Sasol sponsorship manager Dean Somerset praised the company’s 17-year partnership with the South African Football Association after Banyana Banyana qualified for the third round of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games qualifiers on Tuesday, 14 October 2026.

The qualification came as the South African women’s national team completed a dominant victory over Madagascar, led by braces from in-form Ronnel Donnelly and Gabriela Moodaly-Salgado in the return leg, securing a 7-0 aggregate win with two clean sheets at Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein.

In the first leg played last Friday, Donnelly produced a memorable hat-trick alongside an own goal to secure a comfortable 4-0 victory.

Somerset noted that the long-standing alliance between SAFA and its commercial sponsor has stood the test of time, yielding transformative results for women’s football in South Africa.

“Well, our relationship with SAFA is heading towards two decades now since 2009. And really a proud relationship that we have started back then. All in the spirit of wanting to change the landscape of women's football in this country,” he said.

Recalling the initial years of the venture, Somerset highlighted the challenging state of the national women’s team prior to sustained corporate backing.

“We have seen over the years, when women's football was not fashionable, Sasol put their hand up to make that difference. Today, we have a track record of this team playing in multiple international matches,” he said.

He noted that the breakthrough achieved by the senior squad demonstrates the lasting value of consistent financial and operational support.

“We have seen this team playing in FIFA Women's World Cup consecutively in 2019, 2023. And now the team is getting themselves ready to again, go back into the Olympics. And if you look at the achievements of Banyana Banyana, since Sasol has come on board. That is commendable with, obviously, the partnership with Safa,” he added.

Somerset also indicated that the enterprise celebrates the individual career achievements of national team members competing in top overseas leagues.

“We are really proud of the players, and what they have achieved in their individual careers as well, which obviously extend into the broader women's football achievements in South Africa. Today, we have multiple players that are signed for big clubs abroad,” he said.

The sponsorship manager explained that hosting the national team in Bloemfontein formed part of an intentional strategy to inspire local youth.

“And coming to Bloemfontein, we were very intentional. It is about making sure that Banyana Banyana, being the role models that they are, touch the lives of these young, women footballers in Mangaung and abroad, and at large,” he added.

He emphasised that ongoing corporate backing remains crucial to maintaining operational standards across all national team training camps ahead of global fixtures.

“Our support is Banyana Banyana. And in particular, this very camp that we are now part of, to make sure that the team is resourced, and also give Coach Des, and her technical team the necessary support, so that we can have camps of this nature, getting the team ready to play international matches,” he said.