While the Mamelodi Sundowns men’s side hoovers up league titles, the club’s Ladies’ team has been equally dominant.
Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies might not get the same national adulation that their male counterparts enjoy, but they have been as impressive in their own sphere in recent years with several big milestones on the horizon.
The club are chasing a fifth domestic Women’s Super League title in a row and will be hoping to win a third continental Champions League trophy in four years having qualified for the latest event as holders.
They have been utterly dominant in local and continental football, but have dreams of taking their talent to the international stage. FIFA has long touted a Women’s Club World Cup to rival that of the men’s version but have stalled on it for several years.
They look finally set to launch it in January 2026 and will stage one every four years, which seems a long gap in between, but the reality is they still battle to get funding in for the women’s game.
Details around the event are thin, except it seems there will be 16 teams initially, with the hope that at least two will be from the African continent.
Sundowns hope to be on that list. They certainly deserve to be there. They have been the power in the domestic game and lifted the inaugural CAF Women’s Champions League title in 2021, before repeating that feat in 2023.
They made the final in 2022 as well when they lost to hosts AS FAR from Morocco in a game in which Sundowns received two red cards.
A player that epitomises the Sundowns team is goalkeeper Andile Dlamini, who has an exuberant personality, but is also among the best keepers in Africa and consistently delivers outstanding performances. She says their success is down to more than talent alone.
“I look at the work we have been able to put in as a team, the greats statistics that I have as a goalkeeper,” Dlamini told SoccerClub.
“That does not come from me alone, it is because of the hard work of my teammates, the work that my coach (Jerry Tshabalala) puts in to preparing us for matches.
“He doesn’t sleep at night and makes sure he finds out how the opponents plays and works to build a plan. All this success comes because of the hard work everyone puts in as a team.”
She says there is belief within the squad that they take their knocks, when they come, on the chin and move on to the next game.
“We are doing great, you can’t win all the games, but we play as a team, the focus and the talent that we have, with the youngsters and senior players, we are on the right track.
“It is not easy playing as a champion because everyone wants to beat you, but we just have to keep focussed.”
Sundowns got a taste of what may come when they contested the Women’s Cup in the United States in August.
They lost 3–0 to top US side Kansas City Current and 2–0 to Japanese outfit INAC Kobe Leonessa but took much from the experience that will only make them better, according to coach Tshabalala.
“Playing against Kansas City Current and INAC Kobe was a game-changer for us because it pushed us beyond our comfort zone and showed us where we needed to improve,” Tshabalala said.
“Competing against teams of this calibre highlighted both our strengths and areas that needed fine-tuning. One such area is in our defensive organisation.
“The pace and precision of our opponents exposed gaps that we need to address if we are to maintain our dominance back home and on the continent.” T
he coach added that against top defences, his team needed to be quicker on the ball.
“We realised that our transition play, particularly when moving from defence to attack, requires more speed and coordination.
The games showed us that to compete at the highest level, we must be quicker and more decisive in these critical moments.
“We have a burning desire to have this kind of exposure more frequently to enable us to keep pace with the top teams globally.
Competing against high-calibre opponents is crucial for our growth, and it is the only way we can truly measure ourselves against the best.
“These experiences not only challenge us but also inspire us to elevate our game and continue improving.”
