The fraud case against South African Football Association president Danny Jordaan and co-accused has been postponed again. This follows the appointment of a new legal representative for businessman Trevor Neethling. The matter will return to court on 14 April 2026.
On 11 February 2026, Danny Jordaan, the long-serving president of the South African Football Association (Safa), appeared at the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court in Ekurhuleni alongside co-accused Gronie Hluyo, the federation’s chief financial officer, former acting CEO Russell Paul, and businessman Trevor Neethling. This was their first joint appearance since Paul’s arrest in November 2025. All four face charges of fraud and theft related to payments made by Safa to Neethling’s company, Grit Communications, for personal services provided to Jordaan between September 2018 and November 2019.
Advocate Victor Nkhwashu, representing Jordaan, Hluyo, and Paul, renewed his call for the case to be struck off the roll. He argued that the ongoing proceedings prejudice his clients, especially pending a high court review of a Hawks search and seizure operation at Safa House on 8 March 2024. “My clients have always been insistent on me asking this court to strike this matter off the roll,” Nkhwashu told the court. He noted that Jordaan and Hluyo launched the review application on 4 April 2024, with a hearing scheduled for late April 2026 at the Gauteng Division of the High Court in Johannesburg. Nkhwashu contended that the search was intrusive and that the state could have requested documents without it.
State prosecutor Moagi Malebati countered that the state is prepared to proceed, as the disputed evidence from the search is supplementary and not essential to the prosecution. “The accused are still making arguments that were made almost two years ago... The State has always maintained that it’s ready to proceed with this matter,” Malebati said.
Magistrate Sheron Soko-Rantao granted a postponement to 14 April 2026, allowing Neethling’s new counsel, Leana Fick, time to prepare. The case’s slow progress coincides with Safa’s elective congress planned for September 2026.
