It took him just 90 minutes of official football to win his first trophy in Belgium. Relebohile Mofokeng scored the final spot kick during a dramatic penalty shootout against league champions Club Brugge to reign victorious with a 5-4 win following a 1-1 draw in regulation time, handing Royale Union Saint-Gilloise the Belgian Super Cup at the Jan Breydel Stadium in Bruges on Friday evening.
The occasion could hardly have been more daunting for a player making his first official appearance for his new club. After a goalless first half, Brugge broke the deadlock three minutes into the second half through a strike from Nicolo Tresoldi. With Union trailing 1-0, Mofokeng was introduced in the 61st minute — the South African wonderkid thrown into the heat of a Belgian Super Cup final against one of the country's most formidable clubs.
Union did go on to get the equaliser in the 77th minute courtesy of a strike from Kevin Mac Allister — brother of Liverpool star Alexis — to force the match into a penalty shootout. Union held their nerve from twelve yards, with Canadian forward Promise David opening the scoring before Mofokeng stepped up. Brugge's Cheveyo Tsawa was the only player to miss his kick, and Mofokeng made no mistake with the decisive spot-kick to seal a 5-4 win and hand Union their second Super Cup in three seasons.
With the penalty scores locked at 4-4, 'President yama2k' stepped up to take the fifth and final kick for his team and smashed it into the top corner to spark scenes of wild celebrations for Les Unionistes. He celebrated with a recognisable South African dance — a moment that will have set social media alight back home.
Mofokeng's first winner's medal in Belgium comes just days after he claimed top honours at the PSL Awards, where he walked away with the Young Player of the Season, Players' Player of the Season and the Footballer of the Season accolades. From Soweto to Brussels, from Orlando Pirates to the Belgian Super Cup — in the space of a few extraordinary weeks, Relebohile Mofokeng has shown the world exactly who he is.
Union now switch focus to Champions League qualifying, with Norwegian side Bodø/Glimt the next obstacle on Tuesday. Mofokeng, it is safe to say, will not be short of confidence.
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He said he needed time away from football. He said he wanted to rest, to reflect, to rediscover his love for the game. And then Germany called — and Jürgen Klopp said yes.
In a press conference at the DFB Campus in Frankfurt, flanked by DFB President Bernd Neuendorf and 1st Vice President Hans-Joachim Watzke, the most charismatic coach in world football was officially unveiled as the new head coach of the German national team. The room, by all accounts, felt like a reunion — a country welcoming back one of its own with the kind of warmth reserved for people who genuinely matter to a place and its people.
Klopp's appointment comes in the immediate aftermath of Germany's painful Round of 32 exit at the 2026 FIFA World Cup — eliminated by Paraguay on penalties in one of the tournament's most shocking results. The nation that had endured back-to-back group-stage exits in 2018 and 2022, briefly recovered under Julian Nagelsmann, and then fell at the first knockout hurdle, now turns to the man who built Borussia Dortmund into a European force and delivered Liverpool their first league title in 30 years.
The energy, the passion, the famous grin — all of it was present in Frankfurt. Die Mannschaft have their coach. Germany has its spark back.
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The French capital came alive on Sunday as Paris Saint-Germain brought the Champions League trophy home to a heroes' welcome. Fresh from their final win in Budapest, PSG players paraded the trophy at the Champ de Mars in front of the Eiffel Tower, before a presidential reception at the Élysée Palace and a further celebration at the Parc des Princes.
The moment South Africa's World Cup run came to an end in Los Angeles, Relebohile Mofokeng barely had time to change out of his Bafana Bafana shirt before boarding a flight — not home to Johannesburg, but to Brussels. The 21-year-old attacking midfielder has officially completed a transfer from Orlando Pirates to Belgian Pro League side Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, putting pen to paper on a contract that runs until mid-2030, with the club holding an option to extend by a further year.
The move had been in the works long before the World Cup began. An agreement in principle between the two clubs was in fact reached before the start of the tournament, with both parties choosing to hold off on any public announcement until after the competition, wanting Mofokeng to focus fully on national duty without the distraction of transfer talk. It was a decision that spoke volumes about the professionalism of everyone involved — and it allowed Mofokeng's performances in America to do his talking for him.
The numbers from his final season in the PSL underline why European interest was inevitable. The 21-year-old registered 10 goals and eight assists in 27 league appearances for Orlando Pirates, contributing significantly to the club's first league title in 14 years. His direct attacking play, creativity in wide areas, and composure in decisive moments made him one of the most influential figures in the squad's title-winning run.
Bafana coach Hugo Broos — himself Belgian — was typically measured in his reaction, welcoming the move while managing expectations. "I think it's a good thing for him, and he will progress, but we mustn't expect that he will play from the first day," Broos told SABC Sport, noting that Mofokeng would need to physically strengthen to reach his potential.
Mofokeng himself wasted no time in expressing his ambitions. "I'm very happy to be here," he said upon his unveiling. "It's a dream to play in Europe and to begin our Champions League qualifying campaign soon."
Union SG, known across Europe for their intelligent recruitment and their capacity to develop young talent, have identified in Mofokeng a player with the profile to thrive in competitive European football. For South African football, the transfer carries a significance beyond one individual — another door opened, another pathway established, another reason for the next generation of township footballers to believe that the biggest stages are within reach.
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Images: Getty, RSG, Orlando Pirates, RowanArtz
