Minister McKenzie visited Blu Label during Ticketpro sale — Daily Maverick
South African Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie visited the head office of technology group Blu Label in Sandton, Johannesburg, several times while the sale of its ticketing business Ticketpro was being finalized. Daily Maverick reports.
According to the publication, McKenzie was at Blu Label’s premises during 2025 and also in April 2026. Blu Label said the Ticketpro sale deal was concluded in May after an unexpected offer from a women-owned consortium operating under a Black economic empowerment programme.
Links of Ticketpro’s new management
Daily Maverick previously reported that Ticketpro’s new owners have close ties to McKenzie and his Patriotic Alliance party. Bakang Letoko, the minister’s former chief of staff, became Ticketpro’s chief executive officer.
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The deal raised questions because Ticketpro is the exclusive provider of ticketing services to Cricket South Africa and the South African Football Association. Both organisations fall under McKenzie’s oversight. The publication’s industry sources also expressed concern that Ticketpro could benefit from future sporting events whose hosting McKenzie and his ministry are actively advocating.
The minister’s and company’s position
McKenzie acknowledged visiting Blu Label’s office but did not explain the specific reasons for those visits. His spokesperson said that brothers Brett and Mark Levy, who founded and run Blu Label, are long-standing friends of the minister. According to him, McKenzie met them around 2007, when he was invited to Blu Label as a motivational speaker.
The spokesperson also confirmed that Letoko was with the minister at Blu Label’s office at least once. He said her presence there was not unusual given her new position at Ticketpro. In response to the publication’s questions, Blu Label said it had already provided answers to all justified commercial questions and had nothing further to add.
