FIFA World Cup Venues 2010

Polokwane Stadium

Polokwane will be building a new stadium for the 2010 FIFA World Cup that will be situated in the Peter Mokaba Sports Complex. The stadium will be approximately 5km from the city centre, with a gross seating capacity of 45,000.

Loftus Versfeld Stadium

Loftus Versfeld in the heart of Tshwane/Pretoria, currently has a seating capacity of 45,000. Very little upgrade is needed for the stadium to be ready for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It is also a venue for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup.

The Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace

The Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace is one of the stadiums for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The stadium is named after the Bafokeng people who live in the area. Although originally built as a rugby stadium, the stadium has become more of a football stadium after the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Like most soccer stadiums in South Africa, the ground belongs to the municipality in the area. The Bafokeng people are extremely rich because of platinum mining in the area and on their cultural land and because of this, the stadium has been kept in very good repair.

The stadium of Green Point

Cape Town is building a newstadium for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The stadium will be in the suburb of Green Point. The location is ideal as it is a short walk from the transportation hub of the city. The new stadium precinct will be built on part of the land currently occupied by a golf course. Fans will be a stone’s throw from the ocean and the mountains of Cape Town will be the backdrop for matches.

Ellis Park Stadium

Coca-Cola Park, formerly known as Ellis Park Stadium before a R450m naming rights deal with the Coca-Cola Company, is a rugby union stadium in the city of Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, South Africa. Ellis Park was first built in 1928 as a rugby union stadium. It was demolished and rebuilt in 1982, again exclusively for rugby. It was named after JD Ellis, a Johannesburg city councillor who approved the use of the land for a stadium, setting aside 13 acres. Today, the stadium hosts both football and rugby, and is also used as a venue for other large events, such as open-air concerts.

Mangaung/Bloemfontein

Mangaung/Bloemfontein will be hosting teams at the Free State Stadium, which currently seats approximately 38,000 people. The stadium derives its name from the province in which it is located. The stadium played host to group and quarter-final matches at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations in 1996 and the IRB Rugby World Cup in 1995. It is also the alternate home ground of Premier Soccer League team, Bloemfontein Celtics.

Soccer City

Soccer City can quite rightfully call itself the home of football in South Africa. In the mid 1980s, football officials came together to build the first international football stadium in the country and the construction was funded from the football fraternity’s coffers.

Moses Mabhida Stadium

Durban has had a long footballing history. The first league was started in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. The biggest match the city has hosted was when South Africa played a full strength England national team in 2002. Durban was also the venue for South Africa’s first post-apartheid game when they played Cameroon, winning1-0 at King’s Park. The city also hosted group, quarter and semi-final matches during the 1996 CAF Africa Cup of Nations. Tunisia secured their place in the final when they beat Zambia 4-2.

Mbombela Stadium

Mbombela Stadium will be a new stadium constructed for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It will be located on open land six kilometers west of Nelspruit with the stadium as the centrepiece of a proposed sports precinct with athletics and cricket as well as other sporting codes. Currently, there is not a football stadium of international standards in the Mpumalanga Province.

Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium

The city does not currently have a dedicated football stadium. All international matches were played at the Eastern Province rugby team’s ground, including the 2005 Nelson Mandela Challenge between South Africa and Senegal at the rugby union stadium. Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium is a 50,000 seat stadium under construction at Nelson Mandela Bay which is going to be used for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.