Leaked voice note contradicts Roedean’s explanation of alleged King David boycott

A growing controversy involving two of Johannesburg’s most prestigious schools has intensified.

This follows a leaked voice note that appears to directly contradict Roedean School’s official explanation for cancelling a tennis fixture against King David Linksfield.

While Roedean School for Girls has publicly maintained that the cancellation was due to “prior school commitments” and “compulsory academic workshops,” a recording of a conversation involving school representatives suggests otherwise.

It shows that the decision was actually driven by political pressure from parents objecting to playing against a Jewish school in the wake of the South African government’s stance on Israel.

On February 2, 2026, Roedean formally notified King David Linksfield that they could not field a team for the scheduled match.

In their public statement, Roedean asserted that the cancellation was strictly due to scheduling conflicts, citing “compulsory academic workshops.”

Following the backlash, Roedean issued an update on February 8, claiming that accusations of antisemitism were “incorrect.”

The school stated that “contents of the voice note are factually incorrect and do not reflect the documented sequence of events,” reiterating their commitment to diversity and rejecting allegations of discriminatory conduct.

The leaked recording: “Pressure from our community”

However, a recording of a conversation between a Roedean representative and a King David counterpart tells a different story.

In the recording, the speaker acknowledges that the school is facing significant pressure from parents regarding the Israel-Palestine conflict, unrelated to any academic scheduling issues.

“We’re facing a bit of pressure from our community and our constituents regarding just not playing against King David,” the speaker is heard saying.

The speaker explicitly links this pressure to broader societal issues, noting, “What’s happening out in society is now affecting us at a school level.”

Contrary to the official statement about academic workshops, the recording reveals that parents were objecting to the fixture based on political grounds.

“They’re basically saying because of the stance that the government took, we’re supposed to support that,” adding that the issue is “presenting itself as a Jewish day school issue.”

The Roedean speaker in the recording even laments the situation, describing an “environment of cancel culture” and expressing concern that the school would become isolated if it bowed to community pressure to boycott specific schools.

Roedean was contacted for comment following this leaked recording. Responses will be added if received.

King David’s timeline of events

King David School has corroborated the narrative suggested by the voice note.

In a letter addressed to staff and parents, King David officials detailed a phone call that took place on the morning of February 2 between the heads of the two schools.

According to King David, Roedean’s Head of School, Ms. Mogale, initially admitted that “a group of parents at Roedean did not want the match to proceed on the basis that they would be playing a Jewish school.”

King David officials noted that during this initial conversation, “there was no mention made of any ‘prior school commitments’ nor of any ‘academic workshops'”.

It was only later that morning, via email, that Roedean officially cited “other academic commitments” as the reason for the forfeit.

When King David arrived for the match the following day, after receiving conflicting assurances that it would proceed, they were met with a new excuse: that the players were in “geography workshops,” a detail that had not been disclosed previously.

Fallout and demands for accountability

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) has condemned the incident, stating that the refusal to play conveys a message that “hate and discrimination have become acceptable values at Roedean”.

King David School is now calling for an “unequivocal apology for the antisemitic actions which resulted in the cancellation of the match.”

While Roedean insists that it would be “inappropriate to debate or litigate the facts publicly” while engaging with the Independent Schools Association of Southern Africa (ISASA).

However, the leaked audio has cast significant doubt on the veracity of their administrative defence.

The recording suggests that the “academic workshops” were a cover for a deeper, politically charged dispute involving parental pressure to boycott the school.