World Cup 2010 Overview

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Also read our full review on the World Cup Groups playing in the South Africa World Cup here

Introduction

Perhaps the hottest ticket in the world for summer 2010 is a ticket to South Africa, where the FIFA World Cup will take place from 11 June through 11 July. It will mark the first World Cup held on the continent of Africa, and it's sure to be one of the greatest sporting events ever. Back in May 2004 FIFA President Sepp Blatter announced that South Africa had been chosen as host nation. Nelson Mandela and Bishop Desmond Tutu were present at the announcement, where Mandela, 85 years old at the time, held up the World Cup trophy and said that the joy of South Africa's selection made him "feel like a young man of 15."

Thirty two teams will compete in the event, which will take place at 10 different venues in nine cities in South Africa. They are (alphabetically): Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Nelspruit, Polokwane, Port Elizabeth, Pretoria, and Rustenburg. Johannesburg is home to Soccer City and Ellis Park, both of which will host World Cup games.

Football in Africa 

From Morocco to South Africa, football in Africa is a sport that inspires passion among players and spectators. Football has a way of bringing an entire country together, where everyone pretty much stops where they are and follows the game. No matter where you go you see boys kicking a football, even if it's one constructed of plastic bags or paper wrapped with string.

The top African teams are from Nigeria, Cameroon, Senegal, Egypt, and Morocco. The rivalry between Nigeria and Cameroon is a long-standing on, comparable to that between Argentina and Brazil.

As far as African football heroes go, some of the biggest names include Samuel Eto'o Fils of Cameroon, Michael Essien of Ghana, Didier Drogba of Cote d'Ivoire, Obafemi Martins from Nigeria, and Austin Okocha of Nigeria. There are currently over 1,000 Africans playing in European football clubs. While football in Africa is almost singularly a male pursuit, women's football is making small steps there, with the African Women's Championship, which is held every other year. Women of Nigeria represented the continent in the 2007 Women's World Cup in China.

2010 Stadiums in South Africa

The Final 10 Stadiums in South Africa for the World Cup are: Green Point Stadium in Cape Town; Moses Mobhida Stadium in Durban; Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg; Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg;  Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit; Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane; Soccer City in Johannesburg; Nelson Mandela Stadium in Port Elizabeth; Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria; and Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein.

Five of the stadiums are undergoing major repairs and renovations for World Cup games. These five are Vodacom Park in Bloemfontein; Ellis Park and Soccer City in Johannesburg; Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria; and the Royal Bafokeng stadium in Rustenburg.

New stadiums are being constructed at Mbombela in Mpumalanga and the Nelson Mandela Metro. Peter Mokaba, the stadium in Polokwane, Limpopo, is being rebuilt, as are Keng Senzangakhona Stadium in Durban, Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, and Green Point Stadium in Cape Town. Green point and Kings Park are being rebuilt as multi-sport facilities. Green Point is designed with a retractable dome roof to protect the players and fans from Cape Town's unpredictable weather.

Other South African Preparations for World Cup 2010

• South Africa's Department of Environmental Affairs and the host cities for World Cup play have started a "greening 2010" approach to the games to reduce the environmental footprint of this huge football event. The initiative focuses on biodiversity, energy, responsible tourism, transport, waste, and water before and during the event.  

• The nation of Honduras is setting up a training base for the World Cup in Johannesburg, though pre-World Cup practice will take place in Europe, possibly in Italy, England, or France, according to secretary of the Honduran federation Alfred Hawit. This will be Honduras' second World Cup, where they are in Group H and face Chile 16 June at Neslpruit, then Spain on 21 June at Johannesburg, and Switzerland 25 June at Blomfontein. 

• Another perennial problem with huge events like the World Cup is that of counterfeit merchandise, and the 2010 event is no exception. Already western Cape police have raided a business suspected of creating counterfeit FIFA merchandise even before the 2010 final draw. Three men were arrested at their business in Ysterplaat and charged under the Counterfeit Goods Act with forgery. They are alleged to have manufactured promotional clothing using an unauthorized FIFA logo.  

• Cape Town is already the most popular 2010 destination worldwide for British Airways, and after the December 4 final draw, hotels there had an immediate boost in bookings. During the World Cup, British Airways plans seven flights to and from Cape Town per week. 

• Airlines will implement an Advanced Passenger Processing (APP) system in time for the World Cup, according to the South African Department of Home Affairs. Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma says that the system uses biometric verification in a "seamless" integrated movement control system that will include passenger pre-clearance before plane boarding rather than clearing them at ports of entry at airports. Over half a million visitors are expected during the World Cup.

• South Africa's team, Bafana Bafana have named as their base for the World Cup Esselen Park in Kempton Park. Team manager Sipho Nkumane said the venue is the best place for the World Cup hosts to set up training. Some people have leveled criticism, however, at the choice, believing that the European countries have been given the best choices of South Africa's facilities. Meanwhile, as of 11 December, a dispute between the South African Football Association (SAFA) and players over bonuses had yet to be resolved. Applications for Bafana Bafana game tickets can now be made on the SAFA ticketing website, which was launched on 6 December. Fans have until 13 January 2010 at 1 p.m. to apply for the team-specific Bafana Bafana tickets that, of course, will depend on the team's progress during the tournament. 

Controversies Around 2010 World Cup 

As with any sporting event as enormous as the FIFA World Cup, there are some controversies brewing already. Early on, FIFA announced that the 2010 World Cup qualification matches would be seeded based on FIFA world rankings. This was a last-minute playoff decision that took many by surprise, causing fans to see it as FIFA making the playoffs favor the more prominent teams. Though the 2006 World Cup playoffs were seeded similarly, some football analysts have wondered why they didn't say outright that they would be following the same procedure for 2010

There is controversy over the ball that is to be used at the World Cup, with Hans Vonk, former Heerenveen and Ajax goalkeeper, calling the ball a "tragedy" in an interview with a Dutch football periodical. The ball, which has been named "Jabulani," will be used in all 64 games at the World Cup. Vonk complained that the ball "veers off in all directions," and is "lighter, and there seems to be more plastic used than previously." Vonk also complained about the effect of altitude differences between Cape Town and Johannesburg - some 1,700 meters difference. 

World Cup 2010 Standings

Initial seeding for the draw of the first two rounds of the World Cup was based on performance during the qualifications for the previous World Cup. Australia's admission to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) was a complicating factor since they had not taken part in the previous AFC qualification cycle, but rather progressed to the World Cup finals in Germany, advancing further than AFC qualifier. By the time of the main qualification draw in Durban, seeding was adjusted, ranking the five top AFC nations in accordance with their World Cup Final Tournament performance.

At the end of the day, there were 8 groups of 4 teams each, designated Group A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and, and the teams in those groups will compete to see who advances. Here is a list of the teams in each group.

Group A: South Africa, Mexico, Uruguary, France
The latest FIFA World Rankings have France at #7, Mexico #15, Uruguay #19, and South Africa #86. The winner of the group will advance to play the runners-up in Group B, and the runners-up of this group will play the winners of Group B.

Group B: Argentina, Nigeria, Korea Republic, Greece
FIFA World Rankings have Argentina as #8, Greece as #12, Nigeria #22, and Korea Republic #52.

Group C: England, United States, Algeria, Slovenia
FIFA World Rankings are England, #9, U.S. #14, Algeria #28, and Slovenia #33. Winners in Group C will advance and play runners-up in Group D. Runners-up in this group will play winners of Group D. 

Group D: Germany, Australia, Serbia, Ghana
FIFA World Rankings have Germany #6, Serbia #20, Australia #21, and Ghana #37. Group D is a "Group of Death," meaning that play in this group will eliminate one or more strong competitors.

Group E: Netherlands, Denmark, Japan, Cameroon
FIFA World Rankings show Netherlands as #3, Cameroon #11, Denmark #26, and Japan #43. Winners in Group E advance to play runners-up in Group F, while runners-up of this group play the winners of Group F.

Group F: Italy, Paraguay, New Zealand, Slovakia
FIFA rankings give Italy #4, Paraguay #30, Slovakia #34, and New Zealand #77. This group is considered by some to be the weakest group since three teams are ranked low in this tournament.

Group G: Brazil, Korea DPR, Cote d'Ivoire, Portugal
Rankings in this group are Brazil #2, Portugal 35, Cote d'Ivoire #16, and Korea DPR #84. Because three of these teams are ranked so highly, Group G is considered a Group of Death, along with Group D. Winners of Group G play runners-up in Group H, while runners-up in this group play winners of Group H.

Group H: Spain, Switzerland, Honduras, Chile
FIFA World Rankings for Group H are Spain #1, Chile #17, Switzerland #18, and Honduras #38.

Prize Money

FIFA has confirmed that total prize money for the 2010 World Cup is $420 million, which is 60% more than what was awarded in the 2006 World Cup. Before the tournament, each team receives $1 million for preparations. Once the tournament is underway, the teams exiting at group stage receive $8 million. After that, prize money is distributed in the following manner:

Round of 16: $9 million
Quarter-finals: $18 million
Semi-finals: $20 million
Runners-up: $24 million
Winners: $30 million 

For the first time in a World Cup tournament, FIFA will make payments to the domestic clubs of players who are representing their national teams, which will amount to a total of €26 million paid out to domestic clubs. The reason for this is to address claims for compensation to FIFA from the domestic clubs for the costs of injuries sustained by players while representing their country.

South Africa Car Hire Option 1: Book your 2010 / 2011 South Africa Car Hire with First Car Rental here.

South Africa Car Hire Option 2: Book your 2010 / 2011 South Africa Car Rental with Europcar South Africa here.

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