2010 football World Cup organising committee head, Danny Jordaan has promised the to deliver the best tournament at a ceremony to raise the flags of the 32 nations that have qualified.
He is right to make this assertion and it is a wish that all of us have a duty to help turn into reality.
Jordaan and his team have done a fantastic job. They have prepared stadiums, several of them now among the top football venues in the world when it comes to design and high-tech facilities.
There can be no question that South Africa will be more than ready to host the tournament although questions still remain about our capacity to transport fans to and from venues.
The story, as Jordaan put it, has changed.
“The story now moves to the teams in the finals, the players, coaches and most importantly, the fans. It is the supporters who
will be arriving here in their hundreds of thousands to support their countries and we will make sure we make them feel at home.”
He is right. The intensity of the controversy over Thierry Henry’s hand-ball goal which put France into the final over Ireland gives you a good idea of how much is at stake.
The fact is that the world’s most entertaining football teams have all qualified with the possible exception of Egypt.
Africa will nonetheless be represented by six powerful footballing nations – Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Algeria and South Africa.
The prospect of an African team going all the way has never been this strong.
South Africans must show the world that we stand behind Africa and its fantastic stars.
We must be hospitable, kind, helpful and tolerant. And we must wear our African colours with pride.

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3. World Cup 2010: The big hole in our preparations
4. Our incredible World Cup 2010 front page
5. 2010 World Cup will see massive national strikes