‘Soccer safaris’: British football migrants and apartheid South Africa, c1955–1983

Abstract

ABSTRACT Apartheid South Africa remains an important theme in sport history. The study of South African football has produced a handful of monographs and several research articles. In this body of literature, relatively few studies acknowledge the migratory flows of South African footballers to various levels of British football. Often omitted altogether in these studies is the acknowledgment of the hundreds of British players, coaches, and referees who visited South Africa after the introduction of apartheid in 1948. Many of these football migrants moved to the country for employment opportunities and played the game on a recreational and professional basis. Significant numbers also migrated because of the football opportunities offered in the segregated game. Some of these migrants were involved in the burgeoning black and non-racial game in the country too. From the mid-1950s through to the 1980s, hundreds of British football migrants made South Africa their home for varying lengths of time. In many cases, despite the broader socio-political context, this was too good of a financial opportunity to turn down. To appreciate the complexities of apartheid football, cognizance of the British contribution to upholding, challenging, and overcoming the status quo in South African football is necessary.