[4] They are one of only two South African teams withMamelodi Sundowns to win theCAF Champions League, which they won in 1995 and were runners up of2013 CAF Champions League.[5]
They are also the runners-up of the 2015 and 2021–2022CAF Confederation Cup.[6]
In total Orlando Pirates have appeared in fourConfederation of African Football finals, that is more continental finals than any other Premier Soccer League side.
The club has won nine league titles and 89 trophies in total including 10 South African cup trophies.[7]In 2025 they became the first team to win four consecutiveMTN 8 finals.[8][9][10]
Orlando Pirates is one of South Africa's oldest football clubs having been established in 1937 in Orlando East, Soweto.[3][11]
The founders of Orlando Pirates included the offspring of migrant workers who moved from rural areas to work in the gold mines of Gauteng. Boys in Orlando came together at every available opportunity in open spaces and in informal groupings to play football. The original club was formed in 1934 by a group of teenagers at the Orlando Boys Club.[12] Andries Mkhwanazi, popularly known as "Pele Pele", was a boxing instructor at the Orlando Boys Club when he encouraged formation of a football club in 1937 and a year later those teenagers were competing among the minors of the Johannesburg Bantu Football Association barefoot and without a team kit.[12]
In 1940, Bethuel Mokgosinyane, the first president, bought the first team kit with his own funds. Orlando Boys participated in Johannesburg Bantu Football Association's Saturday League, where they won the Division Two title and gained promotion to Division One in 1944.[3] Andrew Bassie, a key member of the team, suggested the new name 'Orlando Pirates'. The team composed the camp's war cry 'Ezimnyama Ngenkani'.
Over the years, Orlando Pirates, also known as 'The Happy People', have accumulated a record of successes having won theNational Professional Soccer League title in 1971, 1973, 1975 and 1976, theNational Soccer League title in 1994, and thePremiership title four times, in 2001, 2003, 2011 and 2012. Their first-place finish in the 2010–11 domestic league campaign generated much excitement among the club's vast fan base.
In 2011, Orlando Pirates enjoyed tremendous success by winning the2010–11 Premiership, The Nedbank Cup, The MTN 8 Cup and The Telkom Knockout. This year was dubbed as "The Happy Year."[citation needed]
Many other cup triumphs in domestic football have also been recorded, including Vodacom Challenge title victories in the inaugural 1999 tournament and 2005. But the African continent and other areas of the football world took notice of Orlando Pirates Football Club when they won the African Champions Cup (now known as the Champions League) in 1995 and theAfrican Super Cup a year later. Along with Mamelodi Sundowns, TP Mazembe and AS Vita, the Orlando Pirates are the only Southern Hemisphere club to have won the African Champions League. This achievement resulted in the club being honoured by the first State President of the new democratic South Africa,Nelson Mandela; another first for a South African sporting team.
Kaizer Chiefs chairmanKaizer Motaung and hisJomo Cosmos counterpartJomo Sono were popular players of the highest calibre for the Buccaneers before starting their own clubs.
In 2005, the team, along with Interza Lesego and Ellis Park Stadium Ltd, announced its acquisition of a 51% share inEllis Park Stadium, making it the first majority black-owned stadium in South Africa.[13] It was in the same year that Orlando Pirates achieved Superbrand status. Superbrands is an international company that identifies and rewards the leading brands around the world; Orlando Pirates are the only South African sports team next to the Springboks and Proteas to be given this status.[14]
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Orlando Pirates’ supporters are known as “the Ghost” and produce an intimidating atmosphere on match days atOrlando Stadium.
Fans boast about their team being the first club from Southern Africa to have won the Caf Champions League title, having achieved this in 1995.
TheSoweto derby betweenKaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates is a fiercely contested derby. The first match was on 24 January 1971.[15]
| Type | Competition | Titles | Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic | South African Premier Division/Premiership | 9 | Winners (9):1971, 1973, 1975,1976,1994,2000–01,2002–03,2010–11,2011–12 |
| FA Cup/Nedbank Cup | 10 | Winners (10): 1973, 1974, 1975, 1980, 1988,1996,2010–11,2013–14,2022–23,2023–24 | |
| League Cup/Carling Knockout | 1 | Winners (1):2011 | |
| Top 8 Cup/MTN 8 | 14 | Winners (14): 1972, 1973, 1978, 1983,1993,1996,2000,2010,2011,2020,2022,2023,2024,2025 | |
| African | CAF Champions League | 1 | Winners (1):1995
|
| CAF Confederation Cup | 0 | ||
| CAF Super Cup | 1 | Winners (1):1996 | |
| Afro-Asian Club Championship | 0 |
|
Johannesburg Bantu Football Association (JBFA) Saturday League Division Two
Johannesburg Bantu Football Association (JBFA) Saturday League Division One
Johannesburg African Football Association (JAFA) Summer League
Transvaal Challenge Cup
SA Robertson Cup
Robor Shield Cup
Castle Challenge
Sales House Cup
NB: South African football clubs started participating inCAF Competition's in 1993, after 16 years of being banned fromFIFA due to the apartheid system. The ban extended from 1976 to 1992.
The club appeared in the African Cup of Champions Clubs twice (1995, 1996) and have appeared in the CAF Champions League ten times from 1997 to date. The club has been knocked out 4 times in the preliminary round out of the last 6 appearances.
| Year | Best Finish | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAF Confederation Cup | African Cup winners' Cup | ||||||
| 1999 | - | Semi-Final | |||||
| 2004 | Play-offs | - | |||||
| 2015 | Finalist | - | |||||
| 2020–21 | Quarter -Finalist | - | |||||
| 2021–22 | Finalist | - | |||||
| Year | Best finish |
|---|---|
| 1996 | Champions |
Note
| Competition | P | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAF Champions League | 80 | 36 | 24 | 20 | 122 | 69 |
| CAF Confederation Cup | 21 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 38 | 22 |
| African Cup Winners' Cup | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 11 |
| CAF Super Cup | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 110 | 58 | 27 | 25 | 180 | 102 |
| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993-97 | Umbro | Alpha Cement | [18] |
| 1997-present | Adidas | Vodacom |
As of 2 September 2023, Orlando Pirates are ranked 16th in the 2023-24CAF 5-year ranking.
| Rank | Club | 2018–19 (× 1) | 2019–20 (× 2) | 2020–21 (× 3) | 2021–22 (× 4) | 2022–23 (× 5) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 |  USM Alger | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 27 |
| 16 |  Orlando Pirates | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 24 |
| 17 |  Al-Hilal | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 23 |
Walter Da Silva (1988)
Shepherd Murape (1994)
Joe Frickleton (1995)
Viktor Bondarenko (1995–1996)
Shaibu Amodu (1996–1997)
Ted Dumitru (1999–2000)Gordon Igesund (2000–2001)
Jean-Yves Kerjean (2001–2002)
Kosta Papić (2004–2005)Milutin Sredojević (2006–2007)
Bibey Mutombo (2007)Owen Da Gama (2007–2008)
Ruud Krol (2008–2011)
Júlio César Leal (2011–2012)
Augusto Palacios (interim; 2012)Roger De Sa (2012–2014)Eric Tinkler (interim; 2014)Vladimir Vermezović (2014–2015)Eric Tinkler (2015–2016)
Muhsin Ertuğral (2016)Augusto Palacios (interim; 2016–2017)
Kjell Jonevret (2017)Milutin Sredojević (2017–2019)Rulani Mokwena (interim; 2019)
Josef Zinnbauer (2019–2021)Fadlu Davids &Mandla Ncikazi (interims; 2021–2022)
José Riveiro (2022-2025)
Abdeslam Ouaddou (2025-present)
| Key | |
|---|---|
| Champions | |
| Runners-up | |
| Third place | |
| In progress | |
| Season | Position | Record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | ||
| 1996–97 | 3rd | 34 | 18 | 10 | 6 | 43 | 27 | 16 | 57 |
| 1997–98 | 3rd | 34 | 15 | 12 | 7 | 52 | 33 | 19 | 57 |
| 1998–99 | 3rd | 34 | 17 | 9 | 8 | 55 | 28 | 27 | 60 |
| 1999–2000 | 2nd | 34 | 18 | 10 | 6 | 72 | 36 | 36 | 64 |
| 2000–01 | Champions | 34 | 16 | 13 | 5 | 60 | 34 | 26 | 61 |
| 2001–02 | 3rd | 34 | 15 | 12 | 7 | 43 | 31 | 12 | 57 |
| 2002–03 | Champions | 30 | 18 | 7 | 5 | 41 | 16 | 25 | 61 |
| 2003–04 | 5th | 30 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 45 | 30 | 15 | 50 |
| 2004–05 | 2nd | 30 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 52 | 29 | 23 | 60 |
| 2005–06 | 2nd | 30 | 14 | 12 | 4 | 39 | 24 | 15 | 54 |
| 2006–07 | 5th | 30 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 36 | 30 | 6 | 46 |
| 2007–08 | 8th | 30 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 38 | 30 | 8 | 42 |
| 2008–09 | 2nd | 30 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 37 | 20 | 17 | 55 |
| 2009–10 | 5th | 30 | 10 | 14 | 6 | 26 | 18 | 8 | 44 |
| 2010–11 | Champions | 30 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 41 | 23 | 18 | 60 |
| 2011–12 | Champions | 30 | 17 | 7 | 6 | 39 | 26 | 13 | 58 |
| 2012–13 | 3rd | 30 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 39 | 23 | 16 | 52 |
| 2013–14 | 4th | 30 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 30 | 22 | 8 | 46 |
| 2014–15 | 4th | 30 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 46 | 29 | 17 | 50 |
| 2015–16 | 7th | 30 | 11 | 8 | 11 | 38 | 30 | 8 | 41 |
| 2016–17 | 11th | 30 | 6 | 15 | 9 | 29 | 40 | -11 | 33 |
| 2017–18 | 2nd | 30 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 41 | 26 | 15 | 55 |
| 2018–19 | 2nd | 30 | 15 | 12 | 3 | 44 | 24 | 20 | 57 |
| 2019–20 | 3rd | 30 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 40 | 29 | 11 | 52 |
| 2020–21 | 3rd | 30 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 33 | 22 | 11 | 50 |
| 2021–22 | 6th | 30 | 10 | 14 | 6 | 34 | 28 | 6 | 44 |
| 2022–23 | 2nd | 30 | 16 | 6 | 8 | 40 | 21 | 19 | 54 |
| 2023–24 | 2nd | 30 | 14 | 8 | 8 | 44 | 26 | 18 | 50 |
| 2024–25 | 2nd | 28 | 19 | 4 | 5 | 43 | 20 | 23 | 61 |
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(October 2025) |
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Chairman/managing director | Irvin Khoza |
| Head coach | Abdeslam Ouaddou |
| Assistant coach | Mandla Ncikazi |
| Assistant coach | Rayaan Jacobs |
| Goalkeeper coach | Tyron Damons |
| Head of performance | Ruan Rust |
| Strength and conditioning coach |  Helmi Gueldich |
| Biokineticist | Lauren tate |
| Biokineticist | Dylan Cox |
| Head of sports Sciences | Lee Miles |
| Video analyst | Ncwadi ndabezitha |
| Assistant video analyst | Taariq yaghya |
| Team Doctor | DR Ezekiel matebula |
| Team Doctor | DR Lazarus maphakela |
| Physiotherapist | Kutlwano molefe |
| Physiotherapist | John William |
| Physiotherapist | Bongani mmitsi |
| Kit manager | Lucky matshaba |
| Kit manager | Goodness mhlongo |
| Team security | Nhlanhla Jwara |
| Technical | Junior Bhengu |
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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The club has retired four numbers.
Jersey number 10 was retired to honourJomo Sono, regarded as one of the best players from South Africa.As of 2024, the jersey has been worn inCAF Champions League byPatrick Maswanganyi
Jersey number 13 was retired to honourClifford Moleko in 1998.
Jersey number 22 was retired to honourLesley Manyathela after his death in a car accident in 2003. Manyathela finished the 2003 season as top scorer, and theLesley Manyathela Golden Boot was named after him.[22]
Jersey number 1 was retired to honour goalkeeperSenzo Meyiwa after his assassination in 2014.[23][24]
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