Put your 2010 party boots on
With only a week to go to the kick-off of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, parties are popping up everywhere from the upmarket to the street scene - pick a venue, don a makaraba and Vuva up a storm in Cape Town, Diepsloot and Melrose Arch or today at Marks Park.
Xbox matches today
Today, at the Marks Park Municipal sports ground in Emmarentia, Johannesburg, schoolchildren from 32 teams from disadvantaged primary schools across Gauteng come head-to-head in the Xbox 360 primary school 5-a-side soccer tournament to see which team will win tickets to see a 2010 World Cup soccer match. Premier Soccer League (PSL) players from the country's top teams, including Tefo Mashamaite (Bidvest WITS Captain), Steve Lekolea (United FC), Fabian McCarthy (Moroka Swallows), Jimmy Tau (Kaizer Chiefs Captain),Morgan Gould (Supersport United) will be present at the tournament to show their support to the youth and share some of their greatly admired skills with the children.
Cape Town becomes Rio
Cape Town's provincial government, together with destination marketing organisation, Cape Town Routes Unlimited will be rolling out the red carpet for the Brazilian fans by transforming the Sea Point Civic Centre into Casa little Brazil, which means the home of the little Brazil. Complete with Brazilian décor; dancers in carnival costumes; gourmet delights; traditional Brazilian music; matches screened in Portuguese and live internet streaming of the venue to web surfers, this venue will be the entertainment hub for Brazilian fans, locals and other visitors to the destination for the entire 33 days of the tournament.
Joburg street parties
The City of Johannesburg 2010 Office, in collaboration with Johannesburg Tourism Company (JTC), sponsors and artists will be taking its festive Joburg Rocks street party to the Diepsloot community to celebrate the five-day mark in the countdown tomorrow, Saturday 5 June 2010. The event is open to the public at no charge and mass participation is encouraged at Sarafina Park, Ngonyama Drive in Diepsloot, north of Bryanston from 2-5pm. Music, games, quizzes and live performances by some of South Africa's favourite local DJ's and artists, including Mandoza, JR, Ntando, Lulu Dikane and Skwatta Kamp are included in the programme line-up.
If fans want quieter streets, then Melrose Arch will provide all the action as well as safe, secure parking and partying at the new Melrose Emporium - taking in all 64 football games live on a variety of big screens and plasma TVs. Its sports lounge also serve as a venue for corporates looking to stage their own private events during the festivities and will remain open after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
