Sundowns’ plane to Rabat fails to leave as Moroccans deny landing permit

Sowetan · 🇿🇦 public South Africa · May 19, 2026 · 197 words · By Mahlatse Mphahlele

Sporting Competition Allegations of Unfair Play Travel Logistics

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What to know about Sporting Competition

Mamelodi Sundowns’ preparations for the second leg of their Caf Champions League final against AS FAR have been severely disrupted after the team was grounded in South Africa.

Claims checked 7

Techniques found 1

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center100%

Right0%

7 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Mamelodi Sundowns’ preparations for the second leg of their Caf Champions League final against AS FAR have been severely disrupted after the team was grounded in South Africa.

Why it matters

The Brazilians were unable to fly to Morocco as scheduled on Tuesday morning because they had not received a landing permit from the North African country’s aviation authorities.

Common ground

Sundowns have lost a full day’s training as a result, disrupting their preparations for the hugely anticipated clash in Rabat on Sunday.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Sporting Competition story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that officials are working around the clock to ensure their chartered flight leaves on Wednesday morning?
How does this story connect Sporting Competition with Allegations of Unfair Play over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.sowetan.co.za/sport/soccer/2026-05-19-sundowns-plane-to-rabat-fails-…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 7 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 4

info Single Source 3

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Claim 1: “officials are working around the clock to ensure their chartered flight leaves on Wednesday morning.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The specific detail that officials are working to ensure a chartered flight leaves on Wednesday morning is only found in one web search result.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Mamelodi Sundowns are chartering a plane to take them into the heart of the Congo later this week as they prepare to begin a bid to add another Caf Champions League star to their badge.
https://www.sowetan.co.za/sport/soccer/2019-08-06-sundowns-c…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — After several hours at OR Tambo International Airport in the morning on Tuesday, Sundowns players had to return home and officials are working around the clock to ensure their chartered flight leaves …
https://www.timeslive.co.za/sport/2026-05-19-sundowns-plane-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — AS FAR will travel to South Africa on a private plane ahead of this weekend’s CAF Champions League final against Mamelodi Sundowns. No transit stops - direct flight from Morocco to South Africa for th…
https://news.google.com/stories/CAAqNggKIjBDQklTSGpvSmMzUnZj…

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Claim 2: “Mamelodi Sundowns’ preparations for the second leg of their Caf Champions League final against AS FAR have been severely disrupted after the team was grounded in South Africa.”

CORROBORATED

The claim is reported by both Dailydispatch (cross-reference) and a web search result specifically detailing the grounded plane in South Africa.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025 CAF Champions League final were the final matches of the 2024–25 CAF Champions League, the 61st edition of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_CAF_Champions_League_fina…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 CAF Champions League final is the two-legged final of the 2025–26 CAF Champions League, the 62nd edition of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_CAF_Champions_League_fina…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mamelodi Sundowns Football Club (simply known as the Sundowns) is a South African professional football club based in Mamelodi, Pretoria, Gauteng that plays in the Premiership, the first tier of South…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamelodi_Sundowns_F.C.

+ 4 more evidence sources

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Claim 3: “After several hours at OR Tambo International Airport in the morning on Tuesday, Sundowns players had to return home”

CORROBORATED

The detail about players spending hours at OR Tambo International Airport on Tuesday before returning home is confirmed by both Dailydispatch and a web search result.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The Heat underwent a dramatic turnaround in the 1996–97 season, improving to a 61–21 record – a franchise record at the time, and currently second-best in team history. That same year, Miami earned th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miami_Heat

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — 2 days ago · Miami Heat professional basketball news and analysis. Follow the NBA team's home and away games, scores, trades, starting lineup, injuries and recaps.
https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nba/miami-heat/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — 1 day ago · Heavy on Heat is your mobile-friendly hub for Miami Heat news alerts, trade rumors, roster updates, starting lineup, injury report, odds and players' stats.
https://heavy.com/sports/nba/miami-heat/

+ 1 more evidence source

info

Claim 4: “The Brazilians were unable to fly to Morocco as scheduled on Tuesday morning because they had not received a landing permit from the North African country’s aviation authorities.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The specific detail about the lack of a landing permit from Moroccan aviation authorities is only found in one web search result. Other sources mention the general match context but not the specific permit issue.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025–26 CAF Champions League, officially the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League for sponsorship purposes, is the 62nd season of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confedera…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025–26_CAF_Champions_League

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025–26 CAF Champions League knockout stage started on 13 March with the quarter-finals and will end on 24 May 2026 with the second leg of the final to decide the champions of the 2025–26 CAF Cham…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025–26_CAF_Champions_League_k…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The South African Premiership, also known as the Betway Premiership for sponsorship reasons, and commonly referred to as the PSL after its governing body, is a professional soccer league in South Afri…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_African_Premiership

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 5: “their match that was marred by crowd violence and malfunctioning VAR.”

CORROBORATED

Crowd violence (clashes between AS FAR supporters and security) and VAR malfunctions (technical difficulties delaying the second half) are reported across multiple independent web search results.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2024–25 season was Mamelodi Sundowns' 29th consecutive season in the South African Premiership. Sundowns entered the season as defending champions after winning their 17th Premiership title in the…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024–25_Mamelodi_Sundowns_F.C.…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies Football Club is a women's professional soccer club based in Pretoria, South Africa. The team competes in the SAFA Women's League, the top tier women's football league in Sout…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamelodi_Sundowns_Ladies_F.C.

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 6: “Sundowns are taking a slender lead to the second leg after a lone goal by defender Aubrey Modiba secured a 1-0 win in Pretoria on Sunday”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources (ESPN and other web search results) confirm that Mamelodi Sundowns won the first leg 1-0 against AS FAR with a goal by Aubrey Modiba in Pretoria.

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+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 7: “Sundowns have lost a full day’s training as a result, disrupting their preparations for the hugely anticipated clash in Rabat on Sunday.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The claim that they lost a full day of training due to the flight delay is only mentioned in one specific web search result.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2018–19 CAF Champions League (officially the 2018–19 Total CAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons) was the 55th edition of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confeder…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018–19_CAF_Champions_League

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2022 CAF Women's Champions League was the 2nd edition of the annual African women's association football club tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) held in Morocco fr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_CAF_Women's_Champions_Lea…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This article aims at providing details on the participation and performance of Atlético Petróleos de Luanda at the various competitions organized by the Confederation of African Football, namely the C…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlético_Petróleos_de_Luanda_i…

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.