By Buziwe Nocuze
- Busisiwe Msengana started Affas United in Gugulethu in 2016, using her salary to fund kits, boots and transport for players.
- Her job contract ended in June 2026, and Msengana is appealing for sponsors to keep 30 girls off the streets.
Busisiwe Msengana’s job contract ended in June 2026. So did the money she had been using to keep 30 girls in a soccer and netball club instead of on the street.
Msengana started Affas United in Gugulethu township, Cape Town, in 2016. She has been paying for it out of her own salary ever since, soccer boots, kits, equipment, and the transport to get players to matches in Nyanga, Khayelitsha and Delft.
“I started the club in 2016 to keep local teenagers away from drugs, crime, and early pregnancy. I have been covering everything, from buying soccer boots and kits to providing equipment and transport to travel to other areas to compete with other teams,” Msengana said.
Without a salary to draw from, she does not want to shut the club down.
“I don’t want to let go of the club as it has kept teenagers in school and off the streets,” she said.
The club has 30 players across under-14, under-16 and senior teams. Msengana said that number matters more than it looks.
“To some people, the 30 players might look like a small number, but to me, it’s big because these kids can influence others to join sports rather than being involved in bad things,” she said.
“I don’t want to give up because I know that one day our players will change other people’s lives. I am pushing even though I am not working because I wouldn’t want the kids that I have already saved to go back to the same place I was protecting them from. I will keep pushing while praying to get sponsors,” she said.
The team practices on Mondays and Wednesdays, from 18:00 to 20:00, at a Safe-Hub.
Unathi Tunzi, 23, has played since 2016.
“Involving myself with sport is one of the most important things because it is helping me a lot with my mental health. Being at the gym is really good; it helps me escape a lot of things,” Tunzi said.
Nomboniso Ziko, 46, said her two children changed after joining the club.
“We see the results in our children’s behaviour; they have changed and they know what they want. Even at school, they are doing well,” she said.
“We are praying that she gets a sponsor.”
Pictured above: Busisiwe Msengana (in green) with her Affas United players in Gugulethu, Cape Town.
Image source: Supplied
