Mexico enter the cooking pot for Cup start

The once-improbable dream of a World Cup in Africa kicks off on Friday when Mexico face the home team in the deafening cauldron of Johannesburg’s 90,000-seat Soccer City stadium.The Mexicans will have to contend not only an army of jiving supporters in a frenzy of patriotic fervor but an ear-splitting blast from the biggest array yet of vuvuzela trumpets, the loudest fan instrument on the globe, which severely curtails communication between players and coach.The stadium, biggest in Africa, has been shaped like a calabash or cooking pot and the Mexicans may feel they have been put on the fire when they meet Bafana Bafana, South Africa’s much improved national team.

Once mocked by even their compatriots as hopeless under-achievers, and still one of the lowest-rated World Cup hosts, at 83rd in the rankings, South Africa come off a run of 12 unbeaten matches and are new national heroes.Their performance has added to an unprecedented rush of nationalistic excitement in South Africa, which was tormented for years by negative and even domestic pessimism that the world’s most watched sporting event was too big for Africa to handle.

That pessimism has been transformed in recent weeks, encouraged by FIFA’s belated decision to sell tickets for cash, and South Africans of all races can scarcely contain their excitement and pride at being in the world spotlight.Successfully hosting this tournament for the first time in Africa will mean much more for the hosts than just sport.

RACIAL RECONCILIATION

Racial reconciliation, the affirmation of an often troubled post-apartheid nation, future investment and millions of tourist dollars are at stake.African leaders believe this tournament, a massive logistical undertaking, will enable the continent to overturn stereotypes of disaster, conflict and failure and prove it is a vibrant can-do region ripe for investment and development.

A string of comparatively minor crimes against journalists and three Greek players in recent days have been reminders that security in one of the globe’s most violent countries outside a war zone is one of the tournament’s biggest concerns.And six people were injured in a crowd crush at Cape Town’s main World Cup fan zone on Thursday when thousands of people tried to get in.But none of this will dent South African euphoria.

The weight of expectation and the joyful street parades of the last few days could however undermine South Africa’s concentration.Their Brazilian manager, Carlo Alberto Parreira, said on Thursday they had expected calmness and focus but he could understand the distracting party on the streets.

“I don’t want my players to be affected by all of that. Now we have a World Cup game…we want to make this country proud.”If they can hold their nerve in the midst of the noise and atmosphere — Soccer City’s bowl design is likely to boost the sound levels — Mexico do not intend to be a pushover.

Manager Javier Aguirre told reporters they would love to spoil the giant party. “My team has come here to play football, not make friends and do some sightseeing,” he said.

But the history book favors South Africa. Mexico have a poor record in opening games, while the two previous starting matches featuring African teams resulted in shock triumphs for Cameroon over Argentina in 1990 and Senegal over France in 2002.

CONFIDENCE BOOST

Mexico’s confidence has been boosted by a win over defending champions Italy in Belgium last week and good performances against England and the Netherlands in other recent friendlies.The opening match, starting at 1400 GMT (10 a.m. EDT), is likely to see both teams going forward to end a tradition of cautious and dull starts to the tournament.

In Friday’s other game, France are likely to make a nervous start against Uruguay in Cape Town after a series of unimpressive warm up games which ended with a worrying 1-0 defeat by China. They look a far cry from the dominant team that won the World Cup in 1998 and the European trophy two years later.Uruguay on the other hand, though one of the tournament underdogs, have had an impressive warm-up with wins against Switzerland and Israel.(Reuters)

6 people were injured in a crowd crush at Cape Town's main World Cup fan zone

Six people were injured in a crowd crush at Cape Town’s main World Cup fan zone Thursday when thousands of fans attempted to get into the venue, a city spokesman said. “People were anxious to get in and just surged ahead. Fortunately it was a contained incident and calm was restored quickly,” city spokesman Pieter Cronje said.All the injured were South African and officials have prevented people from entering the fan zone at Cape Town’s historic Grand Parade where Nelson Mandela delivered his first speech as a free man after his release from prison in 1990.

The Grand Parade viewing area is the largest of 10 special fan zones scattered across South Africa’s Western Cape province.Cronje said an estimated 16,500 people had streamed to the venue in Cape Town’s city center to see a concert and fireworks display ahead of Africa’s first hosting of the tournament.

Police spokesman Frederick van Wyk said police tried to warn the public through loudhailers that the viewing area was full, but they continued pushing forward.”People at the back then kept moving forward and a crush ensued,” Van Wyk said in a statement. Three people were injured, one man suffered a broken leg and two women sustained broken ankles.

At least 15 people were injured last Sunday when fans tried to force their way into a match between Nigeria and North Korea.Excitement among South Africans is reaching fever pitch with less than 24 hours to the host nation’s opening game and tournament kick-off against Mexico in Johannesburg.(Reuters)

Shakira and South African band Freshlyground has been chosen as the official World Cup anthem

JOHANNESBURG  A song by Colombian pop star Shakira and South African band Freshlyground has been chosen as the official World Cup anthem.The song, “Time for Africa,” is expected to be released to radio stations across the world next week and will be available for download beginning April 26.

Shakira and Cape Town’s Freshlyground will perform the song at the World Cup kickoff concert in Soweto on June 10, and at the tournament’s opening ceremony and before the July 11 final.Freshlyground made the announcement Friday.(AP)

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FIFA says 100,000 World Cup tickets have been sold in the first 24 hours of the final phase

JOHANNESBURG FIFA says 100,000 World Cup tickets have been sold in the first 24 hours of the final phase, and the semifinals and final are sold out.So far, 29 of the 64 matches are sold out. That includes all games in the coastal cities of Cape Town and Durban.

The scores of football fans have dwindled and queues were moving much faster on the second day of the over-the-counter sales phase for the 2010 FIFA world Cup tickets.

Following yesterday’s chaos at ticketing centres countrywide, better organisation and a more reliable systems led to fewer problems. “We have managed to organise things properly and set up a numerical system, so we have managed to organise things fairly smoothly,” says Jess Constant from FIFA Ticketing.

However, some fans are still of the opinion that the process takes too long. Some fans got to the ticket station early in the morning and by noon were still in queues, while others decided to leave. FIFA says the delays are caused by buyers who are indecisive.

More than 100 00 tickets have been sold since yesterday – 12 000 of those to the international market. The Local Organising Committee’s Danny Jordaan expects between 250 000 and 300 000 foreign visitors for the initial stage of the tournament. But a second wave of tourist during the latter stages can not be ruled out.

“When the big teams of Europe make it through to the semi-finals and the finals, fans don’t ask questions anymore. The fans will get the money to travel and make it here to support their team. So over the period you will see still an increased number of people coming to the World Cup,” says Jordaan.

Meanwhile, the cheaper category 4 tickets are currently unavailable, but should be available again at Shoprite/Checkers outlets from Monday.

FIFA ticketing subcommittee chairman Horst Schmidt said Friday “we are very pleased with the interest and with the latest figures.”The final ticket batch was released Thursday, and fans in South Africa could buy over the counter for the first time. However, there were technical problems with the ticketing systems.Police were called to at least three centers to calm angry fans who faced lengthy delays. (AP)