Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie has given his stamp of approval to assist the men’s and women’s national hockey teams financially with R3 million as they prepare for the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup.
Also see: Gayton McKenzie gets candid about personal spending during FIFA World Cup trip
The Patriotic Alliance leader previously received criticism when it was revealed that SA Hockey was nearly R3 million short of covering the costs of sending both teams to the international tournament.
Players claimed that they were expected to pay a significant amount of money on expenses themselves. This included travel, accommodation, visas and other tournament-related costs.
Gayton McKenzie announces assistance for SA Hockey
In an X post shared on 23 July 2026, the politician noted that the approval of the financial assistance will fully fund the athletes and the team during their time abroad. The sporting event takes place in Belgium and the Netherlands from 14 to 30 August 2026.
I have approved departmental financial assistance of R3 million to enable both the South African Men’s and Women’s National Hockey Teams to participate fully funded at the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup, to be jointly hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands from 14 to 30 August.
— Gayton McKenzie (@GaytonMcK) July 23, 2026
Also see: Gayton McKenzie To Gift Bafana Bafana R5 Million For World Cup Qualification
“Our hockey players have already done South Africa proud, arriving in Europe as reigning African champions in both the men’s and women’s competitions,” Gayton previously shared.
“It cannot be right that athletes who have earned that place on the world stage through years of sacrifice are then asked to fund their own participation. Representing your country is a national honour and a national responsibility. It should never be a personal financial burden.”
Government enters the chat
The South African Government explained that the McKenzie-run department will release the funding once a formal funding agreement has been finalised and all governance, financial management, and reporting requirements have been met.
“As a condition of the support, SA Hockey has been required to submit a comprehensive report on the circumstances that gave rise to the shortfall, to account in full for the utilisation of the funds provided, and to submit a Financial Turnaround Plan setting out how it will strengthen its financial sustainability and governance ahead of future international tournaments.”
Also see: Gayton McKenzie promises Bafana Bafana financial incentives after historic win
Be the first to know – Join our WhatsApp channel for content worth tapping into. Click here to join!
