FIFA 2010 Soccer World Cup South Africa

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - FIFA unveiled the official ball for next year’s World Cup Friday, with the makers billing it as the first perfectly round ball and the most accurate yet.

Aerodynamic bumps on the ball would allow for stable flight and grip under all conditions, makers adidas said at the launch in Cape Town.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter and leading players praised the ball, named ‘Jabulani’, which means ‘to celebrate’ in Zulu, one of the official languages in host country South Africa.

“For me, contact with the ball is all important, and that’s just great with this ball,” Brazil’s Kaka said in a statement.

The ball has 11 colours, representing the 11 players in a team and the number of languages spoken in South Africa, the first African country to host the world’s most-watched single-sport tournament.

It was launched hours ahead of the World Cup draw that will put the 32 qualifying teams into groups.

“It’s the tool of our trade and we want the best,” former England captain David Beckham said. “Any good football player would be able to control any ball, but it’s good to have a little bit of help.”

Source :  ( Reporting by Gordon Bell and Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Clare Fallon )

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The South African embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria, joined its counterparts around the world in hosting a party to watch the live broadcast of the final draw for the 2010 World Cup.

The result of the draw:

Group A: South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France
Group B: Argentina, South Korea, Nigeria, Greece
Group C: England, USA, Algeria, Slovenia
Group D: Germany, Australia, Ghana, Serbia
Group E: Netherlands, Japan, Cameroon, Denmark
Group F: Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay, Slovakia
Group G: Brazil, North Korea, Ivory Cost, Portugal
Group H: Spain, Honduras, Chile, Switzerland

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FIFA have warned Serbia they could be docked points if there is further crowd problems in their two remaining World Cup qualifiers.

Serbia have been slapped with three fines from FIFA, totalling 44,000 Swiss francs (£26,700), for incidents in their matches against France, Austria and Romania.

And any similar problems against Romania on Saturday and Lithuania four days later could have more serious consequences.

“The FIFA disciplinary commission reminds the Serbian football federation that the recurrence of such incidents could lead to drastically more serious sanctions,” read a letter from FIFA published on the Serbian federation’s. And that includes the subtraction of points in the current qualifiers.”

Serbia are top of Group Seven, four points clear of France.

Source : http://soccernet.espn.go.com

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There’s only a few months left until the Africa Cup of Nations soccer tournament hits the field. Starting in January, soccer fans from around the globe will travel to Angola to check out some heated competition, while patiently awaiting the arrival of the World Cup tournament. However, British fans of the football are being warned by their government to be extra cautious regarding their travel plans.

Crime levels in the capital city of  Luanda are high according to the British Foreign Office, and they are encouraging fans to attend only if they are traveling with someone familiar with the local conditions. Angola only ended a long civil war in 2002, so things over there are still a little touchy. It might be a good idea for the British fans to keep their hooligan antics to a minimum, or at least save them for the games of the World Cup in South Africa.

Despite the travel warnings, things in Angola are going pretty well. After they got the nod to host the tournament they set to using a hefty government stimulus to get things ready for the games. They are building new roads, stadiums, and even improving the local airports. If you really love some soccer, we of course say go for it, so long as you remain aware of your surroundings and don’t do anything dumb. As of now, there is no immediate warning on the US State Department’s website, but they do note that crime is a serious problem.

Source :
http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/8/75329/0439/travel/UK+Warning+Soccer+Fans+To+Take+It+Easy+In+Angola

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Liverpool striker Fernando Torres limped out of a training session with the Spanish national team on Wednesday night after suffering a groin injury.

The 25-year-old should be fit for Saturday’s match at the Republican Stadium although coach Vicente del Bosque, who is already without hamstrung Valencia forward David Villa, is unlikely to take any kind of risk with the 25-year-old as Spain have already qualified for fifa 2010 s0ccer worldcup.

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez will be keen to have his star striker returned safely to Anfield as Torres has been in top form so far this season, scoring eight goals in just seven Premier League games.

Spain also have concerns over Barcelona midfielder Xavi and Fenerbahce striker Dani Guiza who pulled out of the training session.

Source : http://soccernet.espn.go.com

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When England recently qualified for the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa, there were immediate media reports that there was an overall shortage of accommodation for the event.

This is not exactly the case according to Dragonfly Africa CEO, Mike Waller. “Accommodation in Johannesburg is very tight although we still have inventory both in hotels and apartments. We also have accommodation available in the 4 and 5 star categories in Cape Town, Durban, Sun City, On the Blue Train and at several of the top private game lodges.

The situation however, changes on a daily basis as accommodation that has not found a buyer – or where a deposit condition has not been fulfilled – is released back on to the market.  We expect the availability situation to change again after the all important December, 4th draw which will determine which team plays where.

The pressure is on Johannesburg accommodation, but we are advising some of our clients to go with the base camp / hub concept.  For example, basing themselves in a beautiful city such as Cape Town and flying same day in and out of the matches not being played in that city”.  The recent announcement from Mango, that they will fly 24 hours, over the tournament period, is therefore excellent news.

Source :

http://www.travelwires.com/wp/2009/10/dragonfly-africa-contracts-10000-rooms-for-2010-soccer-world-cup/

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A three hour pop concert is in the running to launch the FIFA 2010 World Cup in South Africa, and will be coming live at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto, Johannesburg on June 10th.

From the team of organisers who did the Live Earth and Live 8 shows, Kevin Wall spoke to BBC News “We are going to have a lot of the major African artists and really it’s going to be about Africa so the slots for international artists are a rarity,” “I think this will be one of the greatest shows ever produced from Africa.” The full report can be found here.

Amongst the rumours on who is going to perform, is none other than the Spice Girls. Money from the event will be donated to 20 Centres for 2010, the official charity of next year’s football competition.

Who would you like to see in the concert? Should there even be a concert you might think? Well, if it is for a good cause, i’d listen to the Spice Girls for the whole three hours as long as 1000 starving children were fed.

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Fifa is considering introducing sin-bins at next year’s World Cup in an attempt to deter players from diving, according to Jack Warner, a vice-president of football’s governing body.

Warner, a Concacaf representative on Fifa’s 24-strong executive committee, revealed a task force had been formed to examine the possibility of mimicking the way such punishments are used in rugby and ice hockey. Its findings will be presented at a Fifa meeting in Cape Town in December.

It is believed proposals could include sending any player who fakes injury to gain an advantage or engages in “simulation” to win a penalty or free-kick to a sin-bin for five minutes.

“We have to keep the sport entertaining for spectators,” Warner told Sky News. “It cannot be a sport where people simulate and fake. It cannot be. We have to change that.

“For example, a guy fakes an injury and he acts as if it is the end of the world, and then after you give him the foul he then flies up and kicks the ball. That guy should be sent off, and he should be sent off for five minutes.”

Asked if sin-bins could be brought in for the World Cup, Warner replied: “Most definitely.”

It is believed several other proposals will also come under consideration.

While Fifa is determined not to allow cheating to disfigure next summer’s tournament, it has consistently rejected the idea of employing video technology to punish divers retrospectively, while the organisation’s president, Sepp Blatter, insisted last week that he “does not think” simulation is “so terrible”.

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Zimbabwe hotels are reconsidering their pricing after a deal offered by Fifa for occupation of 80 percent of the country’s hotel rooms flopped, the Herald reported today.

This followed condemnation by the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority of what it said were “ridiculous pricing demands” of up to US3000 per night.

This, the authority said, had led to Fifa turning its back on Zimbabwe and signing a deal with Botswana.

However, Hospitality Association of Zimbabwe president Lewis Chasakara told the Herald the new prices would be nowhere near US1,000.

He said the problem was that Match Events - the official Fifa accommodation company - had met junior officials instead of having a meeting at corporate level.

“Yes, the guys from Match Events came through but met our guys at grassroots and they wanted 80 percent of our rooms.

“They should have met us at corporate level and we would have given them reasonable figures because we are reasonable people,” Chasakara told the newspaper.

He added that Fifa’s deal with Botswana was “a marketing gimmick meant to put pressure on us … Botswana has no rooms”.

Source : http://www.thetimes.co.za

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