It all began when Kaizer Chiefs Managing Director Kaizer Motaung and Chiefs director Abdool Hamid Muhammad travelled to France in 1998 as delegates of the Soccerex congress. Ever since 1998 Chiefs have had representatives attend the Soccerex conference, which began a year earlier in 1997. In the recent past The Amakhosi have turned, from being delegates at the world’s largest football business exhibition and have become active participants, since 2003 Chiefs began exhibiting at the exposition.

Over the past six years the event has been held in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. The Soccerex organizers have opted to move the event from Dubai to Johannesburg with the Sandton Convention centre earmarked to host the 2007, 2008 and 2009 events. It was with this in mind and in showing their continued support for the event that Kaizer Chiefs marketing director Jessica Motaung hosted a trio of Soccerex representatives at the Kaizer Chiefs village in Naturena on Wednesday and pledged Chiefs continued support for the event.

Jessica added “over the past few years we have been honoured to have been part of the Soccerex shows in Dubai, I am sure that the next three in Johannesburg will be just as good a show as they have been over the past few years. For us Soccerex is an important forum as we showcase our team to a global audience. For the next three years we will be happy to show case to again not just to the international delegates but to the local market as well what we have been showcasing in Dubai since 2003”.

Amongst the group of Soccerex delegates who visited Naturena on Wednesday was Charlie Taylor, marketing and communications manager for Soccerex who said, “we are really excited about hosting the event in South Africa later this year, thus far we have had a great response from the local soccer community which will help to make the event a huge success. Once again we would be happy to have Kaizer Chiefs at Soccerex as we have enjoyed having the company of Chiefs as exhibitors at the last few Soccerex shows that were held in Dubai”.

One of the reasons Soccerex organizers opted to bring the exhibition to South Africa was to assist in showcasing to the world, the various opportunities that will come about in South Africa with the countries hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The chance for Chiefs to once again showcase what it has to the world of football will come on the 27th November this year when for three days the Sandton Convention Centre, in Johannesburg will play host to the world’s largest soccer business exposition and more than 3 000 important role players in the game from around the world.