The Brazilians have a return fixture in Pretoria on Saturday, where they will reach a second successive final of the competition if they avoid defeat.
If they do make it, the PSL will have to get creative as it looks to conclude the Betway Premiership season by the May 24 deadline ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
The two-legged final of the Champions League will be played on the weekends of May 15-17 and May 24.
According to the PSL’s fixtures on its official website, it has already removed Sundowns from the final round on May 23.
But this goes against the league’s rules, which state that all fixtures in the final two rounds of the championship must be played simultaneously to avoid manipulation of results.
Sundowns’ home fixture against Polokwane City that was to be played on that date has been moved to May 3, according to the PSL. That means they will play Polokwane home and away in the space of five days, almost like a two-legged league fixture.
It means that on the final day there will be seven fixtures and not eight.
But Sundowns still have a fixture listed for the penultimate round of games against TS Galaxy on May 16, which will also have to be moved if they reach the Champions League final.
The only date it can be moved to is May 13, a few days before the first leg of the final. That is not ideal for anyone.
And unless they move the whole penultimate round to that date, it again goes against the league’s rules.
It is also not good for sponsors and broadcasters, with the business end of what has been an exciting championship forced into midweek and away from the spotlight.
This is all a repeat of last year, when Sundowns made the final as well and did not take part on the final day of the season.
But the difference then was that they won the league by a canter, and it was all wrapped up at that stage. This season could be very different.
It is all a bit messy and the PSL needs to think long and hard about its calendar going forward. You do not see Premier League, Bundesliga or LaLiga matches moved because a team reaches the final of the UEFA Champions League.
The PSL’s defence may be that it is at the whim of CAF, whose dates can be a moving target at times and are not always fixed from the start of the campaign.
But it threatens to make the end of a thrilling Betway Premiership title race a bit of a damp squib.