FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa
On July 11, 2010, FIFA, which is an acronym for Federation Internationale de Football Association, will present this year’s World Cup tournament final. With 95,000 seats ready to host avid fans, South Africa’s Soccer City Stadium sits waiting in the heart of Johannesburg. At this same location, in 1990, mere hours after his twenty seven year incarceration, Nelson Mandela gave his epic speech in which he envisioned racial peace and reconciliation throughout Africa and the world.
Positive World Cup Implications for AfricaFor a country that tends to be associated with images that embody the negative aspects of humanity such as death, poverty, disease, and hopelessness, the 2010 World Cup brings an overwhelming abundance of pride to, what may seem like, an otherwise desperate nation. Its ability to host an event of this grandeur, puts South Africa and the entire African continent on the global map in a positive context. Every person with a patch of land and a ball can play this internationally renowned sport. With that said, an otherwise meaningless game between two children, becomes just as important as the World Cup Soccer final.
Chelsea’s Didier Drogba In what is perhaps the most selfless act of the World Cup 2010, Ivory Coast captain, Drogba, after signing a $4.6 million agreement with Pepsi Cola, announced that he would donate all of his earnings to the construction of a hospital in his native homeland. He is quoted as saying, “I made a promise to myself that if I was able to live my dream as a footballer, I would build by dream in Africa”.
Negative Effects of the FIFA Cup in AfricaThis world soccer tournament is currently estimated at costing $4.6 billion. In a country where the unemployment rate is twenty five percent, this high expense may cause considerable upheaval throughout the nation. While millions lack basic life necessities such as electricity and clean water, FIFA and its corporate sponsors will reap the benefits of this multi billion dollar initiative.
Two reports of al Qaeda threats have come to light; one against the Danish and Dutch teams and the other during the game between England and Unites States. Each of the thirty one participating nations will also have their own special protection squads during the tournament.
The long standing high levels of crime, including an estimated fifty murders a day, is suggested to be deterring fans from attending the event. Fears such as this loom beneath the excitement of the World Cup.
World Cup Hope for AfricaThroughout the city of Johannesburg, the continent of Africa, and, ultimately, the world, there is a growing ambition that the 2010 World Cup will not only be momentous sporting event, but also an image makeover for the host nation. FIFA President, Sepp Blatter is quoted as stating, “We can all applaud. The victor is football. The victor is Africa.”