Soccer / Football of southafrica:

Football or soccer as it is known in South Africa is the most popular game and is starting to attract serious money. It used to be the Cinderella sport in the bad old days of Apartheid and reflects the country’s history and the struggle for democracy.

Football was segregated by the past regime and became a focus for the non-racial sport movement. In 1991 it became the first sport to become unified and has captivated the hearts of all South Africans.

South Africa is presently building 5 new stadiums dedicated to football for the 2010 FIFA World Cup - a jubilant first for Africa and a country that until now has never had a stadium devoted to football. Football teams had to rent venues for their matches in the Apartheid era, unlike the rugby and cricket teams who played in dedicated stadiums.

Gauteng is the spirit and core of South African football and all the big clubs share the same grounds, which has created quite a different fan culture to that of devotees in Europe. The big teams from Soweto are Kaiser Chiefs and Orlando Pirates whose spirited games can be hot-blooded and usually have the nation gripped. Soweto football crowds are normally good-humoured and festive so joining them is quite conceivable and fun - “whities” shouldn’t feel uneasy about going to a game.

The professional season in South Africa is between August and May with teams participating in the Premier Soccer League and a few other competitions. The Chiefs and the Pirates have a nationwide following and their contests are a colourful climax of the Premier Soccer League’s matches. Contributing to the jovial atmosphere of football games are the unique sounds of the Vuvuzela, a plastic horn along with singing and countless other homemade instruments.
South Africa’s national squad, affectionately nicknamed Bafana Bafana qualified for the 1998 and 2002 World Cup Finals and will have the privilege of competing in the 2010 World Cup on home soil.