Update on A Day of 1000 Opportunities at Athlone Stadium

16 April 2026

Thousands of attendees turned out at the initiative today, Thursday, 16 April 2026. The City empathises with the plight of so many Capetonians in their bid to secure work.

Attendees began queuing at the stadium in the early hours of the morning to be screened for possible job opportunities with the City’s contact centre partners. Claims that shots were fired on the crowd are false and unfounded. SAPS Public Order Policing made use of a stun grenade to maintain crowd control outside the stadium.
 
Emergency services have been on site all day. It is regrettable that a few people sustained injuries during the day due to overcrowding, but were all immediately assisted with medical care.
 
Officials from the City, CapeBPO and the various companies processed applications inside the stadium in an orderly fashion. 
 
The City’s Law Enforcement, SAPS and other safety and security personnel remained on site to ensure the safety of all residents and officials in attendance.
 
The City is committed to ensuring the calm and safety at the stadium and thanks residents for showing up in their numbers. This shows the need for this kind of initiative in our city to bolster economic growth and create job opportunities.

The City thanks the support teams that are on site to ensure that all attendees inside the stadium are assisted.

The City regrets the incident and the inconvenience, and thanks attendees for their patience.

END

Published by:
Media Office, City of Cape Town