The 2010 World Cup is just a year away today and hosts South Africa are still having to deal with some negative vibes

ITS ECONOMY in recession for the first time in 17 years and led by a controversial new president, South Africa hosts a World Cup next year crucial not just for its own future but for the image of a whole continent.

Any World Cup or Olympics has huge importance for the image and economy of the host nation, with effects that can last for decades, but even more will be at stake a year from now.

The World Cup will be the biggest sporting event ever held in Africa. The continent’s future reputation and chances of holding more mega-events – with the huge investment that they bring – will hang on its success.

Organisers hope it will be made unforgettable by a unique and joyful atmosphere that will reverse persistent stereotypes of a continent in permanent crisis and conflict where bad news in one country tends to tar many others – to the great frustration of Africans.

“South Africa will deliver a world-class event that will forever change the perceptions of the international community, and also ensure a lasting legacy for the people of Africa,” president Jacob Zuma said when he was inaugurated last month.

Zuma, who saw off graft and rape charges in a remarkable political comeback, is looking to the tournament to help pull Africa’s biggest economy out of recession.

But failure in the month-long tournament, which begins on June 11th next year – especially if there are major incidents of violence from South Africa’s notorious criminals – will have the opposite effect, proving the dire predictions of naysayers who include South African whites still sceptical of black rule.

So will South Africa be ready and will the tournament be the best World Cup ever as Danny Jordaan, chief executive of the local organising committee repeatedly promises. The signs are getting better even though concerns persist, especially over crime, accommodation and transport.

The South African bid was once dogged by stadium delays, labour unrest, bureaucratic and political disputes and an obsession in the local media that the sport’s governing body Fifa had a “plan B” to move it elsewhere.

Both Fifa president Sepp Blatter and Franz Beckenbauer, chairman of the 2006 Germany World Cup organising committee, publicly criticised the effort. More recently, officials have been queuing up to praise the preparations. “I am sure the World Cup in South Africa is going to be a big, big success,” Blatter said last week.

Fifa secretary-general Jerome Valcke says nine of the 10 stadiums, half of them new, will be ready by December and the last, in Cape Town, will be delivered in February.

He said Fifa believed at least 450,000 foreign fans would come for the tournament and ticket sales, which are released on a staggered basis, were already heavily over-subscribed with at least 28 of the 64 matches sold out. Demand is expected to increase when fans know which teams have qualified, by November.

While optimism is increasing, there is continued nervousness about several potential problems that could spoil the party, with South Africa’s plague of crime front and centre. About 50 people are murdered every day, more than in the US with six times the population, and crime makes South Africa one of the most dangerous countries outside a war zone.

Jordaan has dismissed alarmist warnings, pointing to South Africa’s highly successful organisation of many international events, including a cricket and rugby World Cup. The Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 cricket tournament was recently moved to South Africa at short notice because of security fears during the home country’s prolonged general election.

The successful IPL, which coincided with a smooth, peaceful election in South Africa, greatly boosted its credentials although the number of visiting fans was small.

Police plan to saturate danger areas with more than 40,000 officers and high-tech security including unmanned drones, but some South Africans worry this will mean leaving everybody else exposed while fans will be vulnerable if they wander out of guarded areas round stadiums, hotels and tourist routes.

Another area of concern for organisers is that matches could be robbed of the singing, dancing fans who make local games so colourful and provide the atmosphere which was one of the biggest draws of holding the competition in Africa.

There are fears impoverished local supporters, faced with even the cheapest ever World Cup tickets, at €14, being almost 10 times the cost of a domestic premier league match, will either not turn up or sell them to foreign fans.

The poor record of South Africa’s national team, which failed to even qualify for next year’s African Nations Cup finals, may also put off local fans, especially if they do not get through to the World Cup’s knock-out round.

Whatever the problems, the World Cup has one big plus for South Africa. A construction boom in road, rail and stadium building is a rare bright spot in an economy entering its first recession for 17 years and fanatical foreign fans are thought unlikely to be put off by the global crisis.

Fifa, which makes most of its money from the World Cup, also looks like laughing all the way to the bank. The sports market website Sportcal estimates Fifa has already made €2.4 billion in commercial revenue, nearly 50 per cent higher than the 2006 World Cup.

The host cities and venues

Johannesburg

Two stadiums will host 15 matches including the opening game and final.

Soccer City – The stadium will be the biggest venue in Africa with a capacity of nearly 95,000.

Ellis Park – Famous rugby stadium built in 1928 and reconstructed in 1982, it has been upgraded. Used for finals of the 1995 rugby World Cup. Capacity 61,000.

Pretoria

Loftus Versfeld stadium – Has a capacity of 55,000. Six matches will be played here.

Cape Town

Green Point stadium – Is being built on a former suburban golf course. Organisers say completion is expected by February 2010. Capacity 68,000. Eight matches will be played here, including a semi-final.

Durban

Moses Mabhida stadium – has a capacity of 70,000 with two parallel archways 100 metres above the roof which carry a cable car giving views of the Indian Ocean. Seven matches, including a semi-final, to be played there.

Bloemfontein

Free State Stadium – Is one of the smaller venues, being upgraded to a capacity of 48,000. Six matches scheduled.

Port Elizabeth

Nelson Mandella stadium –

Capacity 48,000. Will host eight matches including the third-place play- off.

Nelspruit

Mbombela Stadium – Capacity of 46,000. Four matches to be played there.

Polokwane

Peter Mokaba Stadium – A new stadium has been built with a capacity of 45,000 and will host four matches.

Rustenburg

Royal Bafokeng Stadium – Has a capacity of 42,000. Six matches to be played there.