Our Story & Mission
Statement of Faith | Our Journey | Timeline
Ubuntu is an African expression of togetherness, meaning that what I am is intrinsically linked to what we are.
MISSION
Holistically developing elite footballers towards becoming citizens of significance.
VISION
Our vision is to see families, communities, and society healthy and flourishing due to the influence of Ubuntu’s graduates.
VALUES
Honour | Family | Positivity | Excellence | Growth
We believe that creating the right culture and environment is crucial in raising the next generation of great leaders. Our five Ubuntu values underpin all that we do, providing coaches, staff, and players a clear reference point to the type of men we want to develop. Weekly life skills and Bible studies based on these values help coaches and players apply them on a very practical level in their lives. Each term, our badge system rewards players living out the values in their community, school, as well as on the football field.
Ubuntu Football was founded with the mission to transform the lives and communities of the talented young footballers with whom we work, through a holistic development and education program. Spiritual input is an important part of our mentorship program, and while we welcome students from any faith background, Ubuntu’s values are rooted in the Christian faith of its founders and leadership. We seek to model and invite our student body to explore and live out the “abundant life” that Jesus promises to those who follow him.
Cape Town is a diverse community in terms of ethnicity and faith, and every family that becomes part of the Ubuntu journey is made aware of our Christian foundations and how that is reflected in our regular programs. They are also assured that they and their children will always be valued, loved and made to feel welcome regardless of their personal belief system. We avoid labelling Ubuntu as a “Christian Football Academy” as we want every member of our community to feel equally valued regardless of their personal faith. Our approach is simply to serve and love those we work with in a way that we hope will reflect Jesus, and integrate our faith into our program in a way that is an invitation to explore a relationship with Jesus without any pressure to conform.
This integration of our Christian faith into the regular rhythm of Ubuntu includes optional Bible Studies, a character curriculum built on Christian principles and fostering a culture of intentional servant leadership within our staff. Often the greatest spiritual impact happens within the context of relationships rather than programs, and our program is built around the principle of offering positive, missional mentors to our students and their families.
Our Statement of Faith
Our journey
When Ubuntu Founders Casey Prince and Michael Jenkins met for the first time in 2009, they very soon discovered that they shared two passions. Both of these men were football fanatics with a deep concern about the generation of boys growing up in some of South Africa’s toughest communities without fathers, mentors, or role models. They believed that football has the unique power to inspire and motivate young people not only to demand more for themselves but from themselves in areas such as character, leadership, and education.
These passions became a dream, and in 2011 the dream became a reality, with 16 boys between the ages of 12 and 13 years becoming the very first Ubuntu Football Academy class. With no sponsors, resources, or even a bank account, Ubuntu’s first intake of boys was all drawn from communities within driving distance for Casey and Michael, who would fetch boys for training every afternoon and drive them home afterwards. They felt that the only way to pursue their dream was to start doing what they could with what they had. If all they could do was invest in those 16 boys through to their adulthood, that’s exactly what they were going to do.
By the end of 2011, they raised sponsorship to put those first 16 boys into an excellent local school, and the Ubuntu Football Academy became a full-time football and education program. This meant opening bank accounts, registering a trust, and applying for non-profit status; the Ubuntu Football Trust became a proper organisation. By 2013, Ubuntu’s support base had grown sufficiently and allowed an intake of a new group of 12-year-olds. Since then the Academy has added an age group each year, growing to 90 boys between 12 and 18 years old, with a residential facility for those coming from further afield, and a number of community-based satellite Football Forward programs operating in various communities around Cape Town.
In 2016, the Ubuntu Football Academy registered as an independent school, starting with Grades 6 through 8 in January 2017 with the vision to offer a creative, effective, and quality education to every boy in the Academy. By 2021 our school provided education to 55 students across Grades 7 - 12 and at the end of that year, our five Matriculants who had received their the entirety of their High School Education with Ubuntu, all matriculated with Bachelor Passes.
For a long time, we had wanted to be an Academy that provided opportunities for both boys and girls and in 2023, we made the decision that the time had arrived to start the process of introducing girls into our program. Following a successful campaign in mid-2023, we launched an U-12 girls team in 2024 as well as invited four girls to join our full Academy program and we will be adding more girls to our program with each year.
Today, Ubuntu is a fully functioning professional football academy with a registered school and residence. We have graduates across the globe with some playing professional football; some continuing their education in the USA and others gainfully employed in South Africa. We have much that we still want to achieve, so watch this space…
Ubuntu Academy over the years
2008
Mike and Casey Meet in Cape Town
2009
Ubuntu Sports Outreach Founded
Casey and the Prince family move to Cape Town
2010
Start Working in Schools in the Southern Peninsula
First One Valley Festival
First Academy Trials
2011
Launched the Ubuntu Football Academy With Under 13s
Partnership With Fish Hoek Association Football Club
2012
Start of Football Forward program
Partnership with Sun Valley Group of Schools for Boys' Education
First Boys Make the Board Team
2013
Launch of Ubuntu Teammates Sponsorship Program
Started Adding One Age Group Per Year in the Academy
2014
First Academy Group of Under 12s
Won First Super League Championship
2015
Academy Residence Opens for 15 Boys
The first group of Boys Matriculate
The merger of Ubuntu Football and ASD
2016
6 Boys Sent To America for College ID Camps
Luke Fleurs becomes the first Ubuntu Player to join the U-17 National Team
2017
Ubuntu Football Academy School Grand Opening
Expansion of Residence for 30 Boys
Academy graduate Jesse Donn signs with Ubuntu Cape Town FC
Luke Fleurs Becomes First Graduate to Make it to South Africa’s Top Flight, Signing with SuperSport FC in Pretoria
2018
First-ever Ubuntu Crosses Borders trip to the Middle East
7 Boys Go to America for Prep School, College, and Football
2019
The school adds high school grades 10-12 and grows to 70 students
Our first Matriculants matriculate from our own high school
The U18 team wins the ENGEN Champ of Champs national tournament
2020
During the COVID-19 Pandemic, while many students were not able to receive schooling, we were able to keep our school and residence open for our players
We took our fundraising, talent show, and magazine all online!
2021
Luke Fleurs and Jesse Donn became our first graduates to be selected for the National Team, with Luke playing for the National Team in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Our U18 team won the ENGEN Knockout Competition, retaining the title they won in 2019
All five Matriculants received Bachelor's Passes
The Ubuntu Football Academy celebrates its 10th Anniversary
2022
Munashe Garananga becomes our first Ubuntu graduate to play in Europe by signing for Dynamo Brest, Belarus
Antonio van Wyk (playing for Stellenbosch FC) is called up to the National Squad for the COSAFA Cup and becomes our first graduate to score for his country at the senior level!
Luto Tom and Robin Terry become our first Ubuntu Graduates to graduate from University
2023
Munashe continues his development by moving to FC Sheriff (Moldova) and is selected in their UEFA Europa Conference League Squad. Munashe would then go on to play for FC Sheriff in the UEFA Champions League Qualifying Rounds and UEFA Europa League, and receive his first call up to the Zimbabwean National Squad.
Eight of our twelve graduates sign contracts with PSL Clubs
Our U14 enter the Schools League and - at the first attempt - win the Regional, Provincial and National Tournaments, qualifying them for the COSAFA U15 Schools Tournament which they went on to win in December 2023.
2024
We launch our girls program; introducing four girls to join our full Academy program and also creating a U12 Girls team
