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+--- Thread: Concerns about World cup 2010 (/Thread-Concerns-about-World-cup-2010)
Concerns about World cup 2010 - mcamp999 - 12-08-2005
The benefits of hosting the 2010 World Cup are not as great as originally expected, Sport and Recreation Committee chairperson Butana Komphela said in parliament on Thursday.
"The spin-offs are not as great as we thought. We are very worried about this," Komphela said, noting that Fifa - the world football body - would arrange certain of its own business agreements that could be detrimental to South Africa's general commercial interests.
Highlighting possible agreements with Coca-Cola and Hyundai, Komphela said there were possibly other agreements which would necessitate South Africa having to import foreign wines for sale at World Cup events.
"Can you imagine the outcry if that was the case?" he said with concern.
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But local organising committee chief executive officer Danny Jordaan said that as yet Fifa had only signed agreements with Adidas, Sony and Hyundai.
"Fifa's commercial programme dedicates certain areas, deemed to be World Cup areas, where ambush marketing may not take place," he said.
He said he could not comment on the wine issue but said there was still a lot of work to be done.
Komphela further voiced concerns that Fifa held all television rights and shared the profits, but bore none of the losses if such were incurred.
Reporting back on a recent study tour to France where his committee analysed that country's successful World Cup in 1998, Komphela said France had urged South Africa to be "firm" with the governing body.
"He (Jacques Lambert, director-general of the French Football Federation) mentioned lots of changes imposed by Fifa after 1998... but it will differ with South Africa because Fifa has imposed even tougher conditions," Komphela said.
He said Lambert advised South Africa and the federations to remain "firm" with Fifa because the "requirements from Fifa were increasing".
Komphela said South Africa was advised to look to its own interests, especially when it came to finances.
l South Africa will have a bigger population from which to choose its World Cup squad when it annexes Zimbabwe.
This was said in parliament by ANC MP Tsietsi Louw after Komphela expressed concern that local interest in the event would crumble if South Africa was eliminated in the first round.
"We can't be the first host to be eliminated in the first round," said Komphela.
Louw responded jokingly: "We are soon going to annex Zimbabwe so don't despair, we will have quite a population to choose from."