Sepp Blatter, president of the world football
body FIFA, on Sunday expressed his "100-per-cent" confidence in South
Africa to host a successful World Cup in 2010, reported dpa.
Blatter was speaking in Pretoria after a meeting with President Thabo Mbeki to
start a four-day visit by the football boss to the host nation, amid mounting
political tensions in South Africa.
Blatter moved quickly to, yet again, dispel fears that the tournament could be
pulled from South Africa over concerns about its readiness for the tournament.
The visit's purpose was "first of all to reassure the whole country of
FIFA's 100-per-cent commitment, trust and confidence into the organizational
abilities of this big and proud country to organize FIFA's 2010 World
Cup," Blatter told a news conference.
Addressing the sceptics, Blatter said: "They have to admit the stadia will
be ready, people will be well received and so on."
What was needed, instead, was a little more enthusiasm in South Africa, he said: "For the whole country to say ... yes, let's go, let's do it."
Blatter will visit Johannesburg and Cape Town to inspect three of the nine
World Cup stadiums that are being built or upgraded for the Cup, including the
stadium in Soweto that will host the opening and closing games.
He will also meet with ruling African National Congress (ANC) leader Jacob Zuma
and former presidents Nelson Mandela and FW de Klerk.
When he announced his visit at the Olympics in Beijing, Blatter said that he
hoped to get a picture of what level of support World Cup organizers would have
after next year's general elections, slated for April.
"It is important that the exiting (Mbeki) and the new (probably Zuma)
government stand behind the organizers," said the 72-year-old.
Blatter's visit takes place against the backdrop of rising tensions between the
pro-Zuma ANC leadership and the pro-Mbeki government.
Zuma's supporters are impatient for him to take over as president. Pressure on
Mbeki to step aside ahead of the elections rose sharply this week after a
court, in setting aside corruption charges against Zuma, implied that Mbeki had
been behind the decision to prosecute him.
Mbeki said he had assured Blatter "that the country, the government and
all institutions, the local organizing committee, we are all of us very, very
committed to make this a very successful tournament."
Other factors that have caused concern about South Africa's hosting of the
World Cup include the country's towering crime rate - 50 people are murdered
each day in South Africa - the dismal performance of the national Bafana Bafana
side and a recent flare-up of xenophobic violence, which has claimed at least
62 lives.
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