Stefanie de Saude-Darbandi discusses her firm’s decision to represent beauty queen Chidimma Adetshina in her deportation case, highlighting the complexities of legal representation amid public scrutiny.

The Department of Home Affairs has identified a concerning trend of “marriages of convenience”, transactional unions devoid of a genuine relationship, that are increasingly facilitated by locals to help foreign nationals bypass immigration laws.

African champions Mamelodi Sundowns have officially unveiled their long-awaited home kit for the 2026/27 season on Wednesday morning. As expected, the new jersey proudly features a second star above the club’s badge to celebrate their latest CAF Champions League triumph under Miguel Cardoso. Masandawana secured their second continental crown last season, earning the right to add another star to their crest as a symbol of their success in Africa’s biggest club competition. The new strip retains Sundowns’ iconic yellow and blue colours, while one of the standout changes is the red Puma logo, giving the jersey a fresh look ahead of the new campaign. However, supporters will have to wait a little longer before purchasing the new kit. The club confirmed that the jersey will go on sale from July 31, both online and retail stores. We play our own style. Bafana Ba Shoeshine and Piano. From Chloorkop to Cairo, this is our era! Introducing the Mamelodi Sundowns 2026/27 Home Kit. Available online and in-store 31.07.26 @PUMASouthAfrica @SundownsLadies #Sundowns #SundownsLadies#PUMAxSundowns… pic.twitter.com/NOOuiggpDP— Mamelodi Sundowns FC (@Masandawana) July 22, 2026 The unveiling comes as Sundowns continue their preparations for the new season during a pre-season training camp in Austria. Cardoso’s side opened their tour with a 1-1 draw against German second-tier outfit Hertha Berlin. The Brazilians will also be eager to reclaim the Betway Premiership title after their remarkable run of eight consecutive league crowns came to an end last season. Orlando Pirates dethroned Sundowns to lift the domestic title, bringing an end to the record-breaking run in South African Premier Soccer League.

The Ahmed Kathrada Foundation has demanded that asset forfeiture orders against tender kingpins be matched with prosecutions, supplier blacklisting, and long jail terms. The foundation warned that stripping syndicates of Lamborghinis and mansions is no substitute for prison cells when billions looted from Tembisa Hospital left infants and patients without care. Accountability Welcoming the Johannesburg High Court’s R326 million final asset forfeiture order against the Maumela syndicate, the Foundation stressed that true accountability requires the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to secure criminal convictions and lengthy jail sentences for every kingpin who stripped Tembisa Hospital of healthcare resources. On Monday, the court granted the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) a final order against corruption‑accused businessman and hospital tender kingpin Hangwani Maumela, seizing mansions, Lamborghinis, Bentleys, and other luxury assets. It marks a significant step in the State’s effort to claw back proceeds allegedly derived from the sprawling R2.3 billion hospital corruption scheme. ‘Sheer cruelty’ Neeshan Balton, Executive Director of the Foundation, said the “sheer cruelty” of this criminality is laid bare by the seized assets themselves. “While patients at Tembisa Hospital suffered due to broken incubators in overcrowded neonatal wards, acute shortages of life‑saving ICU beds, and a lack of basic surgical gloves, the perpetrators used blood money meant for public health to fund lives of extreme affluence. “The final forfeiture order strips the syndicate of a fleet of ultra‑luxury sports cars-including Lamborghinis, Porsches, and high‑end Mercedes‑Benz vehicles-alongside multi‑million rand mansions in South Africa’s most exclusive estates. “Spending public healthcare funds on personal vanity while vulnerable infants and citizens languish in underfunded hospital wards is an absolute moral failure,” he said. More needed Balton added that recovering stolen cash and seizing luxury fleets is a vital step, but deeply insufficient on its own. “Buying a supercar with money stolen from a dying patient’s healthcare fund is not just corruption; it is a crime against humanity. “The state cannot allow asset forfeiture to become a mere financial penalty or the ‘cost of doing business’ for these networks. We demand that the NPA put these syndicate kingpins behind bars where they belong.” Investigations The Foundation pointed to investigations by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) and journalists that exposed a massive R2 billion criminal network involving multiple extraction syndicates. It demanded immediate answers from law enforcement on the status of criminal cases against all of these networks, including the prominent syndicate commanded by Stefan Govindraju. Investigations revealed Govindraju controlled an armada of front companies that bled R437 million from the hospital’s budget. Warning The Foundation warned the state cannot celebrate the forfeiture of Maumela’s assets while kingpins like Govindraju, Rudolph Mazibuko and underworld figure Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala have yet to face prosecution, conviction and incarceration. It also slammed bureaucratic blame‑shifting between the Gauteng Premier, Health MEC and National Treasury over blacklisting powers, demanding an immediate blanket ban on all 207 service providers flagged in the Tembisa heist. Criminal enterprise Balton said the entire criminal enterprise was exposed through the bravery of Babita Deokaran, who flagged R850 million in suspicious tenders before she was assassinated. “As South Africa approaches the anniversary of her death on 23 August 2026, the ultimate tribute to her memory cannot be partial financial asset recovery. “It must be the complete criminal prosecution of every syndicate leader, the blacklisting of their front companies, and the incarceration of the masterminds who funded her murder,” he said. The Foundation has called on the NPA and the Hawks to demonstrate transparency and immediately release a public update on pending criminal charges and arrests against Maumela, Govindraju and complicit hospital officials who “enabled this systemic looting.”

Thanks to their six-place jump in the FIFA rankings after the conclusion of FIFA World Cup 2026, South Africa are now ranked in the Top 10 in Africa. Bafana Bafana reached the Round of 32 at the recently-concluded tournament co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico. After losing 2-0 to Mexico, a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic left Hugo Broos’ side needing a win over South Korea in their final Group A clash. This they duly achieved after completing a 1-0 win to secure the runners-up spot in the group. However, a 1-0 defeat against Canada in the Round of 32 saw their campaign come to an end. Ranking rise It was good enough, however, to see South Africa rise six spots in the rankings from their pre-tournament position of 60th to 54th following the announcement of the updated rankings on Monday. In terms of Africa, South Africa are now in 10th place. The Africa standings are headed by Morocco who had a stand-out showing at FIFA World Cup 2026 where they eventually lost in the quarter-finals. Interestingly, three countries in the Africa Top 10 didn’t qualify for this year’s World Cup, namely Nigeria (fourth), Cameroon (eighth) and Mali (ninth). South Africa’s highest ever ranking came on 28 August 1996 when they found themselves in the 16th spot. The next official FIFA ranking update will take place on 7 October 2026. FIFA rankings – CAF / World Rank in AfricaRank in WorldCountry16Morocco218Senegal324Egypt426Nigeria529Algeria631Ivory Coast741DR Congo843Cameroon953Mali1054South Africa

Orlando Pirates could have several exciting new midfield options next season. Here’s the latest from the new Betway Premiership champions. Masilela went to Spain with Orlando Pirates Pirates’ recent tour of Spain was an opportunity given to 22-year-old midfielder Simphiwe Masilela. Blessed with technical quality and the ability to play in several central midfield roles, Masilela has the potential to become a fan favourite and was spotted in the number 38 jersey. 20-year-old central defender Cristian Derbyshire and 18-year-old midfield maestro Mpho Padime were also on tour in the Iberian nation. Watch this space. Is Witbooi next? Diminutive in stature, Cape Town City star Emile Witbooi is far from the finished product. However, the 17-year-old is highly thought of in South Africa. City has placed a big price tag on his head, thought to be rising to R20 million, so Pirates will need to think long and hard about how they structure any potential deal for the attacking midfielder born in 2008. Big-name exits from Orlando Pirates New champions Orlando Pirates will be a new-look outfit next term after several high-profile departures, notably Relebohile Mofokeng. The following players have left the club: Thabiso Sesane Selaelo Rasebotja  Siyabonga Ndlozi  Gomolemo Khoto  Sonwabo Khumalo  Blessing Ngiba Seth Green  Thabiso Lebitso  Bandile Shandu Sipho Mbule  Tshegofatso Mabasa  Relebohile Mofokeng What’s next on the fixture schedule? The Sea Robbers went down 3-2 to Al Ittihad on Tuesday. Next on their pre-season friendly schedule is a meeting with Las Palmas. Their first Betway Premiership fixture of the 2026-27 season is against Milford FC on Saturday, 1 August.

Flash and Shop2Shop will combine to form a R21.3-billion platform Pepkor plans to list separately.

An autonomous agent powered by OpenAI's advanced AI models went rogue during a recent security test.