LOC confident S Africans will fill stadiums

Rustenburg – Local Organising Committee (LOC) Chief Executive Officer Danny Jordaan, is confident there will be an improvement in the number of South African soccer fans filling up stadiums during the remaining Fifa Confederations Cup matches.

He was speaking at a media briefing last night where a concern was raised regarding the unsatisfactory number of people turning up at the stadiums for the tournament.  

According to Dr Jordaan, the current level of attendance at tournaments in South Africa is only 2 percent below Germany in the 2005 Confederations Cup.  

“We are confident that there will be a remarkable improvement in attendance in the next days,” Dr Jordaan said.  

He said about 10 000 tickets were given away to local people for last night’s match between Bafana Bafana and New Zealand.

“We however need to stress that this is not a general approach, we do it case by case,” Dr Jordaan said, adding that discussions were underway on how to make free tickets available to more South Africans.  

Fifa President Sepp Blatter also urged the LOC to consider giving away some free tickets in an attempt to attract soccer supporters.

Mr Blatter further conceded that the Fifa Confederations Cup has always not been able to attract more fans than the actual Fifa World Cup.  

“I am sure next year, all seats will be occupied, this has always been the case when it comes to the Confederations Cup,” added Mr Blatter.

Meanwhile, at its ordinary meeting in Cape Town on Wednesday, cabinet called on South Africans to support the national team by attending all the matches in large numbers.

“The opportunity to host the world stars in a tournament such as the Confederations Cup and the 2010 Fifa World Cup in your own country comes once in a lifetime and South Africans cannot afford to let this opportunity pass them by,” Government spokesperson Themba Maseko said. -BuaNews