Black Leopards Relegated Again – Namibian Duo Face Heartbreak

Relegation has a way of lingering. For Black Leopards, and for Namibian internationals Bethuel Muzeu and Loydt Kazapua, it now feels like an unwanted companion.

The Limpopo club’s drop from the South African National First Division – the Motsepe Foundation Championship – was confirmed on Sunday, despite a 2-1 win over Venda Football Club. The result dragged Leopards up to 28 points with one game left, but the maths stayed cruel. They cannot get to the 32-point mark required to stand any chance of survival, even if University of Pretoria stumble in their final outing.

For Muzeu, it is a painful repeat. This is his second relegation with Leopards in the NFD. The club went down in 2023, only to buy the NFD status of Cape Town All Stars and cling to their place in the league. The reset never truly took.

The 26-year-old striker has done his part. He sits on eight league goals this season, having led the line with a consistency that belies the chaos around him. This is his fourth campaign at the club, after hitting 12 goals in 2024 and 17 in 2025, numbers that placed him among the division’s more reliable finishers. He started this season sharply too, most of his goals coming in the first half of the campaign before the service dried up and, with it, his scoring touch.

Kazapua’s Story

At the other end of the pitch, Kazapua’s story is no less bruising. The 37-year-old goalkeeper arrived at the start of the season on a free transfer, signing a two-year deal after leaving Sekhukhune United in the Premiership. On paper, it looked like a smart, stabilising move for a club trying to rebuild.

Then reality hit.

Leopards opened the season under a transfer ban that stopped them from registering enough players – including a goalkeeper. In their first match they could only field 10 men. For the opening three games, defender and captain Thendo Mukumela pulled on the gloves and stood in goal, a symbol of just how unprepared the club was for the campaign ahead.

Kazapua was already in the building, but stuck in limbo. Until the ban was lifted, he could not be registered, could not play, could not influence the slide. By the time he finally took his place between the posts, Leopards were already lodged deep in the relegation zone and chasing shadows.

The pressure told off the field as well. The club tore through its technical team, reshuffling three times in one season. Joel Masutha began the campaign but departed in November. His replacement, Mabuti Khenyeza, lasted only 10 matches before the revolving door turned again. Stability never arrived; results never settled.

Once registered, Kazapua quickly established himself as first-choice goalkeeper and enjoyed regular minutes. He brought experience, presence, and a measure of calm, but he could not drag a wounded side clear on his own. The Limpopo outfit kept stumbling, and the table never lied.

Leopards now drop into the Safa ABC Motsepe League, where they will join fellow Limpopo side Baroka, who have also been relegated. For a province that once boasted multiple ambitious clubs in the professional ranks, it is a sobering fall.

Namibian interest in the division will not disappear with Leopards, though. Highbury FC, sitting sixth, feature countrymen Ndisiro Kamaijanda and Ngero Katua, while Prins Tjiueza’s Cape Town City FC occupy third place, level on points with fourth as they push for a play-off berth. Their trajectories point upwards, even as Muzeu and Kazapua face the opposite direction.

Black Leopards still have one fixture to fulfil – a final-day meeting with eighth-placed Lerumo Lions on Sunday, 17 May at 15h00. For some, it will be a last outing in Leopards colours. For others, it may be the first step in a long climb back from the bottom.