Global South Africans

Zakumi, the Official Mascot of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa.
(Photo: Fifa.com)

It seems like ages ago that FIFA President Sepp Blatter announced that South Africa would host the 2010 FIFA World Cup; and since then an incredible amount of work has gone into ensuring that the concept becomes a reality. The dust is beginning to settle and countdown fever is in the air, so if you’re not on the ground, now is a great time to become a member of the FIFA.com Club, an online community that will keep you on pulse with 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa events.

At first glance, FIFA.com, may appear to be quite cluttered, but the heart of the site is truly in exploring it, and it takes about two minutes to register for the FIFA.com Club. Complete with access to a FIFA profile, your very own customisable avatar, a profile page where you can message other members, add friends, personalize news’ feeds and play predictor and fantasy games, the FIFA.com Club is an excellent way to get involved in the build up to the games, wherever you are.

After styling my avatar with a designer bob, aviator sunglasses and an official South African (Bafana Bafana) jersey of course, I delved into the world of FIFA and discovered that it is not just about football, the World Cup and the excitement of hosting such a prestigious event, but that it is also about social development, health promotion, peace building, children rights and education, the environment, anti-discrimination and social integration.

For football fundi’s the FIFA.com Club provides and opportunity to test your knowledge on World Cup statistics and football in general, and in fact it’s guaranteed that you will learn something new and exciting… for instance that name of the official leopard mascot designed and produced exclusively for South Africa 2010; ‘Zakumi’, is a composition of “ZA”, which stands for South Africa, and “kumi” which translates into “10″ in various languages across Africa.

And that Adidas has for the first time in history created a match ball specifically designed for the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009 – the ‘Kopanya’ – a vibrant Ndebele modern art inspired design. Aptly named, Kopanya means “join together” in Southern Sesotho; the name of the ball and its unusual design pays tribute the first country, to host the World Cup on the African continent, South Africa, the country that will bring continental and world champions together in 2010!

The FIFA.com Club provides members with the platform to make football loving friends, select and proudly display their favourite team flags, receive a selection of newsletters, have a say on the latest news, download widgets, wallpapers and screensavers amongst other activities.

With hundreds of video clips and photography showcasing football history dating from as far back as 1930 – best goals, player and coach interviews, stadia, development projects, the FIFA.com Club is a great way to get football fanatics (and South Africans all over the world) in the mood for what is set to be a legendary FIFA World Cup… in Africa!

If you would like to book tickets for the FIFA World Cup South Africa, click here.

There will be five distinct Ticket Sales Phases; the first commenced on 20 February 2009 and will close of 31 March 2009 and the entire Sales Phase will terminate on 11 July 2010.

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