Atlanta Chiefs of Aston Villa as well as Kaizer Motaung who went on to found Kaizer Chiefs FC, who now play in the South African Premier Soccer League. The Kaizer Chiefs name and logo were inspired by those of the Atlanta club. On August 9, 1966, Atlanta Braves, Inc., received a franchise in the newly created National Professional Soccer League. A month later, the corporation hired Phil Woosnam as the team's first head coach which did not gain its name, "Chiefs", until January 8, 1967. By the end of February 1967, Woosnam had brought numerous players to Emory University for trials. After
1999–2000 Premier Soccer League record they jointly set with Kaizer Chiefs last season, but unlike the previous season in which the title was decided by goal difference, there was no close title race this season as Sundowns finished comfortably ahead of second placed Orlando Pirates with an 11-point margin. As before, the league was contested by 18 teams, sixteen returning from the 1997–98 season and two newly promoted clubs; the returning African Wanderers and Tembisa Classic. The league continued to run parallel to the European football calendar (August–May) and not run concurrently with the African football calendar (January–December). Mamelodi Sundowns clinched a record third