2019–20 National First Division
Football league season
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The 2019–20 National First Division (called the GladAfrica Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the season from August 2019 to May 2020 of South Africa's second tier of professional soccer, the National First Division.
| Season | 2019–20 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Moroka Swallows |
| Promoted | Moroka Swallows |
| Relegated | TS Sporting Royal Eagles |
| Matches | 240 |
| Goals | 555 (2.31 per match) |
← 2018–19 2020–21 → | |
For this season, the National First Division received new sponsorship from GladAfrica, with prize money being substantially increased to R3 million for the winners, R1.5 million for the runners up and R1 million for the third-placed team.[1]
Teams
Stadium and Locations
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ajax Cape Town | Cape Town (Green Point) | Cape Town Stadium | 55,000 |
| Cape Umoya United | Cape Town (Cape Flats) | Athlone Stadium | 34,000 |
| Free State Stars | Bethlehem | Goble Park | 20,000 |
| JDR Stars | Pretoria (Soshanguve) | Giant Stadium | 18,000 |
| Jomo Cosmos | Potchefstroom | Olën Park | 22,000 |
| Mbombela United | Mbombela | KaNyamazane Stadium | 15,000 |
| Moroka Swallows | Johannesburg (Soweto) | Dobsonville Stadium | 24,000 |
| Real Kings | Durban (Clermont) | Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium | 6,500 |
| Richards Bay | Richards Bay | Richards Bay Stadium | 8,000 |
| Royal Eagles | Pietermaritzburg | Harry Gwala Stadium | 12,000 |
| Steenberg United | Cape Town (Cape Flats) | Athlone Stadium | 34,000 |
| TS Galaxy | Kameelrivier | Kameelrivier Stadium | 11,000 |
| TS Sporting | Kabokweni | Kabokweni Stadium | 8,000 |
| Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila | Thohoyandou | Thohoyandou Stadium | 40,000 |
| University of Pretoria | Pretoria | Tuks Stadium | 8,000 |
| Uthongathi | Durban (KwaMashu) | Princess Magogo Stadium | 12,000 |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moroka Swallows[a] (C, P) | 30 | 17 | 6 | 7 | 41 | 27 | +14 | 57 | Promotion to 2020–21 South African Premiership |
| 2 | Ajax Cape Town | 30 | 18 | 3 | 9 | 50 | 37 | +13 | 57 | Qualification to Promotion play-offs |
| 3 | Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila | 30 | 14 | 6 | 10 | 36 | 31 | +5 | 48 | |
| 4 | Real Kings | 30 | 12 | 11 | 7 | 42 | 31 | +11 | 47 | |
| 5 | Free State Stars | 30 | 11 | 12 | 7 | 41 | 32 | +9 | 45 | |
| 6 | Uthongathi | 30 | 10 | 14 | 6 | 32 | 26 | +6 | 44 | |
| 7 | JDR Stars | 30 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 46 | 40 | +6 | 43 | |
| 8 | Steenberg United | 30 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 35 | 36 | −1 | 39 | |
| 9 | University of Pretoria | 30 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 37 | 39 | −2 | 38 | |
| 10 | TS Galaxy | 30 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 29 | 31 | −2 | 36 | |
| 11 | Cape Umoya United | 30 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 33 | 36 | −3 | 35 | |
| 12 | Richards Bay | 30 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 28 | 39 | −11 | 35 | |
| 13 | Jomo Cosmos | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 23 | 35 | −12 | 33 | |
| 14 | TS Sporting (R) | 30 | 6 | 14 | 10 | 26 | 34 | −8 | 32 | |
| 15 | Royal Eagles (R) | 30 | 4 | 9 | 17 | 29 | 51 | −22 | 21 | Relegation to 2020–21 SAFA Second Division |
| 16 | Mbombela United | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 27 | 30 | −3 | 9[b] |
Updated to match(es) played on 27 August 2020. Source: https://za.soccerway.com/national/south-africa/1st-division/20192020/regular-season/r52940/
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored;
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored;
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- Mbombela United were deducted 1 point after they failed to field at least two under-23 players against Jomo Cosmos on 10 November 2019[3] They were further docked 23 points, and relegated to the SAFA Second Division after fielding Sabelo Ndzinisa, who had initially signed for Sporting, in 23 games.[4]
Play-offs
Black Leopards defeated Ajax Cape Town 2-0 to retain their place in the Premiership.[5]
Season statistics
Scoring
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[6] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Keoikantse Mosiatlhaga |
Ajax Cape Town | 17 |
| 2 | Moeketsi Makhanya |
JDR Stars | 12 |
| 3 | Ruzaigh Gamildien |
Steenberg United | 11 |
 Daniel Gozar |
Free State Stars | ||
 Collins Mbesuma |
University of Pretoria | ||
| Menzi Ndwandwe |
Uthongathi | ||
| 7 | Kamohelo Mahlatsi |
University of Pretoria | 10 |
| Kagiso Malinga |
Moroka Swallows | ||
| 8 | Decide Chauke |
TS Sporting | 9 |
| Thembisani Nevhulamba |
Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila | ||
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keoikantse Mosiatlhaga |
Ajax Cape Town | TS Sporting | 3-2 (A)[7] | 26 October 2019 |
| Thembisani Nevhulamba |
Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila | Royal Eagles | 3-1 (A)[8] | 2 November 2019 |
| Moeketsi Makhanya |
JDR Stars | Jomo Cosmos | 5-1 (H)[9] | 23 November 2019 |
| Daniel Gozar |
Free State Stars | Uthongathi | 3-1 (H)[10] | 11 January 2020 |
- Notes
(H) – Home team
(A) – Away team
Discipline
Player
- Most yellow cards: 11[11]
Paulus Masehe (Free State Stars)
- Most red cards: 2[11]
Daniel Gozar (Free State Stars)