0:00Sport Minister Gayton McKenzie has revealed that the taxypayer spent R31 million on supporting Bafana Bafana at the World Cup.
Gallo Images/Frennie Shivambu
- Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie was a frequent sight in North America, on television and social media, during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
- The total cost of the trip, including departmental officials and support staff, is estimated at R31 million before invoices are reconciled.
- This has angered both the DA and ActionSA, who have submitted parliamentary questions regarding the cost of the visit.
R31 million – and possibly rising or decreasing – is the estimated cost incurred so far by Gayton McKenzie and his sport, arts and culture department for the delegation’s trip to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
And now, ActionSA and the DA have called for consequences for the minister, including a call to account before a parliamentary committee on the taxpayer-funded trip.
During soccer’s biggest showpiece in North America, McKenzie was a common sight when Bafana Bafana played. In two separate parliamentary responses, McKenzie confirmed the R31 million, but also said the figure could increase or decrease once invoices are reconciled.
McKenzie’s parliamentary responses to the DA’s Leah Potgieter and ActionSA’s Dereleen James this week set out the expenses.
READ | Gauteng Premier Lesufi defends private World Cup trip
Explaining his attendance to James, the minister said it formed part of the department’s World Cup support programme, “and was not a private or stand-alone trip”.
McKenzie further said the estimated cost for the ministerial and departmental delegation was approximately R7 865 134, subject to final verification of invoices and travel claims.
The taxpayer has so far spent R6 706 925 on the South Africa 2010 legends exhibition match and R3 361 845 on suites.
Spectator match tickets cost R3 011 465, and R10 million was spent on fan engagement, partnership activations, and legacy activities.
— Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (@SportArtsCultur) June 24, 2026
In total, this brings the estimated cost to R31 million.
“Now that travel has concluded, my department will request final reconciled figures from the travel agent, and the isolated costs specific to me individually can be communicated once verified,” McKenzie wrote.
The ministerial and departmental delegation comprised 18 members: McKenzie, two support staff, the director-general, and a 14-member project team. Twenty artists and “cultural participants” took part in departmental programmes.
This is not the first time McKenzie’s travel during a global sporting event has caused controversy. In 2024, months after his appointment as part of the government of national unity, McKenzie spent R800 000 during the Paris Olympics, most of which went on ground transportation.
READ | McKenzie’s gravy train to Paris Olympics cost taxpayers R800 000
In his response to James, McKenzie said the costs related to his travel, accommodation, subsistence, protocol and related official support at the World Cup were incurred jointly with the broader official delegation.
He told James that his costs “cannot at this stage be disaggregated to isolate the individual cost” as elements such as security, protocol and logistics were procured for the delegation as a single unit.
While in his response to Potgieter, McKenzie said the department was finalising a full traveller-by-traveller reconciliation, because the World Cup programme did not consist of a single delegation. “It included officials, artists, cultural participants, legends, media partners, sponsored fans and implementation support teams,” he wrote.
Some people travelled on DSAC (Department of Sport, Arts and Culture) funds, some through sponsorships and some through implementing partners. It would be misleading to collapse all of them into one list and call them ‘the delegation’.
Regarding the artists and cultural participants, including influencers, McKenzie said they were supported by the department.
“Their function was to perform, support South African cultural visibility and contribute to fan engagement around the approved activations,” he wrote in his reply.
According to McKenzie, the expenditure was funded through a combination of departmental programme allocations. These include corporate services, sport and recreation coordination, arts and culture promotion and development, heritage promotion and preservation, international relations, strategic partnerships, approved APP-linked operational budgets, and sponsorship contributions.
The costs were being reconciled per person and would be finalised, he said.
But ActionSA and the DA, fierce rivals of McKenzie’s PA, were not satisfied with the minister’s answers.
Potgieter said the party would request that McKenzie appear before the portfolio committee “to account for his spending spree and provide Parliament with a breakdown of precise expenditure”.
James said that while promoting South Africa abroad has its place, taxpayers were entitled to ask whether R31 million represented value for money “when communities across the country lack basic sporting facilities and young South Africans are denied opportunities because of crumbling infrastructure”.
She continued: “Even more concerning is Minister McKenzie’s admission that he cannot disclose what he personally costs the taxpayer, because his individual expenses have not yet been separated from the delegation’s total expenditure.
“South Africans are asked to accept a single lump-sum figure, with promises that the details will follow later. A minister who cannot account for his own spending is a minister failing in his duty to be held accountable.”
McKenzie’s spokesperson, Stacey Khojane, did not respond to requests for comment on Wednesday morning. News24 will add the response once received.
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