The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) is pleased to announce the winner of the FA Community Shield Giveaway: congratulations to Matimba Justice Maluleke, 40, from Springs, who has won a 65-inch television.
This prize formed part of our drowning prevention awareness campaign, “The game is loud. Drowning is silent. Let’s change that score.” Thousands of people took part by spotting our life-saving message during the FA Community Shield broadcast and sending us an SMS in support of the campaign. We thank every supporter for helping us bring attention to a crisis that too often goes unheard.
For those who didn’t win this time … your big win could be just around the corner. For R25 a month, you can enter the NSRI Monthly Giving Competition and stand a chance to win exciting prizes, all while supporting our work to prevent drowning. Enter here: https://www.nsri.org.za/
A Silent Message in a Noisy Game
On Sunday, 10 August 2025, millions tuned in to watch Crystal Palace take on Premier League champions Liverpool in the FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium. As the crowd roared, a silent yet powerful message appeared on pitch-side LED boards for audiences in South Africa and across Africa: “The game is loud. Drowning is silent. Let’s change that score.”
The match ended in a dramatic penalty shootout, with Crystal Palace winning 3-2, their first-ever FA Community Shield victory. But beyond the sporting excitement, NSRI hoped the real victory would be in inspiring viewers to take action against drowning.
Speaking after the Community Shield match, NSRI CEO Mike Vonk reflected on the broader impact of sport: “In South Africa, sport is more than a game. It’s a movement that unites communities, changes lives, and can even save lives. This past weekend’s Community Shield, with the NSRI’s “Change the Score” drowning prevention message, reminded us that sport has the power to inspire action beyond the field. Through campaigns like this, sports platforms can carry life-saving messages into homes, schools, and communities”
Highlighting the urgency of the cause, he added: “In the 90 minutes of a football match, as many as 11 people in Africa will drown, often without a sound. That’s an entire football team lost every game. Drowning is a silent epidemic, and we need to change the score.”
The Technology Behind the Message
The campaign used Virtual LED Advertising, also known as Digital Replacement Perimeter Technology. In the stadium, the LED boards display a single standard advertisement. However, for television audiences, cameras equipped with special tracking technology can digitally replace those ads in real-time, matching the camera angle and lighting perfectly.
This meant that while the Wembley crowd saw one advert, viewers in Africa saw the NSRI’s message, targeted to reach the people who need it most.
By placing the campaign in one of football’s high-profile events, the NSRI reached millions of viewers with a life-saving reminder, encouraging them to talk about water safety, teach their children, and support drowning prevention efforts.
The Drowning Crisis
According to the World Health Organisation, more than 66,000 people drown in Africa every year. It is a public health crisis that can be prevented through education, awareness, and practical survival skills.
The NSRI works year-round to combat this tragedy. In 2024 alone, NSRI instructors delivered over 877,000 water safety lessons and taught 25,000 survival swimming lessons in under-resourced communities.
“Our message is simple,” said Vonk. “Anyone can drown, but no one should. With the right knowledge, skills, and support, we can save lives.”
How the Competition Worked
During the FA Community Shield broadcast, viewers who spotted the NSRI’s LED message were encouraged to SMS their name in support of the NSRI. Each message represented more than just a competition entry; it was a personal pledge to be part of the movement against drowning.
Thousands responded, showing that our message was not only seen but also acted upon.
A Team Effort
“We are deeply grateful to everyone who took part in this campaign, and to the media for amplifying our message,” said Vonk. “Every SMS sent, every conversation sparked, and every person who now thinks about the dangers of drowning is helping to change the score. Without the media, we would not be able to have this impact.”
The NSRI’s work is made possible through public support. Donations keep rescue boats ready, fund water safety lessons, and maintain Survival Swimming Centres that give children the skills to save themselves and others.
“When the teams kicked off at Wembley and our message appeared, we wanted every cheer also to be a cheer for saving lives,” Vonk added. “Together, we can change the score — one life at a time.”
Stacker Of Wheat
Fun South African Fact: The waters surrounding the 2,500km long coastline are teeming with life. You’ll find great white sharks, African penguins, dolphins and much much more in South Africa’s oceans. Many travellers visit the coast to watch the annual whale migrations. In Hermanus, in the Western Cape, you can see hundreds of whales from June to late November. Simon’s Town, another coastal Western Cape town, is home to Boulder’s Beach. Here you can swim alongside colonies of African Penguins!
Prometheus
Fun South African Fact: South African Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the world’s first heart transplant on 3 December 1967 at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. The groundbreaking surgery was carried out on Louis Washkansky and Dr. Barnard was assisted by a large and exceptional team of surgeons, nurses and technicians. One of Dr. Barnard’s assistants was Hamilton Naki, a black laboratory assistant who had worked previously as a gardener and went on to work in the animal laboratory at the University of Cape Town. He had assisted Dr Barnard with research leading to the transplant. In the apartheid days, Naki had no access to higher education due to his race. Despite being unable to access formal training, he learned from and assisted university researchers and went on to do astonishing work.