Bloemfontein Celtic

News of the imminent sale of DStv Premiership Bloemfontein Celtic has been met with shock by fans and former players alike.

Bloemfontein Celtic sale shocks club’s biggest fan – and past players

News of the imminent sale of DStv Premiership Bloemfontein Celtic has been met with shock by fans and former players alike.

Bloemfontein Celtic

News of the imminent sale of DStv Premiership Bloemfontein Celtic has been met with shock by fans and former players alike.

News of the imminent sale of DStv Premiership Bloemfontein Celtic has been met with shock by fans and former players alike.

WATCH | MAMELODI SUNDOWNS V KAIZER CHIEFS HIGHLIGHTS – INCLUDING THE SHOOTOUT!

Phunya Sele Sele is reportedly in the process of being sold by owner Max Tshabalala to Durban-based businesswoman Shauwn Mkhize for a fee of R50 million.

The Free State side will now be renamed Royal AM and will relocate to KwaZulu-Natal, thus ending Bloemfontein Celtic’s 52-year history.

READ | HUGO BROOS IS BACK IN SA! WATCHES KAIZER CHIEFS LOSE TO MAMELODI SUNDOWNS

The PSL in expected to confirm the sale and name change in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

The sale has not gone down well with club fans and former players who have been vocal about their disappointment of what has transpired.

READ | KAIZER CHIEFS LATEST | NKOSINGIPHILE NGCOBO GIVEN LEGENDARY JERSEY NUMBER

“This is very sad. It’s a sad moment for people of Bloemfontein,” former Bloemfontein Celtic midfielder Lebogang Mothibantwa told Kickoff.

“The whole province has been affected by this sad news, Bloemfontein will never be the same again.

“We’re not only talking about football but also the economy of the province.

“Some people’s survival depended on matchdays. I hope someone someday will reinstate this team.”

WIN | ANSWER THESE 5 QUESTIONS AND YOU COULD BE R1 000 RICHER!

The club’s biggest die-hard female fan, Mamello Makha, was equally dismayed and shocked by what’s happened saying she had expected PSL chairperson Dr Irvin Khoza to block the sale.

READ | SIMBA SET TO BEAT KAIZER CHIEFS TO THE SIGNATURE OF ROMANIAN STRIKER POPA

“I am disappointed and shattered,” an emotional Makha said.

“I never believed the news when it started circulating on Friday.

“I was hoping the news wasn’t true, but after the announcement at a PSL press conference, it started to sink in that Bloemfontein Celtic is no more.

“I was hoping that the Irvin Khoza would announce the sale is a lie.

“The sale of Celtic will affect not only football but also the economy in the Free State.

“Bloemfontein Celtic was our lifestyle. There is no other entertainment in Bloemfontein except Celtic.

“How are we going to survive now without Celtics? We always thought that someone would buy the club and keep it in the Free State province.

“The Free State government has failed us,” she added.

READ | KAIZER CHIEFS LATEST | SAMIR NURKOVIC NOW LINKED WITH R22 MILLION EXIT

Bloemfontein Celtic – or Royal AM – get their 2021/22 DStv Premiership campaign under way with an away match against Swallows FC at the Dobsonville Stadium on Sunday, 22 August.

Kick-off is at 15:00.