On Friday the 11th of June 2010 the whole of africa will join the many soccer fans across the globe being the day when Africa gets to hold the prestigious FIFA World Cup. It’s been 80 years that FIFA World Cup host nations have alternated between Europe and the Americas Exactly how is the venue for the cup decided upon?The latest selection policy is that any country can bid for the world cup as long as their continental confederation hasn’t hosted it in the past two years which makes a Africa very eligible. South Africa had a narrow loss against Germany in the 2006 bidding with 12 votes to 11 as the final tally. All countries that bid for the 2010 World Cup were African including South Africa, Morocco and Egypt. South Africa won by four points to Morocco resulting in this unforgettable event. The reasons mentioned are all technical, but you might ask if the country has the ability to host such a huge event? Personally, I’d say “definitely”, these are my reasons:
* They’ve got a great team- that simple fact makes them deserving to have the great privilege of hosting the cup.If you’d ask me, having a World Cup in a country whose team isn’t even above average would be a disgrace. Look back at the countries that held the Cup-1950 (Brazil), 1978 (Argentina), and 1990 (Italy), some of the best teams in the world. If South Africa was added to the list, nobody would mind.
* You should see the stadiums- as part of their preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, South Africa has constructed four brand new mind-blowing stadiums.One has a detractable glass roof, another with spectacular lighting, then there’s the ‘zebra’ inspired stadium located nearby the many game parks, and finally one that resembles the South African flag. Who could want more?
* Good weather- South Africa is well known for it’s good weather-aside from the wildlife. The World Football Tournament will be held during South Africa’s winter season. Don’t worry, our favorite players won’t freeze to death, South Africa’s winter temperature at midday, is warmer than most countries daily summer temperature! The average temperature is predicted to be 20 degrees celsius at midday which is better for an athelet’s body compared to higher temperatures. Good weather means higher stamina and endurance..
* The continent alone- soccer is no doubt in every African’s heart and Africa is known to be the place where civilization begun. So what better place to have countries from the four corners of the earth meet? More so since South Africa has used soccer as a means of unity and force against apartheid in the Mandela era. Having Soweto be the venue for the finals will add meaning and make the even even more memorable for the reason that Soweto has been the heart of South African soccer.
Despite any controversies in the past four years regarding safety, in my opinion,South Africa is the perfect place for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the whole world should be very proud that this is the first time that a sporting event of this magnitude is being held in the continent.
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