Former Orlando Pirates captain Lucky Lekgwathi has pointed the Buccaneers towards clinching the CAF Champions League as what should be their top priority this season after last term’s Betway Premiership title triumph.
The Soweto giants have started the 2026/27 season carrying the bragging rights of being the Betway Premiership defending champions. They were crowned league kings to break a 14-year wait for the ultimate prize in South African football.
It was a season in which they also wrapped up a treble by winning the MTN8 and Carling Knockout during coach Abdeslam Ouaddou’s debut term at the club. By finally winning the league title, they followed a period of carving out a reputation as cup specialists in recent seasons.
They are currently sitting on four consecutive MTN8 titles and have claimed back-to-back Nedbank Cup titles. But they had to endure the agony of failing to reach the Champions League group stage last season.
This was after Congolese giants FC Saint-Eloi Lupopo knocked them out of Africa’s top-tier club competition in the second preliminary round. Their early exit was worrying because they had reached the semi-finals the previous season under former coach Jose Riveiro.
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The Soweto giants have not won the Champions League since their maiden continental triumph in 1995. They came close in 2013 when they were losing finalists after succumbing to Egyptian giants Al Ahly.
Lekgwathi feels the upset by Lupopo should serve as a big lesson for the Buccaneers to become better in Africa this season.
“Last season it was the coach’s mandate to win the league title, and he won it. Now obviously, it’s the coach’s mandate to win the Champions League,” Lekgwathi told FARPost.
“During my era, we wanted to win it, but unfortunately we reached the final and lost. But let’s hope that with this generation, they can go all the way and win it.
“Last season they lost in the [group stage] qualifiers, and it was a learning curve for them, losing to a team from the DR Congo. I think it was a learning curve for them, so this season, I so wish they can go all the way and break that curse of 1995. It would be good for them to win the Champions League.”
Turning to the Betway Premiership, Lekgwathi has warned the Buccaneers against reading much into the experience of winning it last season.
“To win the league, it is not about experience. Mamelodi Sundowns still have that thing of winning the league, and after losing it to Orlando Pirates, they want to bounce back and win it again and have the feeling of winning the league,” added the retired footballer.
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