The 2025/2026 Ingwenyama Cup champions will walk away with a mouth-watering E1.45 million, reaffirming the tournament’s status as the richest football competition in the country.
Runners-up will pocket a respectable E650 000, with this season’s prize breakdown remaining largely unchanged from last year.
The total sponsorship for the Ingwenyama Cup soccer tournament stands at E3.8 million, while a further E1.2 million is reserved for the cultural competition, bringing the overall annual sponsorship to E5 million. The tournament uniquely blends football and culture, a feature that has become its hallmark.
Individual accolades will also be rewarded, with the player of the tournament set to receive E15 000, alongside prizes for the best goalkeeper, top goal scorer, and other outstanding performers.
Launched at Lozitha Palace in November 2015 by His Majesty King Mswati III, the Ingwenyama Cup is financially backed by the Sincephetelo Motor Vehicle Accident Fund (SMVAF). Over the years, the competition has grown in stature and now also carries a ticket to the TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup.
Since its inception in 2016, the Ingwenyama Cup has built a compact but competitive history.
Mbabane Swallows dominated the early years, winning three titles between 2016 and 2018, before Young Buffaloes lifted the trophy in 2019. Green Mamba then emerged strongly, claiming back-to-back titles in 2020 and again on the tournament’s return in 2024.
Royal Leopards added their name to the roll of honour in 2025.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the competition was not staged between 2021 and 2023, resuming only in 2024. As a result, while the Ingwenyama Cup marks 10 years since its launch, the 2026 edition will be just the eighth tournament played.
