The arrival of Bundesliga side FC Augsburg for a pre-season camp on South African soil could potentially open doors for local players in the German topflight, according to the club's Sporting Director, Marinko Jurendic.
Augsburg picked Mzansi as a destination of choice for their first-ever pre-season camp outside of Europe, setting up camp in White River, Mpumalanga, between 18 and 28 July.
As part of their preparations for the upcoming campaign, they tested their mettle against Tanzanian premier division champions Young Africans and 2019 Nedbank Cup winners TS Galaxy in the inaugural Mpumalanga Premier International Cup.
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Of course, the Bundesliga is no stranger to South African talent; Delron Buckley, Steven Pienaar, Bradley Carnell, Sibusiso Zuma, Rowen Fernandez and Siyabonga Nkosi have all played there.
Rather sadly though, no South African players currently play in the Bundesliga.
Speaking to media at the club's training base, Jurendic explained the bold decision to launch their kit at the country that hosted the 2010 World Cup and revealed that the German club had brought along their scout to be on the lookout for potential talent.
"Football is a sign of integration," Jurendic told journalists.
"When you play football, you bring people together and I think that's the uniqueness of football, what football can do. To transmit a lot of joy.
"Secondly, I don't know if you know, but in the Bundesliga, there are zero players from South Africa. I don't know why.
"I have spoken to my colleagues here, they told me that the players might not be so attractive because here they also earn a lot more money to go out of the country and play there [laughs].
"But no, for me, it's important to see and for sure, my job is to maybe discover something new and maybe see some talent. To see how they develop.
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Here we go ???? pic.twitter.com/n6qH1Fpdbq
— FC Augsburg (@FCA_World) July 19, 2024
"As I mentioned, we have opened the market, we just now transferred two players with roots from Africa, so why not open the market in South Africa?
"My chief of scouting, I took him with us. He was born in Mauritius, he has his roots here and grew up in Germany. He really understands the relationship between the continents, not only the countries, and he is here with us.
"So, for sure, while we are here, we are looking. When we see talent, maybe there will be some opportunities for the future."
Augsburg registered a 2-1 win over Young Africans last Saturday, before playing to a goalless draw against TS Galaxy on Wednesday, with matches played at Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit.