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World Cup Morning Report – Africa set to kick on thanks to World Cup
Saturday 10 July 2010
As Uruguay and Germany prepare to conclude their impressive 2010 World Cup campaigns with the now customary but perhaps rather superfluous third place play-off, South Africa, and in fact Africa as a whole, is able to ponder its footballing and social future, some of the things that transcend the results of this World Cup, with great optimism.
Despite much scepticism regarding the positive impact of the World Cup on regular, poor South Africans, surely it cannot be denied that the event has captured the imagination of 99 percent of the population and in turn created an unrivalled sense of carnival happiness amongst so many. Along with this happiness has come immense pride in South Africa at having been able to host the tournament so admirably, and in African football due to Ghana’s wonderful run in the competition.
Jacob Zuma, South Africa’s president, is rightly very sanguine about the future as a result of the changes that have taken place thanks to the World Cup coming to Africa. He has spoken about the feeling of unity that has arisen amongst the people, the improved state of social cohesion and the fact South Africa’s image abroad has been given an immeasurably superb boost, with the people of South Africa showing they are endlessly ebullient and fervently friendly. His main message was the World Cup has gifted the country the opportunity to establish ‘irreversible’ changes for the good. Changes such as with crime, which has apparently dropped markedly since the competition began, and social cohesion, will be irreversible should the government continue to work hard on these issues, but the infrastructural changes will most certainly be here to stay.
The improved transport links will make life easier for many of the general public, and African football can also look forward to a bright future thanks to the marvellous stadiums and training grounds that are now in place, which will surely be utilised by club footballers. Not only are the facilities available for club footballers to improve and develop their games, the enthusiasm for football will no doubt have augmented massively amongst youngsters in what is already a hugely football-mad continent. Allowing the young to make use of these improved facilities will only infect them with the football bug further and almost inevitably swell the pool of potential African superstars. It is impossible for us to know exactly where the monetary gains created by this World Cup will flow, but if Africa is as united after the tournament as it has been throughout it, then the fiscal attainment should be redistributed to various other African countries in an attempt to develop their facilities and football players.
Ghana has already shown a great deal is being done to improve the standard of African footballers, as their squad, one of the youngest at the tournament, played superbly well throughout and came within the width of a crossbar of becoming the very first African team to compete in a World Cup semi-final. If the funds made possible by this World Cup are used wisely and widely, then the African countries will no doubt have the chance to develop the game in their respective countries even further, and Pele’s presage that an African side would win the World Cup by the turn of the 21st century may not be too far off the mark after all.
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