Africa: Possible Double Bill of African Soccer Events Before 2010

Thapelo Sakoana

Tshwane

The year 2009 could truly be a major showcase for African football, should Nigeria win its bid to host the 2009 Fifa Under-17 World Cup.

Ahead of its hosting of football's biggest event, the 2010 Fifa World Cup, South Africa will host the Fifa Confederations Cup in 2009 as a dry run of the World Cup set to take place in June, 2010.

This means that two major soccer events could take place on the continent in 2009, ahead of the major international showpiece in 2010.

The Nigerian government has already submitted the necessary guarantees to world football governing body Fifa, assuring that it can host a successful event.

The Fifa Executive Committee, which meets for the first time this year on Thrusday and Friday, is yet to choose a host nation for the U-17 sporting event.

At a meeting convened Monday under Fifa Vice-President Jack Austin Warner, the organising committee for the Fifa U-17 World Cup was pleased to learn that preparations for this year's tournament in Korea were at an advanced stage.

A FIFA delegation traveled to the host country early this month and delivered a glowing report on its inspection of the eights venues.

The venues are in Cheonan, Changwon, Goyang, Gwangyang, Seogwipo, Seoul, Suwon and Ulsan.

The tournament, which will feature 24 teams for the first time as opposed to 16 as it had done in the past, will be played between 18 August and 9 September, Fifa said on its offical website.

The local organising committee has set a number of objectives, which include breaking the current overall attendance record for the FIFA U-17 World Cup.

The attendance record stood at 735 000 since the inaugural event - an U-16 competition - in China in 1985.

The Korean organisers have also kept ticket prices low for all 52 matches, with a match ticket expected to cost the equivalent of between U$2.10 and a maximum of U$7.40.

The final draw for the Fifa U-17 World Cup 2007, which will be broadcast in at least 130 countries around the world, will be held in Seoul on 17 May.

To date, only Asian (Korea Republic as host nation, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, Japan, Tajikistan and Syria) and African teams (Ghana, Nigeria, Togo and Tunisia) have qualified to participate in the tournament.

Five more national squads are yet to qualify for the games.

They will be represenatives of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), four from CONMEBOL, one from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) and five from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).

CONMEBOL is the only continental confederation for South America, recognised and authorised by Fifa to direct and control football in the region.