| Competition: | Varsity Football Challenge |
| Season: | 2013 |
| Winners: | UP-Tuks (men) University of Johannesburg (women) |
| Biggest Home Win: | 5–0 (Tuks vs UCT), 6–1 (NWU vs UFS) |
| Biggest Away Win: | 4–0 (Tuks vs UFS), (NMMU vs UCT), (NWU vs Wits) |
| Highest Scoring: | 6–1 (NWU vs UFS) |
| Matches: | 34 |
| Total Goals: | 99 |
| Nextseason: | 2014 Varsity Football |
The 2013 Varsity Football challenge was the first season of a South African university association football competition. It involved some of the top football playing universities in the country, which belong to the University Sports Company. The tournament is run by Varsity Sports South Africa, and is endorsed by the South African Football Association and University Sport South Africa.[1]
The men's competition was won by UP-Tuks and the women's competition by University of Johannesburg.
The Varsity Cup tournament was founded in 2008, featuring the rugby teams of eight universities. Varsity Sports was expanded in 2012 to include other sporting codes.[2] University Sport South Africa discussed the Varsity Football proposal at its 2012 annual general meeting. The idea was initially rejected, as it was seen to split the member institutions.[3] However, it was later accepted, and 2013 was the inaugural season of Varsity Football, with an 8 team men's tournament.[4] A four team women's tournament is also being played.[5]
The eight teams competing in the men's Varsity Football challenge are:
| Varsity Football Challenge | |||
| Team Name | University | Stadium | |
|---|---|---|---|
| NMMU Madibaz | Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University | NMMU Stadium | |
| NWU Mafikeng | North-West University | Mafikeng Sports Fields | |
| TUT | Tshwane University of Technology | TUT Stadium | |
| Ikey Warriors | University of Cape Town | The Green Mile | |
| UFS Kovsies | University of the Free State | Shimla Park | |
| UP-Tuks | University of Pretoria | Tuks Stadium | |
| UWC | University of the Western Cape | UWC Sport Stadium | |
| Wits | University of the Witwatersrand | Bidvest Stadium |
The four teams competing in the women's Varsity Football challenge are:
| Varsity Football Challenge | |||
| Team Name | University | Stadium | |
|---|---|---|---|
| TUT | Tshwane University of Technology | TUT Stadium | |
| UP-Tuks | University of Pretoria | Tuks Stadium | |
| UJ | University of Johannesburg | AW Muller Stadium | |
| Limpopo | University of Limpopo | Oscar Mphetha Stadium |
For both the men's and women's tournaments, qualification was based on the 2012 University Sports South Africa National Club Championships. In order to qualify, men's teams need to be one of the eight highest placed teams associated with Varsity Sports. Women's teams needed to be one of the semi-finalists, and also be associated with Varsity Sports.
For the men's tournament, UP-Tuks qualified as USSA champions, and NWU-Mafikeng as losing finalists. TUT-Pretoria qualified as a losing semi-finalist, while UKZN Pietermaritzburg, also a losing semi-finalist, was ineligible, not being linked to Varsity Sports. Wits and UWC qualified as losing quarter finalists, while WSU-Potsdam and CPUT, both of which also lost in the quarter-finals were ineligible. UCT, ranked 9th, UFS, ranked 11th and NMMU, ranked 14th were invited. Higher placed University of Venda, WSU-Ibika and UKZN-Edgewood were not invited, as they are not linked to Varsity Sports.
For the women's tournament, TUT-Pretoria was invited as the USSA women's champion. UP-Tuks qualified as the losing finalist, and UJ as a losing semi-finalist. VUT, a losing semi-finalist, was not invited, lacking affiliation with Varsity Sports at the time. As such, 5th ranked University of Limpopo was invited instead.[6]
The tournament begins with a round robin stage, in which all teams play each other once. After the round robin stage, the top 4 teams will advance to the knockout stage. The teams ranked 1 and 2 will host the semi-finals, against the teams ranked 4 and 3 respectively. The winners will advance to the final, to be hosted by the highest ranking finalist. All matches are played on Mondays. The league scoring system follows a standard scoring system and awards 3 points are awarded for a win, and 1 point for a draw. Teams are separated first on points, and then on goal difference.
The 2013 season began with the round robin stages on 22 July, which will end on 2 September.
The top four placed men's teams progressed to the knockout stage, as did all four women's teams. The semi-finals for both men and women were played on 9 September and the finals on 16 September.
Players and coaches who have since been signed by professional clubs.
The tournament is sponsored by: