A shocking incident has shaken the southern African football community, after Zimbabwean and Mamelodi Sundowns defender Divine Lunga survived a targeted gun attack in Johannesburg, South African law enforcement officials have confirmed.
The 31-year-old athlete, who holds starting roles for both his club side and Zimbabwe’s senior national men’s football team, was travelling through Hillbrow, an inner-city suburb of Johannesburg, on Sunday when an unidentified gunman opened fire on the vehicle he was driving, according to multiple on-the-ground reports. Contrary to early fears for his safety, Lunga escaped the attack without any injuries.
Local South African outlet The Citizen has shared additional context on the incident, reporting that Lunga was travelling to a church service alongside his younger brother when the shooting occurred. Initial investigative findings suggest the gunman may have targeted Lunga in a case of mistaken identity, misidentifying the footballer as an undercover police officer.
South African Police Service spokesperson Captain Tintswalo Sibeko confirmed that authorities have opened an attempted murder investigation into the attack. As of the latest updates, no suspects have been taken into custody, and police have not released further details about the ongoing probe to the public.
The attack comes amid longstanding widespread public concern over violent crime in South Africa, which consistently registers one of the highest annual murder rates across the globe. Hillbrow, the suburb where the incident took place, has long been flagged as an area with elevated levels of violent and property crime by local security officials.
The football community has not yet issued an official statement on the incident, with fans across southern Africa expressing widespread relief that Lunga escaped unharmed and calls for a swift conclusion to the police investigation.