By DPA
Durban : Although the start of the 2010 football World Cup in South Africa is still over 900 days away, the eyes of the footballing world will be turned to the South African coastal city of Durban this week.
On Sunday, the city will host the first major international World Cup 2010 event when it hosts the draw for the World Cup qualifying campaign in the International Convention Centre.
The draw, which will be accompanied by a show of traditional African entertainment, will provide the first African host of the showpiece of international sport an opportunity to show to the rest of the world that they are capable of hosting the World Cup.
Media reports throughout the world have questioned the country’s capability of hosting the World Cup, and South Africa’s extremely high crime rate and lack of proper infrastructure have been cited as reasons why the competition will not be a huge success.
Workers involved in the building of at least two World Cup stadiums have in the past downed tools in an attempt to receive higher wages, while the decision to make bonus payments of several million dollars to high-ranking South African football officials, including the chairman of the local World Cup organising committee (LOC) Irvin Khoza, has been widely criticised throughout the country.
Some media reports earlier this year suggested that the sport’s controlling body FIFA had already prepared a contingency plan in case the World Cup could not go ahead in the former Apartheid country, though this has been refuted by FIFA president Joseph Blatter.
LOC Chief Executive Danny Jordaan is aware of the importance of the event.
“As the first official associated event of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the preliminary draw is of paramount importance to us at the organising committee. We have a unique opportunity to demonstrate our ability to organise a world-class event to an expectant local, continental and international community.”
Jordan, who is credited with being the man behind the success of bringing the World Cup to South Africa, is certain that the draw ceremony will be spectacular. “We have worked tirelessly for months to ensure all is in place for this special occasion and we are confident that all visitors to our country will revel in our uniquely African hospitality.”
At the ceremony, countries from four of FIFA’s six confederations will be drawn into qualifying groups for the 2010 World Cup, with the South American and Oceania region being excluded. In South America, all 10 teams compete in one group on a home-and-away league format, while in Oceania the preliminary competition already began with the South Pacific Games in August 2007.
Although the centre of the focus will obviously be Sunday’s draw ceremony, there are several other football-related events, including meeting of various FIFA bodies and the LOC.
On Saturday, the World Cup Organising Committee will focus on the final preparations for the draw and the approval of the draw procedure for each of the geographic zones, while also deliberating on the match schedule and ticketing issues.
The main cultural event is expected to be the premiere of the latest film by well-known South African filmmaker Anant Singh. “More Than Just A Game” recounts the story of the Makana FA, an association founded by inmates of Robben Island, the prison that previously housed some of the most famous South African political prisoners, including former president Nelson Mandela.
It is not expected that the 89-year-old, who twice campaigned to bring the World Cup to South Africa, will be in Durban, but his successor as the country’s president, Thabo Mbeki, will head a powerful South African delegation at the proceedings.
Several football stars, including former World Footballer of the Year George Weah, French World Cup winner Marcel Desailly, former African Footballer of the Year Abedi Pele, Iran’s Ali Daei, as well as South African footballing legends Kaizer Motaung, Jomo Sono and Lucas Radebe, will be involved in the draw.