A new youth football initiative is set to reshape the development landscape for township players in Cape Town, offering under-19 footballers a structured, competitive pathway long missing from local football ecosystems.
The Kasi Development League (KDL), scheduled to kick off in February 2026, is a township-based youth league designed to bridge the gap between grassroots football and elite development structures within the SAFA Cape Town region. Targeting well-managed township clubs, the league aims to provide consistent, high-quality competition for young players who often fall through the cracks of the existing Local Football Association (LFA) systems.
“This concept is something I’ve been trying to push since 2023,” says Eric Gum, coordinator of the league and a long-serving football administrator. who has worked across several LFAs, regional structures and club management. “We realised that township football has talent, but it lacks the weekly competition and structure that develops complete players.”
“We didn’t just take any available team. We profiled clubs based on their youth structures, their consistency in tournaments, and their commitment to under-19 football. This is a league that must run for a full year, so teams need depth and stability.”
From pilot festival to full league
The KDL builds on a pilot festival held in 2024, which effectively tested the viability of a full-season competition. Ten under-19 teams have already been selected to participate in the inaugural season — the league’s minimum target — drawn from a range of township LFAs to ensure diversity and competitiveness.
Eric Gum
“We didn’t just take any available team,” Gum explains. “We profiled clubs based on their youth structures, their consistency in tournaments, and their commitment to under-19 football. This is a league that must run for a full year, so teams need depth and stability.”
The participating teams include Wanderers, Lion’s City, Rebels, Goal Hunters, Valencia, FC Porto, Everton, JL Zwane, Phuhla and Eyethu. As Gum notes, several teams demonstrated their resilience during last year’s festival, managing to field full squads despite player availability challenges — a key indicator of sustainability.
“You can’t expect players to perform in elite tournaments if they’re not competing week in and week out. Youth football is about repetition, constant competition and learning to play as a team.”
Township football: Mind the gap
At the heart of the KDL is a response to a long-standing youth development gap in township football: While better-resourced regions may run structured under-19 leagues, many township LFAs focus primarily on senior divisions, leaving young players without regular competitive exposure.
“We set these boys up for failure,” Gum says bluntly. “You can’t expect players to perform in elite tournaments if they’re not competing week in and week out. Youth football is about repetition, constant competition, and learning to play as a team.”
Too often, under-19 players are simply absorbed into senior teams, where they become benchwarmers or play limited minutes. “Out of a whole under-19 group, maybe five survive. The rest are lost.”
The KDL aims to reverse that trend by offering a professionally managed environment tailored specifically for youth development.
League logistics: Structure, safety and sustainability
The pilot phase of the league will feature 10–12 teams playing either home-and-away fixtures or matches at centralised venues, depending on logistics. Players will be required to present valid identification, while league-specific rules, a defined transfer window and a standard points system will ensure fairness and transparency.
