Saturday, 9 January 2010

Attack on the Togo team bus raises the question: Is Africa ready to host something as massive as the World Cup?

The horrific attack on the Togo national football team and their subsequent withdrawal from the African Cup of Nations has thrown the competition into chaos. It also raises serious questions over Africa's capability to host a tournament as massive as the World Cup. Is Africa ready to host the World Cup when their continent can even host its own competition without team buses being shot at?

The massive influx of teams, their entourage and their fans will prove a logistical nightmare for South African security. While this attack in Angola should serve as a wake up to security forces and lead to improved security, can they ensure peoples safety throughout the competition?

South Africa is one of, if not the, most dangerous places on the planet. With rape, murder, car jackings and assault prevalent, is the most developed country in Africa worthy of hosting something as massive the World Cup? It's not helped by the fact that corruption is also prevalent in South Africa (and Africa in general), so why did FIFA decide that South Africa was fit to host the World Cup? Some sense of fairness that each continent should host it, I suppose?

The fact that FIFA have given the 2014 World Cup to Brazil, another country with massive crime and corruption rates, just compounds the matter. Who's getting it next? China?

It should be said that Brazil have at least hosted the competition before and shown they can do it, as well as being 5 times winners. South Africa have no such claim and were even banned from the World Cup until 1994 because of apartheid. Maybe FIFA see it as some way of recognising South Africa's overcoming of apartheid, but giving them the World Cup when they still have so many problems is not the right way to do it.