South Africa : 2010 infrastructure laying the foundation for future stars

By Michael Appel

Johannesburg - Besides the obvious infrastructural benefit of the stadiums and training venues that have been built for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, such infrastructure will also allow for the future development of sport in South Africa.

This is according to MEC for Sports, Arts, Culture and Recreation Barbara Creecy, speaking at the final day of the Soccerex 2008, Wednesday.

"Gauteng, in particular, will be left with three world class match venues after the world cup which includes Soccer City Stadium, Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria, and Ellis Park Stadium.

"These facilities will allow for the improvement of standards of football in this country, as well as the development of teams and leagues … as it is crucial that money goes into the rehabilitation of school sports," the MEC told media and delegates.

Renowned journalist John Perlman, who established the Dreamfields Project, which is hoping to use the opportunities of the world cup to improve sporting infrastructure in rural communities, said 400 Dreamfields bags, which contains soccer kits for a team, has been sold this year amounting to about R2 million.

Corporate donations have helped to fund the building of a number of sand soccer pitches, with Mr Perlman highlighting that they are committed to spend 50 percent of their budget outside of the host cities metropolitan areas where the world is taking place.

Head of Social Responsibility at FIFA, Federico Addiechi told media that the concept of social responsibility within FIFA has really changed significantly in the last few years.

FIFA started becoming interested in the idea of social development outside of the realm of sport, but still using sport as a platform upon which to enter communities, Mr Addiechi said.

"We realised for the first time in 2005 when we launched the Football for Hope campaign that we can dedicate a social campaign to the tournament that last after the tournament is done.

"In Africa, it is our 20 Centres for 2010, which will see 20 [self-sufficient multi-purpose sport] centres built by 2010, with five being built in South Africa and 15 being built throughout the rest of Africa," Mr Addiechi highlighted.

In this campaign, he said, FIFA is working with 70 partners from over 45 different countries to make sure that the centres are sustainable.

With regard to the issue of the legacy of the world cup and its sustainability, Mr Perlman said, while Dreamfields is not a huge project with a huge budget, when they do something it is done well.

Liberian football legend and Unicef Ambassador George Weah, who in 1995 was proclaimed FIFA World Player of the Year, European Footballer of the Year, and African Footballer of the Year, told media that there is a hope that the world cup in South Africa will have some ripple effects for the rest of the continent.

"Just as Nelson Mandela left a legacy of pace for South Africa and Africa, the world cup will be all about leaving a legacy for the people of Africa.

"It is not only our legacy though, it is the world's legacy because we came together and gave South Africa the chance to host the first world cup on African soil," Mr Weah said.

Zambian football great Kalusha Bwalya, who is also a Unicef Ambassador, highlighted that: "There is this perception about Africa - that the continent is full of hunger, strife, war and political turmoil.

"This world cup can change that perception for us.

"South Africa is the ambassador for Africa to the rest of the world … and the world cup must create a sense of belonging and unity in Africa," said Mr Bwalya.

After the world cup has come and gone, Mr Bwalya said he hopes all the facilities and programmes instituted during the world cup will be available for the youth to utilise.

MEC Creecy highlighted one of the most pertinent issues when it comes to legacies saying, "at the end of the day the question is what will we have that is sustainable going forward?

"We need to make sure that we have proper sports facilities and programmes that will benefit aspiring sport stars for generations to come." - BuaNews