Durban’s very own litter-picking legends have just flown the flag for South Africa at one of the quirkiest and kindest competitions in the world – the Spogomi World Cup in Tokyo!
Tokyo, Japan (31 October 2025) – It’s not as popular as rugby or cricket, but Spogomi, which is the sport of competitive rubbish collecting, has its own World Cup, which just took place in Tokyo, Japan.
It’s all the fun and quite a challenge. Teams race against the clock to collect as much litter as they can within a set area, sorting it for recycling and earning points based on what they find. It’s fun, fast-paced, and surprisingly addictive. But it also carries a good message.
The whole concept started in Japan as a creative way to get people thinking about waste and how much of it ends up in our oceans.
Earlier this year, South Africa held its own Spogomi qualifier in Durban. Twenty teams showed up with their bags, gloves, and good energy. Together, they collected nearly 190 kilograms of rubbish from residential and commercial areas.
Team Trash Magnets, made up of Shannon Brand, Andrew Clark, and Benjamin Tore, came out on top, earning the chance to represent SA at The Nippon Foundation Spogomi World Cup 2025.
Fast forward to Tokyo this week, where they just joined 33 other teams from around the world to compete for the team title of world litter-picking champions!
It was as quirky and colourful as you would expect an event hosted in Japan to be. Before the main competition, all teams were introduced on stage alongside Japanese cosplayers. SA’s champs were guided by anime icon Sakura Kinomoto from Cardcaptor Sakura!
Then came the real challenge.
Japan ultimately took home the trophy with over 74 kilograms of waste collected, but our Trash Magnets made us proud just by being there. South Africans care about keeping our communities, beaches, and parks clean – and we can make a difference with a bit of teamwork (and maybe a little competitive spirit too).
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