If you’ve been following South African football closely, one name that keeps coming up in conversations around the Betway Premiership is Bradley Cross. The Kaizer Chiefs left-back has quietly been building a reputation as one of the more reliable defenders in the PSL, and with a contract running until 2028, it looks like he’s settling in for the long haul at Naturena. Whether you stumbled across his name on a match report or you’re doing a deep dive before the next fixture, here’s everything worth knowing about the man wearing the number 48 shirt.
Bradley Cross Biography
Bradley Paul Cross was born on 30 January 2001 in Kempton Park, Gauteng, South Africa. He grew up in the East Rand region and came through the youth setup of Mpumalanga Black Aces before moving to the Bidvest Wits academy around 2018. What makes his story a bit different from the typical PSL pathway is that he spent a significant chunk of his teenage years developing overseas — first in Germany with FC Schalke 04’s U19 side, and then in England with Newcastle United’s academy. That kind of exposure at a formative stage tends to leave a mark, and you can see traces of it in how composed he looks on the ball for a player still in his mid-twenties.
He stands 1.83 metres tall, weighs around 77 kg, and is naturally left-footed — which makes him a natural fit at left-back, though he can also slot into central defence when needed.
Bradley Cross Nationality
Bradley Cross holds dual nationality. He is South African by birth, having been born and raised in Gauteng, but he is also eligible to represent England at international level, likely due to his time in the country and family ties. He has chosen to align himself with South Africa at national level and has already earned his first senior cap for Bafana Bafana, coming on as a substitute for 24 minutes in a friendly.
Where Is Bradley Cross From?
Cross is originally from Kempton Park, a town in Gauteng province, South Africa. It sits on the East Rand, not far from OR Tambo International Airport, and is part of the larger Ekurhuleni metropolitan area. While he spent years abroad developing his football, South Africa has always been home, and he returned to the country to kick off his professional senior career.
Bradley Cross Previous and Current Club
Current Club: Kaizer Chiefs (Betway Premiership) — joined 3 September 2024, contract until 30 June 2028
His full career journey looks like this:
- Mpumalanga Black Aces — Youth academy
- Bidvest Wits — Youth academy (2018–2020)
- FC Schalke 04 U19 — Youth loan, Germany (2018–2020)
- Newcastle United U21 — England (October 2020 – June 2022)
- Maritzburg United — Senior debut, South Africa (January 2023 – July 2023)
- Lamontville Golden Arrows — South Africa (July 2023 – September 2024)
- Kaizer Chiefs — South Africa (September 2024 – present)
He had a trial at Kaizer Chiefs back in November 2022 but didn’t secure a deal at that time. It took a couple more seasons of consistent PSL football — first at Maritzburg, then at Golden Arrows — before the Chiefs came back for him properly.
Bradley Cross Stats
In the 2025/26 Betway Premiership season, Cross has been a consistent presence in the Kaizer Chiefs backline:
| Stat | Figure |
|---|---|
| Possible Games | 30 |
| Appearances | 22 |
| Goals | 0 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Yellow Cards | 2 |
| Red Cards | 0 |
| Starting XI Rate | 63% |
| Minutes Played | ~64% of available |
Across his entire senior career, he has made over 110 professional appearances, with the bulk of them coming in the Premier Soccer League. He has scored 2 career goals in total — one for Maritzburg United in the PSL and one during his time in England’s Premier League 2 with Newcastle United’s development side.
Bradley Cross Age
Bradley Cross is currently 25 years old, born on 30 January 2001. He’s at a point in his career where the raw potential from his European academy days is starting to meet real senior experience — and the four-year deal with Kaizer Chiefs suggests the club sees him as a long-term fixture, not just a squad rotation option.
Bradley Cross Wife
There is no publicly available information about Bradley Cross being married or in a relationship. He keeps his personal life fairly private, and nothing about a wife or partner has been confirmed in any credible public source. If that changes, it’ll likely surface through his social media channels.
Bradley Cross Salary Per Month
Bradley Cross’s exact salary has not been officially disclosed by Kaizer Chiefs or any verified source, which is standard practice for most PSL clubs. Based on his profile, market value of €1 million, and the status of Kaizer Chiefs as one of the biggest clubs in African football, his earnings would be consistent with a first-team regular at a top PSL outfit. Reliable salary figures aren’t available in the public domain, so any specific number you see floating around online should be treated with caution.
Playing Style
Cross is primarily a left-back, but he came through the youth ranks as a left-sided centre-back, and that background gives him an edge when it comes to reading the game defensively. He’s not the type to constantly bomb forward and leave space behind him — he tends to stay disciplined and positionally sound, which makes him a reliable option in setups that prioritise defensive structure. His ball-playing ability from the back is a noticeable strength, something he likely honed during his time in Europe.
Where he’s still growing is in the attacking side of the full-back role — the overlapping runs, the crosses into the box. It’s a modern demand of the position, and it’s an area where you’d expect him to keep developing over the course of his contract.
What’s Next for Bradley Cross?
With four years left on his deal at Kaizer Chiefs and only one senior international cap so far, there’s still a lot of story left to be written. If he can stay injury-free and maintain his current level of consistency, more Bafana Bafana call-ups are a realistic expectation. At 25, he’s entering the phase of his career where defenders typically hit their peak — and the combination of European academy training and PSL experience gives him a fairly strong foundation to build on.
Keep an eye on him.
