On Saturday, 21 March, Kaizer Chiefs, together with Down Syndrome South Africa (DSSA), participated in World Down Syndrome Day (WDSD) by hosting persons with Down syndrome at the Kaizer Chiefs Village in Naturena, as well as at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, where Amakhosi defeated Magesi 2-0 in a Betway Premiership game.

The Club also joined seven others globally, including FC Barcelona, FC Porto, Dynamo Kyiv, Club America, Corinthians, River Plate and Universidad Catolica, as part of the Spanish-based Itineriam Foundation’s ‘Visible In’ campaign, in which the clubs have promoted and worn a type-face developed by Barcelona based artist Anna Vives - a person with Down syndrome - on their jerseys.

Chiefs’ Youth and Reserve teams participated in DSSA’s ‘Rock Your Socks’ campaign on Saturday, where they wore mismatched socks to raise awareness and bring forward the conversation around the challenges faced by persons with Down syndrome.

National Executive Director for DSSA, Elaine Passmoor was complimentary of Chiefs participation in WDSD activities saying, “We were especially honoured that Amakhosi hosted persons with Down syndrome at their GDL games on Saturday, as well as at their Premiership match on the same day. It was a truly special opportunity and a great privilege for our persons with Down syndrome to be part of such an iconic football experience. We are proud to stand alongside Kaizer Chiefs as part of a global movement, where sport is being used to promote visibility, dignity, and opportunity for persons with Down syndrome.”

The Chiefs reserve team trained with the visiting group as they prepared for their DDC game against Magesi on Sunday. Coach Vela Khumalo believes it is crucial for Amakhosi to aide in projects of inclusivity.
“This was a good initiative. As a club, we are for love and peace; taking care of humanity. We really appreciate the visit that we received. I wish to emphasise this point to kids with Down syndrome, we don’t look at them differently, we see them as human beings with different life challenges. We really appreciate them and look forward to taking part more of these kinds of initiatives,” he said.

Amakhosi Marketing Director, Jessica Motaung, reiterated that the club were happy to open their doors to DSSA and their members.
“In our discussions with Elaine we got to understand some of the frequent experiences of persons with Down syndrome, particularly loneliness,” she revealed, adding with a smile, “It was our pleasure to have been able to host them and have them be part of our teams by training with our reserves and lending their support to the First Team. The members from DSSA should know they brought us luck, as our senior and reserve teams both won.”

The Kaizer Chiefs legends team will play their derby game against Orlando Pirates on 29 March with Anna Vives’ type-face on the back of their jerseys.