Posted in Features, News on Aug 28, 2017.
The visitors were René Grobbelaar and her two children Hein and Megan from Dubai, Tanya Welz and her sons, Arhan and Ruben, from the United Kingdom and Simphiwe Mabuza, Majaha Sibandze, Sibusiso Mazibuko and Bongani Ndlovu from Swaziland.
René had recently sent an e-mail to Kaizer Chiefs, asking if it was possible to visit Amakhosi in Naturena during their holiday in South Africa. She even posted a picture of her son Hein with the text, “your supporter from Dubai”.
Simphiwe Mabuza, who is presently studying Operations Management at the University of Johannesburg, asked, “we are four supporters from Swaziland. Would it be possible to tour the Village?”
Tanya Welz sent a request as well to visit the Chiefs Village with her two sons.
They all came to Naturena at the same time, visitors from all over the globe, Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Digital Manager Kemiso Motaung welcomed the group at The Village: “We are excited to have you visit us. This is your home, so you are welcome. You will notice throughout your visit that we really love our work and we enjoy what we do. We want to grow and develop this precious home to meet your aspirations. We do all that by keeping up with the international trends.”
She furthermore spoke about Chiefs’ digital evolution. “Some of the developments happening include entering the gaming space. You will be interested to know that we recently entered the word of esports, the emerging global gaming phenomenon.”
Corporate Communications Manager, Vina Maphosa, proceeded to take the visitors on a tour of the Village.
They got more than what they had bargained for when, during their walk, they bumped into one of their favourite Chiefs stars, Siphiwe ‘Shabba’ Tshabalala.
“Wow! This is a big surprise,” the group reacted in unison. “We didn't expect this!”
Shabba shook hands with the group, shared some words of encouragement with the youngsters, before posing for pictures and signing autographs.
The tour was concluded with the group visiting the KC Retail Store, where they enjoyed an authentic shopping experience by purchasing their unique Chiefs merchandise.
“We will definitely keep in touch and up to date with the developments at the club,” reacted Réne Grobbelaar. “We love Chiefs and we will continue to interact via club’s various social media platforms.”
The Chiefs Village is one of the favourite destinations for tourists when visiting Johannesburg. It is a centre of attraction and a destination of hope and inspiration for visiting schools, supporters and groups, locals and internationals alike.
This is all in line with the strategy of Kaizer Chiefs to become a global brand.