The pinnacle of world soccer has a glamorous way of rewarding the finest and hottest footballing stars, and 2010 is no exception. As we prepare to witness the greatest sporting showcase, it is most likely that some of the big names such as Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo, Andries Iniesta, Lionel Messi and Xavi will participate in the rumble in the jungle. But who'll light up the stadiums and capture the imagination of the soccer loving masses. The likes of Michael Essien, Michael Ballack, Wayne Rooney, Didier Drogba, Thierry Henry, Luis Fabiano and Samuel Eto'o are also some of the big guns expected to scintillate the fans with some inspired performances.
However, fans will miss the presence of Andrei Arshavin and Zlatan Ibrahimovic owing to the failure of their respective teams to qualify, while Michael Owen and David Beckham are hoping to recapture their magic of yester year. Brazil's Dunga may call on the services of long serving stalwarts, Ronaldinho and Ronaldo thanks to their favorable form. But can 2010 witness the explosive emergence of little known players to the forefront in the same way the Senegalese shocked the world in 2002?
Visiting fans to the 2010 World Cup will not only have the beautiful host nation to explore, but the entire sub-region of Southern Africa. Starting with a country within South Africa, in the form of Lesotho, a mountainous landscape full of mythic wonders, and to the north east the 'culture throb' appeal of Swaziland calls. Botswana on the other hand, is a darling of tourists in this part of Africa exhibiting the Big Five and some spritely metropolitan centres, with Namibia to its south, yet another gem full of shoreline and inland wonders like the out of this world salt plains (although rather eery they'll still have you coming back).
Mozambique offers you unspoilt white sand beaches and wonderful sea escape adventures, while Zimbabwe is the mecca of natural attractions with its unmatched Victoria Falls, a roaring thunder, the angels must have gazed in their flight - here you can go white water rafting, or sunset cruises on the Zambezi River. To the east the country offers the Eastern Highlands, a mystical and lushy region which gives new meaning to wild golfing experience, while the man made lake of Kariba offers you a fresh view on Africa's wildlife - canoe on its banks in the company of graceful elephants.
As Spain continue with their grapple hold on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings, they also run away with the prestigious crown of Team of the Year. They are leading the way ahead of titans Brazil and Netherlands, while the Best Mover of the Year goes to Brazil who claimed the scalps of other contenders at the Confederations Cup by winning it among other achiements, resulting in them improving from last year's fifth spot to second. They share the award with Algeria who gained 38 places to position 25, thanks to their strong 2010 qualifiers campaign. Below them are Slovenia (Slovenia 31st, up 26 positions with 235 points), Norway (32nd, up 27 places and 234 points) and Latvia (45th, up 22 positions and 192 points).
A little over a week after the Final Draw in theworld famous City of Cape Town, the Green Point Stadium (now Cape Town Stadium) was handed over to the local mayor, Alderman Dan Plato. The magnificent facility is one of the stadiums completed well on schedule together with Durban's Moses Mabhida Stadium among others. Built at a cost of R4.4 billion ($600 000 million), construction began on the 26th of March 2007. GMP Architects of Germany handled the project in conjuction with two local firms. The stadium resembles a rose coloured bowl on a base under night lights, its roof is made of glass panels designed to protect spectactors from the city's particularly strong winds and rain. During the 2010 tournament it will play host to eight matches and comes with strong safety features that enables evacuation of its 68 000 capacity crowd in 15 minutes.
Following the Final Draw held in Cape Town the ticketing process kicked into a new gear by entering a new phase that will last up to the 22nd of January 2010. The random ticket allocation draw comes afterwards on the 1st of February 2010, it is aimed at giving all fans an opportunity of getting tickets to the high profile matches (popular). Basically, ticket applications are submitted at www.fifa.com/2010 or the FNB branches (for SA residents).
Successful applicants will be notified within a ten day period of the draw, and payments expected thereafter. Unpopular games do not take part in the draw, tickets will be made available to all applicants. The period between 9 February and 7 April 2010 entails another ticket sales phase, based on first-come first-served basis. The final ticket phase kicks off on 15 April ending 11 July 2010.
Following the Final Draw held in Cape Town the ticketing process kicked into a new gear by entering a new phase that will last up to the 22nd of January 2010. The random ticket allocation draw comes afterwards on the 1st of February 2010, it is aimed at giving all fans an opportunity of getting tickets to the high profile matches (popular). Basically, ticket applications are submitted at www.fifa.com/2010 or the FNB branches (for SA residents).
Successful applicants will be notified within a ten day period of the draw, and payments expected thereafter. Unpopular games do not take part in the draw, tickets will be made available to all applicants. The period between 9 February and 7 April 2010 entails another ticket sales phase, based on first-come first-served basis. The final ticket phase kicks off on 15 April ending 11 July 2010.
1. Lionel Messi - 473 points
2. Cristiano Ronaldo, 233
3. Xavi, 170
4. Andries Iniesta, 149
5. Samuel Eto'o, 75
6. Kaka, 58
7. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, 50
8. Wayne Rooney, 35
9. Didier Drogba, 33
10. Steven Gerrard, 32
11. Fernando Torres, 22
12. Cesc Febregas, 13
13. Edin Dzeko, 12
14. Ryan Giggs, 11
15. Thierry Henry, 9
16. Luis Fabiano, 8
16. Nemanja Vidic, 8
19. Diego Forlah, 7
20. Yoann Gourcuff, 6
21. Andrei Arshavin, 5
21. Frank Lampard, 5
24. Maicon, 4
25. Diego, 3
26. David Villa, 2
26. John Terry, 2
28. Frank Ribery, 1
28. Yaya Toure,1
30. Karim Benzima, 0
Lionel Messi has done it again, the 22 year old Argentine claimed the honours in Zurich for his outstanding performance on the field of play. He beat strong contenders in the form of Cristiano Ronaldo and Xavi, who amassed 233 points and 149 points respectively, a far cry from the golden boy of the moment who garnered a whooping 473 points, Africa's very own Samuel Eto'o was fifth.
Messi has been in tremendous form helping Barcelona shine in the La Liga and the Champions League and on the women's front Marta of Brazil ruled the roost for a fourth year running. While the FIFA World XI men's team comprises Iker Cassilas - goalkeeper, Nemanja Vidic - defense alongside Patrice Evra, John Terry and Dani Alves; midfielders - Xavi, Iniesta and Steven Gerrard; strikers - Torres, Ronaldo and Messi. Best goal of 2009 belongs to Ronaldo, scored against Porto (a 40 meter shot).
FIFA announced the new service which enables you to book accomodation on their official website, you can now search for available rooms and effect bookings directly on FIFA. Navigation is a breeze and enjoyable, so you can reserve your place in one of the rainbow nation's fine accomodation establishments without any hassle. Over and above accomodation facilities in SA, arrangements are in place for all those willing stay in neighboring countries such as Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Swaziland, etc, for the duration of the tournament. Shuttling between South Africa and these countries is inexpensive, with some of the qualified teams destined to utilize their stadia as training grounds. MATCH a hospitality firm tasked to handle accomodation issues for the 2010 tournament entered into an agreement with the South African Airways for the lease of 20 aircraft during the World Cup.
With all teams slotted into their respective groups, every fan intent on following a specific team or matches knows the respective venues, and naturally the question of accomodation comes to mind. And it is better to make arrangements early so as to avoid the mad rush, Cape Town central is an area closest to the Greenpoint stadium, here you'll find a bevy of options from hotels to B&B's.
But in this case we focus on guesthouses and lodges - these establishments offer rooms with ensuite or shared bathrooms, meals besides breakfast. You can also expect some of the services offered at hotels, including airport transfers, credit card facilities, laundry service, etc. And the Nine Flowers Guesthouse is a gracious Victorian style homestead and national monument; the iKhaya Lodge offers ensuite bedrooms and self catering apartments with balcony, and for more information on WC accomodation - www.sa-venues.com
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1. When driving in South Africa, keep to the left and also carry some coins in case you might need some for the toll gates.
2. The tournament will be held in winter, so pack accordingly, although local chills are not as bad as in Europe - the afternoons are mostly sunny
3. There are park and ride facilities earmarked for the tournament, check for information in pamphets and other readily available sources.
4. Do not whip out your fancy gadgetry in areas where no-one else is doing so.
5. Unsure about which areas to safely venture into as tournament excursions, read reviews online from others who've been there.
6. Special 'single purchase' tickets for both train and bus will be available.
7. Dial 10111 for emergencies, it is the local version of 911.
8. When driving anywhere near an overramp and stones or other objects start falling on your car, its probably not a mere coincidence, so do not stop.
9. If you also notice vehicles continuing to wait after traffic lights have gone green, its probably because they're making way for notorious and unyielding taxi drivers, but at the same time be vigilant hijackings are common.
Unlike Brazil and Portugal who will lock horns in a first round battle of the titans, the England team can thank their luck as they are sitting pretty in a group in which they are the Tormentor-in-Chief facing the United States, Algeria and Slovenia. But the English lads can ill afford to be complacent with the likes of the US, at the back of Bradley and gang's sterling perfomance during the Confederations Cup. The England coach Fabio Capello, aptly pointed out that an easy looking group has the potential to become a real nightmare. His Slovenian counterpart stated that it was a good group and viewed their first match against Algeria as very crucial.
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With all the 32 teams having been drawn into their respective groups, next year's tournament of dreams takes a new shape exhibiting well balanced groups. A closer look at African teams shows difficult encounters meaning extra efforts if they are to make an impact, the hosts in particular will need to deal with a highly technical threesome, capable of breathing roastful fire. The French mentor has voiced his happiness at playing against South Africa and the groups are as follows:
Group A
South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France
Group B
Argentina, Korea Rep., Nigeria, Greece
Group C
England, USA, Algeria, Slovenia
Group D
Germany, Ghana, Serbia, Australia
Group E
Netherlands, Japan, Cameroon, Denmark
Group F
Italy, N. Zealand, Paraguay, Slovakia
Group G
Portugal, Brazil, Korea DPR, Cote D'voire
Group H
Spain, Honduras, Chile, Switzerland
