Volcano and Octagon team up for Sony's 2008 FevaPitch Five-a-Side football tournament

As an Official Partner for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™, Sony initiated the FevaPitch tournament in 2007 to bring entertainment and excitement to the game. The tournament is based on five-a-side rules and promises to be action packed as 24 amateur teams participate in each regional event to display their ball skills on the pitch.

To add glamour to the events, Sony has selected a celebrity team of ex-Bafana Bafana players to square up as the Sony All-Stars team against TV celebrities and the media. The players include Neil Tovey, Mark Fish, Doctor Khumalo, Steve Crowley, Mark Williams, Mark Batchelor and Bashin Mahlangu.

In five provinces, namely KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Free State, Cape and Gauteng, media teams are invited to participate in the Sony Media Competition. The winning team receives a Sony prize and will compete against the Sony All-Stars team.

Fun games are also built into the events to add to the excitement, and live performances, show stopper dancers and soccer tricksters will show off their talents. Sony PlayStation® consoles set up at every venue will ensure that no youngster (or oldster) will be bored for a second.

“Soccer is the most popular sport in the world and is played in over 200 countries where Sony does business,” says Andrew Fraser, Senior Manager, Brand Management at Sony SA.

“FevaPitch is the start of the local activation for Sony and will be an annual event in the lead up to 2010 FIFA World Cup™ of which Sony is an Official Global Partner. As an entertainment company it is important for Sony that FevaPitch targets the fun side of the sport where everyone can get involved and join a tournament that promises excitement for the players as well as the spectators,” says Fraser.

This year FevaPitch kicked off in Durban during the weekend of 12 and 13 July. The winning team at this leg was Cherrians, who beat Dream Team 4-3 on penalties after the game ended 2-all in regulation time.

In Rustenburg, Anglo Sony beat Anglo RP Mines 3-1 in the final during the weekend of 2 and 3 August.

The Bloemfontein leg will take place during the weekend of 13 and 14 September. The Cape Town leg of the tournament takes place on 18 and 19 October and in Gauteng teams will compete on 22 and 23 November.

The finals will be played the following two days, on 24 and 25 November, in Nelson Mandela Square, to coincide with the SoccerEx exhibition.