After an illustrious career that has spanned more than a decade, South African netball captain Bongi Msomi has officially announced her retirement.

Following the recent conclusion of the SPAR Proteas’ highly encouraging series against World Cup silver medallists England, Msomi – who will turn 36 years old in January – has confirmed that she will be calling time on her inspirational career.

Msomi only started playing netball at the age of 16 as the result of a chance encounter when she was asked to fill in while she was watching her friends play, but from there she fell in love with the sport. The versatile player quickly climbed through the netball ranks and went on to make the Under 21 SA Netball Squad in 2008 before captaining the Under 21 SA Netball Team in 2009.

Having then made her debut for the Proteas at the age of 23 in 2011, she continued to make an impression on the international stage (having played for different clubs overseas), and was awarded the captaincy armband in 2016, a proud moment and an honour she embraced and will forever cherish.

Msomi subsequently led the Proteas to their most successful Netball World Cup performance in 2019, a fourth-place finish in an inspiring performance which helped to raise the profile of the sport in South Africa, while she also captained the team through the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

More recently, Msomi captained the team when South Africa hosted the Netball World Cup for the first time in its history in Cape Town in 2023. That tournament marked her fourth appearance at a World Cup to go with three appearances at the Commonwealth Games. She retires on 171 caps for the Proteas – having become South Africa’s most capped netball player of all time.

Away from the international arena, Msomi has played for a host of local and international teams, while extensively serving as both a manager and coach for the University of Johannesburg. She has quickly shown massive coaching potential as some of the players she’s currently coaching are already with the national squads.

The inspirational netball star has also undertaken – and remains full committed to – a host of humanitarian and philanthropic projects, with Msomi’s challenging upbringing having inspired her to start the Bongi Msomi Legacy Project, which is based in her hometown of Hammarsdale in KwaZulu-Natal.

As Msomi officially announces her retirement, she shared excitement about the next chapter to come.

“The decision to retire comes after careful consideration, but I am so grateful that I can make this announcement with a full heart, knowing that I leave the SPAR Proteas and South African netball in a very healthy space. I am eternally grateful to all the coaches, colleagues and teammates who have played instrumental roles during my career – there are too many to mention, but you know who you are! Thisha (Mr SG Mncwabe), I will forever thank you for seeing the talent in me and going the extra mile in making sure I become more than just an athlete in netball.

“I would like to make a special mention of coach Norma Plummer, who took lots of time aways from home (at her age) to be of such great influence in our country. You are such an inspiration to me, and you definitely kept me going on the court much longer than I thought I might have. From you, I learned how to lead selflessly, as well as to see, love and understand the in-depth part of coaching, and to appreciate the sport even more. Thank you for everything you’ve done for netball in our country. You and your team have been awesome.

“Of course, a special thank you also has to go to my wonderful family and my partner Raeesa, who have supported me every step of the way on this journey. Another message of immense gratitude must go to my other ‘family’, Roc Nation Sports International, for believing in me from day one and offering incredible support and guidance on and off the court.

“A massive thank you must go to Netball SA for backing me and for respecting me as the SPAR Proteas captain over the past years. It has been a great honour to work with you all and I appreciate you so much. I will also be forever grateful to my various sponsors and partners that have been part of this wonderful netball journey.

“Although it is the end of one chapter, it is now the start of another that I am so excited about. I remain as passionate as ever about coaching netball, and I cannot wait to continue developing this side of my career, with special thanks to the University of Johannesburg for already allowing me to begin this process.

“I will remain a proud ambassador for the beautiful sport of netball, and I will remain fully committed to maintaining my humanitarian and philanthropic endeavours. To this end, I look forward to being able to give more of my time and attention to the Bongi Msomi Legacy Project and various community outreach projects and grassroots development, particularly in places such as my home town of Hammarsdale.

“In many ways, this is just the start of big things to come.”