Thabo Johnson

Thabo Johnson

The Mangaung African Cultural Festival tournament hit a snag following the withdrawal of Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates.

The two drawcards pulled out with just four days to go before the event on Sunday at Free State Stadium.

This year's tournament is organised by a consortium called Bashumi Ba Africa. The consortium is made up of Lumuli Marketing, June 18 Holdings, MK & Associates, Senzeni Event Management and Dipela Sports Events.

Lungile Jan, chairman of the consortium, confirmed Chiefs' withdrawal.

Chiefs' publicist Thebe Mohatle cited a tight schedule as the reason for pulling out but he denied a disagreement over appearance fees. Sources said Chiefs demanded almost double what the organisers were offering. Jan said the Amakhosi camp was not willing to negotiate after pulling out.

Bucs public relations officer Mickey Modisane said they were not going to feature in the event.