'COACHES WERE STRESSED'

A BT Football Academy team captain says he ‘knew something was wrong’ when cub coaches became visibly stressed out. 

Chad Harper is one of the lucky boys who recently returned from a tour to Spain where some of his teammates remain stranded after a fiasco that is affecting at least 19 more families.

The group of 14 to 19-year-olds and their coaches had participated in the Donosti Cup 2025 in Spain. They were told the total fee was R48 500. This was meant to include everything: kits, bags, food, transport, accommodation, and flights.

Everything went well, until the day they were set to return on 16 July, when they learned they were not going home because their return flights had not been booked. 

BT Academy has cited delayed visa appointments as the reason it failed to book return flights in time, leading to unaffordable prices and leaving the group of 38 stranded.

Chad says he knew that dinge het skeef geloop the moment they got to Madrid. 

The original plan was to visit Real Madrid’s iconic Santiago Bernabeu Stadium which never happened as the hours flew by. 

Chad explained: “Coaches had to buy supper with their own money and cook for us past 10pm. We ate and then went to sleep. 

“The next day, the coaches were clearly stressed. As the team captain, they pulled me aside and explained that ‘We might not be leaving tonight’. They didn’t want to go into detail. My teammates were frustrated.” 

Eventually they were kicked out of the hotel. The coaches then approached the embassy. 

He added: “One coach pulled me aside again, saying, ‘We need to keep the kids calm.’ I had to help keep up the morale of the team. Players started getting frustrated. Eventually, the coaches returned. 

“On Thursday, a message went out to parents saying an additional R15 000 was needed for us to come home. That wasn’t part of the contract. I was stressed, not just for myself but for the other kids.”

BT have said: “Please understand that we are working around the clock to find solutions to bring all players back home as soon as possible.” 

South Africans have come together to try and help, including the Tracey Lange Cares (TLC) initiative with a travel agent onboard to facilitate the return of the group. The travel agent can be reached via: melisha@traveldirect.online