Who wins when fans buy 2027 World Cup tickets?

When millions of cricket fans log on to buy tickets for the 2027 Men’s Cricket World Cup, the company standing between them and the turnstiles will likely be Ticketpro, a firm that quietly changed hands this year and now sits at the centre of questions about political connections, transparency and who benefits from the business of South African sport.

For supporters, the stakes are simple: access. Ticketpro is the official ticketing vendor for Cricket South Africa (CSA) and the South African Football Association (Safa). It is currently selling tickets for the Proteas’ home fixtures in a packed 2026/2027 summer season, and all indications are that it has also secured the deal to sell tickets for the World Cup, which South Africa will co-host with Namibia and Zimbabwe. That means a single, politically connected company will control access to the biggest sporting event the country has staged in years.

The ownership change came about after the JSE-listed telecommunications group Blu Label sold its sports and events ticketing business in May to what it describes as a “women-owned broad-based black economic empowerment consortium”, following an “unsolicited bid”. The individuals now identified at the heart of that consortium have close ties to Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie and his Patriotic Alliance (PA).

Bakang Lethoko, who served as McKenzie’s chief of staff from August until November 2024 and later chaired the department’s Formula One bid steering committee, took over as Ticketpro’s new CEO in June. Two other shareholders, Astrid Harrison and Omphemetse Mokgosi, have confirmed their stakes to Daily Maverick. Mokgosi was appointed by McKenzie to the boards of the National Film and Video Foundation in November 2024 and the National Arts Council in January 2025, and has also served as a director of Metrobus and the Johannesburg Roads Agency, two City of Johannesburg entities that report to PA deputy president Kenny Kunene. Harrison has described herself on social media as a “proud, disciplined member” of McKenzie’s party.

The money flowing through this gatekeeper is substantial, and it comes from ordinary fans. The series against England in January alone could generate roughly R100-million in ticket sales, according to an industry insider, and the World Cup may earn CSA in excess of R100-million more, with the popular Betway SA20 tournament adding further revenue. As CSA’s official vendor, Ticketpro takes a percentage-based cut of these sales. The company’s annual turnover is estimated at about R100-million, spanning sport fixtures, concerts and festivals.

What the public does not know is almost as significant as what it does. None of the parties would disclose how much the consortium paid for Ticketpro or where the funds came from. Blu Label says confidentiality undertakings bind it from naming the purchaser, disclosing the consideration, or revealing the terms. A single footnote in its 2025/2026 Annual Financial Statements records a “net outflow of R35-million relating to the disposal of Ticketpro”, and it is unclear whether this reflects a vendor-finance arrangement, as one source has suggested. Blu Label also said it had “no knowledge of the affiliations, associations or other interests of the individuals concerned”, though it is not clear whether any Politically Exposed Persons checks were applied; a simple online search would have shown Mokgosi’s appointments to entities reporting to McKenzie’s department.

The World Cup ticketing process itself remains opaque. The local organising committee declined to confirm Ticketpro’s appointment, saying only that an announcement would follow. Yet when the International Cricket Council launched the tournament schedule in Cape Town last Thursday, an event McKenzie attended, the ticket ballot website unveiled for fans opened onto Ticketpro pages through its terms and conditions and data privacy links. Neither the LOC nor CSA had publicly announced the appointment by the time of going to print.

All parties involved deny wrongdoing. McKenzie said through a spokesperson that he is limited from exercising direct procurement decisions and would not influence any bid Ticketpro might make. He denied any role in Lethoko’s appointment, saying she built her own relationships with decision-makers, and argued that no actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest has been flagged for review. “Should PA members starve?” the spokesperson asked, rejecting what he called a strange view that PA members should be confined to menial work. The PA, through spokesperson Steven Motale, said it played no part in Lethoko’s appointment and that none of the new Ticketpro directors are employed by, hold office in, or do business with the party. Lethoko said her role as chief of staff ended well before her Ticketpro appointment and declined to comment on her political membership. Ticketpro Group said its decisions are made on commercial merit through appropriate governance processes, and Harrison, speaking for the group, declined to comment on prospective tenders.

Daily Maverick has found no evidence that McKenzie intervened in the transaction or in Ticketpro’s commercial arrangements with the sports bodies. But for the fans who will queue for World Cup tickets, and for the taxpayers whose sports structures sit within the minister’s oversight, the lack of disclosure around who now owns the gatekeeper to South African sport is a question that remains open. This is the first instalment in Daily Maverick’s ‘Caught Out’ series, with further reports on the transaction to follow.