Ready, steady, GO!

With the 2010 FIFA World Cup fast approaching, all eyes are on South Africa as we gear up to host the event. As a host city for the World Cup, Cape Town has attracted its fair share of scepticism regarding its readiness to welcome crowds of soccer fans to its shores. But the Mother City is well on track to welcome the world, as the latest infrastructure update shows.

Visitors will be well looked after by Cape Town Tourism, which will have information kiosks set up, plus pamphlets and booklets available at the airport, central rail station and media centre, as well as at the Cape Town Tourism office in Burg Street, in the city centre.

There is much to see and do, and Cape Town Tourism is ready to assist.

Ultimately, the success of the World Cup in the Mother City will depend largely on the welcome visitors receive from Capetonians and on the readiness of citizens to embrace them in our football celebrations. With Cape Town’s excellent reputation for hospitality, it’s a welcome Capetonians are sure to provide!

Read more on the infrastructure update here.

Cape Town ambassadors Live it! Love it! LOUDER!

Local companies and organisations are showing their patriotic spirit in the run up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup by doing their part to ensure that Capetonians Live it! Love it! LOUDER! One such company, Foundation Outsourced Hospitality Solutions, has launched a service drive leading up to 2010, offering a three-day “I am a service ambassador” course.

The initiative is well in line with Cape Town Tourism’s citizen activation campaign, which aims to stimulate civic pride and a welcoming spirit among Capetonians in the run up to, during and beyond the international football extravaganza. By endorsing the “I am a service ambassador” programme, Cape Town Tourism hopes to further activate citizens as effective brand ambassadors for Cape Town: Live It! Love It! LOUDER!

Fan zone

Whether you are a devoted soccer lover or simply keen to find out what all the fuss is about, you have to check out Cape Town Tourism’s Soccer 101. In this section of our 2010 mini-site, we hand you an easy solution for mastering our national anthem, equip you with the tools to learn the tricky moves of the “diski dance” (“diski ” means soccer in township lingo) and even provide you with the rules of the game.

To kick off your Soccer 101 training, here are two quick and easy steps to becoming a Number One fan!

• First pick your team! When you arrive at the stadium, you need to show who you’re supporting. Wearing your team’s colours is the first step; arming yourself with a vuvuzela to make some noise is the second. Getting your team’s flag is a great way to show your allegiance and is fun to wave when your team runs out on to the pitch.
• Many soccer fans learn to love the game more by playing it. This is as easy as one, two, three… All you need is a soccer ball and some mates who are keen for some fun. Find a quiet street that’s safe to play on, agree on boundary lines and your goal posts, kick the ball around and have some fun.

FAQs

To ensure that you have the best possible 2010 experience in the Mother City, Cape Town Tourism has put together a list of everything you need to know when organising your World Cup trip.

FAQ No. 6: What is being put in place to ensure the safety and security of spectators at the 2010 World Cup?

The South African Police Service, disaster management teams, traffic law enforcement, emergency services, fire and rescue services and metropolitan police services are all implementing carefully prepared plans to ensure the safety of fans, so you can rest easy while enjoying the 2010 FIFA World Cup festivities in Cape Town. The police and 13 supporting government departments prepared for all safety and security-related eventualities – from terrorist attacks to ambush marketing – ahead of June’s FIFA Confederations Cup.

In the FAQs section on our 2010 mini-site, besides safety and security, you can also read up on the new Cape Town stadium, how to apply for 2010 match tickets and all you need to know about transport in and around Cape Town.

In your own words

Cape Town Tourism would love you to contribute to our 2010 blog. If you would like to write a guest blog(s) for us, please e-mail 2010@capetown.travel.

Booking enquiries

2010 is around the corner! Cape Town Tourism would love to assist you in planning your World Cup experience. Please enquire here or get in touch with our Contact Centre, which is open from 08h00 to 21h00, seven days a week, on +27 21 487 6800.