Mamelodi Sundowns have rubbished claims that they are planning to host European giants Barcelona and Juventus in South Africa for their 50th anniversary later this year.

News recently surfaced that the Brazilians are planning to bring Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to the country as part of their 50th-anniversary celebrations.

However, Msandawana have since confirmed that those rumours have been planted in the media to cause a stir in their camp.

Sundowns are the team to have flown Barcelona into South Africa. The first time the two sides met, Ronaldinho captained Barca to a 2-1 victory over Sundowns before Messi led the Spanish giants to a 3-1 victory over the Brazilians in 2018.

Mamelodi Sundowns’ statement reads:

‘It has come to our attention that there have been several stories circulating, claiming that Mamelodi Sundowns will be bringing international teams such as FC Barcelona and Juventus, amongst others, to South Africa. We would like to refute these stories as there is no truth to them. We believe that these stories have been planted as fake news to cause a stir.

‘This year we are celebrating our 50th birthday. All announcements will be released in the upcoming weeks and will be communicated on our official pages.’

We believe that these stories have been planted as fake news to cause a stir.

This year we are celebrating our 50th Birthday. All announcements will be released in the upcoming weeks and will be communicated on our official pages.

— Mamelodi Sundowns FC (@Masandawana) February 3, 2020