Hotto’s career stretch: Family, jail, spending, discipline
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Deon Hotto has not slowed down a bit as he gets on with his seventh season at Orlando Pirates – all of which have been in his 30s.
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Hotto’s career stretch: Family, jail, spending, discipline
Aug 19, 2026 – 10:12 am
By Lovemore Moyo
Orlando Pirates veteran Deon Hotto has been given credit for knitting together a career that is still in full motion as he cruises towards his 36th birthday.
Hotto is into his seventh season at Pirates and will do so having had minutes in 255 of the 281 games played by the club since he arrived.
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He has averaged 42 appearances per season at the Soweto giants – levels not common in the domestic game for a player doing all of this in his 30s.
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“I believe discipline, respect for his trade and body, his fitness and hunger emanating from where we come from here in Namibia is part of what carries him,” says Elton Katangolo, formerly chairman of Hotto’s former club Blue Boys.
Katangolo is still close to Hotto and holds an advisory role up to this date beyond the agent and lawyer that the Namibian works with.
“I have known Deon since he was 11/12 because he was with my younger brothers before he even came to play for Blue Boys.
“Do you know that he was not even the best with us, but those that were better than him fell on the wayside?
“Someone’s hunger is not your hunger because others don’t appreciate peanut butter and jam, but that could mean the world to someone else.
“He lost his mom at a young age, and he had to fend for himself under trying circumstances.
“One time we even had to get him out of police cells to play for us the next day, and the police officers understood, and that was when he was getting up to mischief done by teenage boys.
“Football was the only ticket out of the township for him, and he has made good use of the opportunity.
“Mondesa has some rough pockets, and if you are up to no good, it can be very bad.
“Recently, it is not an okay place to have your kids there unsupervised because of drugs and alcohol.
“I can assure you that he hasn’t squandered any of his money and will have cover for his kids for the rest of his life.
“He is not a spender and still drives the same car for eight years.
“He could have bought a Range Rover cash with all the bonuses that came from cup competitions, but he prefers to keep it simple.
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“Credit to his wife for keeping the family nucleus moving.
“Many footballers fall by because there is no structure at home.
“Even though he is at the sunset of his career, he is still working like a player only starting out,” Katongolo told this website during a lengthy conversation on Wednesday morning.
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