More than 1,000 football supporters gathered at Fourways Mall on sunday evening,as LALIGA successfully revived its ELCLÁSICO Extravaganza fan experience in South Africa.
The event united fans, media, influencers, partners and football stakeholders for one of the biggest fixtures in world football between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF.
The 2026 edition marked the return of a major public ELCLÁSICO activation in South Africa for the first time in nearly a decade, following the memorable 2016 showcase at Nelson Mandela Square, where close to 2,000 supporters attended a full day of football entertainment and fan engagement.
This year’s edition transformed Fourways Mall into a vibrant football hub, featuring interactive fan experiences, giveaways, live entertainment and match-day activities designed to bring supporters closer to the excitement of Spanish football.
Hennessy enhanced the VIP experience at the ELCLÁSICO Extravaganza through the exclusive Hennessy Legends Lounge, which hosted invited guests, media and football stakeholders alongside LALIGA legends.
The event also helped drive fan engagement for the Sporty LALIGA MVP campaign, encouraging supporters to take part in the final phase of public voting while celebrating African excellence connected to LALIGA.
SportyBet also introduced several interactive activations throughout the day and offered supporters the chance to win an exclusive VIP experience, including meet-and-greet opportunities with LALIGA ambassadors Alex Song and Geremi Njitap.
Speaking on the significance of ELCLÁSICO, Geremi highlighted the magnitude of the occasion in world football.
For me it is the most famous match because of the history of the two teams and for players it is the opportunity to showcase themselves. For a footballer every player wants to play, not just play but perform in this match. You have to win it for the fans,said Geremi.
The former Cameroon international also shared his thoughts on Real Madrid CF’s recent struggles.
These kind of teams need a manager that will be able to manage big players with big egos. Once you are able to manage their egos you’ll have success because they are big players and then they will do what they love ,play football and win titles. A team like Madrid should win a title, that’s why they are Madrid.
Geremi backed Madrid to emerge victorious ahead of kickoff, calling it “the match of the season to win,” while fellow ambassador Alex Song accurately predicted a 2-0 win for FC Barcelona.
The event also created an opportunity to reflect on the growth of African football ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with Geremi stressing the importance of unity among stakeholders on the continent.
Governance, conditions, all stakeholders sticking together and organising ourselves.
We should grow our football when we are in South Africa and talk about big fixtures like Sundowns and Pirates.
Song meanwhile praised the progress made by Bafana Bafana under coach Hugo Broos and believes an African nation can challenge for the latter stages of the FIFA World Cup.
Bafana Bafana are doing very well. Hugo Broos is doing a very good job with the young players,said Song.
I expect them to go as far as possible. For me, I would like one African team to be in the final.
We saw Morocco managed to make it to the semi-final. We wish that Morocco, or Bafana Bafana or Senegal can be there because we need it.
It has been so many years that we’ve been crying saying that we have to be there. I wish this year we can see one of these teams.
Tresor Penku said the return of the event reaffirmed the strong connection between African fans and Spanish football.
The return of the ElClásico Extravaganza was an important moment for us. As we celebrate 10 years of LALIGA in Africa, this event allowed us to reconnect with fans in a meaningful way and show the continued passion for Spanish football in the market. Seeing our fans come together at Fourways Mall reminded us why these live fan experiences matter.