Kaizer Chiefs are seemingly heading back to the continental stage, and they’ve done it with the kind of drama only football can script.
In a seismic Nedbank Cup semi-final clash at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday, Amakhosi rose from the ashes of recent disappointments, to stun Mamelodi Sundowns 2-1 and could secure a long-overdue return to African football via the CAF Confederation Cup, if the Betway Premiership standings remain as is.
Ashley du Preez emerged as the hero on Sunday night, slotting home a dramatic 89th-minute winner that turned Pretoria into a cauldron of disbelief and euphoria — depending on which colours you wore.
Sundowns came into the encounter as the firm favourites. They had beaten Chiefs three times this season, are cruising in the Premiership, and looked untouchable after hard-fought progression to the semi-finals of the CAF Champions League.
Chiefs, on the other hand, arrived as a team with more questions than answers. But in the end, it was the underdog spirit that won out.
@KaizerChiefs 😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩 I’m soooooo happy right now!!!! Thanks for ending my weekend on a high! ✌️
— Akani Simbine (@AkaniSimbine) April 13, 2025
The victory does more than just send Chiefs into a final — it also opens the gates to the continent.
With the Nedbank Cup winner guaranteed a spot in the CAF Confederation Cup, and the two top league finishers qualifying for the Champions League, the permutations are finally favouring the men from Naturena.
With Pirates and Sundowns all but locked into the league’s top two, Amakhosi’s return to Africa seems virtually assured, unless the Sea Robbers have a massive implosion in the elite division. Stellenbosch's Confederation Cup campaign and Top 3 ambitions in the league could also yet play a part in Chiefs' African return, unless the latter wins the Cup final.
That final, of course, will be a Soweto Derby of epic proportions. Chiefs will now face their oldest and fiercest rivals in Pirates, at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, in what promises to be a season-ending classic in May.
Pirates reached the final with a 1-0 win over Marumo Gallants earlier in the day, thanks to a Kabelo Dlamini goal.
For Chiefs’ head coach Nasreddine Nabi, the victory could be a turning point in a season filled with turbulence. The Tunisian was brought in to rebuild the club’s fading empire and restore pride to the badge — a mission that, until now, had been marred by inconsistency and fan unrest.
@KaizerChiefs ✌🏾 ✌🏾 ✌🏾 ✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾
— Mbuyiseni Ndlozi (@MbuyiseniNdlozi) April 13, 2025
The Nedbank final, and now confirmed continental qualification, offers Nabi both a lifeline and a launching pad.
“This season is about rebuilding,” Nabi has said time and again. But even in a rebuilding phase, Amakhosi fans have demanded progress — and now, finally, they have something to hold on to.
Chiefs haven’t tasted silverware in nearly a decade, and their last major cup final appearance ended in heartbreak against TS Galaxy in 2019. But this latest surge, defeating the dominant Sundowns and setting up a derby final, feels different.
It feels like a club rediscovering its identity.
Their last appearance in a CAF competition came in the 2020/21 Champions League, where they defied the odds to reach the final, only to lose 3-0 to Pitso Mosimane’s Al Ahly.
Since then, the team have wandered without direction on the continent. But now, the compass is pointing north again.
Amakhosi are not just back in a cup final. They’re could also be back in Africa. And that changes everything.
A couple of weeks ago, Nabi's job as the leader of this Chiefs project had come under huge scrutiny with their struggles in the Betway Premiership seeing them drift down into eighth spot.
That four-game winless run saw the Glamour Boys not only face the possibility of finishing outside the Top 8 in back-to-back seasons but also adrift about seven points away from third-placed Stellenbosch, who currently occupy the Confederation Cup spot.
However, their miraculous win over the Brazilians means that part might be sorted this season and they can firmly focus on breaking their decade-long trophy drought and keep progressing under the Tunisian tactician.
Nabi has now reached a domestic cup final for a fifth consecutive season, having done so with former clubs Yanga SC and AS Far Rabat.
He previously led teams to three Tanzanian Cup finals, the Moroccan Throne Cup final, and now the Nedbank Cup final in South Africa, which will place Chiefs in good stead ahead of a meeting with their rivals.