In the heart of Joburg, a full-size football field rises for the first time in 100 years — and with it, a new chance for inner-city youth to dream.
Article: Lonwabo Mtyeku – GP News Media, Community Newsroom Images: Supplied
26 November 2025 — Johannesburg, South Africa
Against the urban density of the Johannesburg CBD, where high-rise buildings outnumber green spaces and pavements double as playgrounds, a new landmark has emerged — bold, bright and long overdue. The Field of Dreams, officially opened today near the M1 Selby offramp, is the first full-size football field built in the inner city in a century, and its arrival signals far more than sporting opportunity. It signals renewal. Belief. A turning point.
Developed by the Maharishi Invincibility Institute (MII) and Standard Bank, in partnership with Italtile, BW Cares Foundation and Jozi My Jozi, the project was envisioned and championed by legendary cricket captain and civic humanitarian Dr Ali Bacher, whose legacy has long intertwined sport with nation-building.
Where asphalt once dominated, grass now stretches wide — a field built for skill, teamwork and possibility.
A City Reclaims Its Sporting Heart
The new precinct is not only a football pitch. It is a fully realised athletic ecosystem comprising netball and basketball courts, spectator stands, change rooms and a clubhouse, creating a safe and structured environment for young people who have never had one.
For many inner-city children, football has lived between buildings, under bridges, on gravel patches and city streets. The Field of Dreams replaces risk with opportunity — and replaces concrete with grass.
“This is more than just a football field — it is an investment in the genius and potential of our youth,”
says Dr Taddy Blecher, CEO of MII.
“Johannesburg was built on gold. Today, we mine the far greater treasure — the creativity, resilience and brilliance in our young people.”
This development forms part of the ambitious Education Town vision by MII — a future urban education hub where thousands of young people will gather to study, meditate, upskill, play sport and build life pathways.
Sport as Social Infrastructure — Not Just Recreation
The launch comes at a critical moment. The CBD is home to one of the fastest-growing youth populations in South Africa. Yet formal, safe sporting facilities are nearly nonexistent. For many, talent has lacked a home — until now.
Standard Bank, which made the Selby site available for redevelopment, positioned the project as a legacy investment into human capacity and urban renewal.
“We are proud to help deliver a space where education and recreation meet — a platform to unlock the next generation,”
says Nkosinathi Manzana, Executive Head: Group Real Estate, Standard Bank.
The facility will host sport development programmes, social leagues, community tournaments and youth engagement initiatives, strengthening not only athletic ability, but also social cohesion, discipline and aspiration.
A Civic Movement, Not Just a Project
Jozi My Jozi — the civic coalition igniting inner-city revival — emphasised that this milestone proves what is possible when business, civil society and community act as one.
“This is what collaboration looks like,”
says Bea Swanepoel, CEO of Jozi My Jozi.
“We are rebuilding confidence in the CBD — street by street, partnership by partnership.”
At the centre of this transformation stands Dr Ali Bacher, whose leadership once reshaped South African cricket — and now seeks to reshape inner-city futures.
“Sport unifies, heals and transforms. This field is a promise to Johannesburg’s youth that their dreams matter,”
says Dr Bacher.
Planting Grass — and Planting Futures
The Field of Dreams is more than infrastructure. It is an invitation. To play. To believe. To become.
Where many young people have only known concrete, they now step onto green turf — boots laced, hope visible.
“This is an investment in possibility — not bricks, but futures,”
Manzana concludes.
Today, Johannesburg gains more than a field.
It gains a generation’s chance to run — forward.
For media enquiries:
📩 mediarelations@standardbank.co.za
