Johannesburg World Cup 2010 Stadiums

Johannesburg will have two stadiums in the World Cup 2010 and also boasts the opening match, one semi final and the final match of the tournament.
Soccer City is the jewel in South Africa's crown, built in 1987 and with a capacity of 94,700 (excluding Media and VIP's) it is sure to offer a great atmosphere for the lucky few that get tickets and hopefully as the stadium to be used for the first game, provide an excellent springboard for a magnificent tournament.
For 2010, the upper tier will be extended around the stadium, an encircling roof will be constructed, new changing room facilities will be developed and new floodlights will be installed.

Ellis Park was constructed in 1982 as a modern, integrated stadium offering outstanding sight lines from every seat. The Stadium stands within a world class sporting precinct, barely 15 minutes' walk from the Johannesburg City Centre, and offers outstanding office, security and medical features.
For 2010, new upper tiers will be constructed behind each of the goals, at the north and south ends of the venue, increasing the net capacity by 10,149 seats to a total 60,000.
Ellis Park will host one quarter final match.

South Africa World Cup lottery scam starts up again

Bogus emails are doing the rounds saying you have won the 2010 World Cup lottery. This is a scam and to be honest not a very good one.
They have even started a very dodgy looking website which on first glance shouldn't be trusted but you never know which is why we're telling you now; do not pass over any personal information of any kind!
The email will tell you that the lottery is sponsored by the likes of Microsoft, Coca Cola, Nokia, MTN and many other companies. It's not true. Do not believe it just because it's on the internet.
We've notified the 2010 Local Organising Committee and lawyers representing the 2010 LOC but that's all we can do to help. Again, do not pass over any personal data, you've not won anything and in passing over personal information you're only going to get fleeced.

If you've not yet applied for World Cup tickets, you better hurry up!

The World Cup might still be over a year away, but your first chance to apply for tickets will soon be gone, unless you want to pay silly money to ticket touts or websites with promises of getting tickets and maybe not getting them.
You have until March 31st to apply on the FIFA website here.
There are going to be another four phases to get tickets but if you are desperate to go, your best chance is if you are involved in all of them and as long as you apply before March 31st, you'll know two weeks later if you've got them.
The other phases will be taking place as follows:
Phase Two: May 4th 2009 to November 16th 2009
Applications submitted during this stage will be processed, subject to availability, on a first come first served basis. Basically, if you don't get on phase one, you need to be up early on May 4th.
Phase Three: December 5th 2009 to January 22nd 2010
This phase is very much like the first one that we are in currently. From the FIFA ticketing website: all correctly submitted applications received during this stage will be considered for allocation. If the number of applications for Match or Team Specific tickets exceeds the number of tickets available, tickets will be allocated by a random selection draw taking place on 1 February 2010. Please note: it makes no difference whether you apply early, on 5 December 2009, or late, on 22 January 2010. Each correctly submitted application will have the same opportunity of being successful in the draw.
Phase Four: February 9th 2010 to April 7th 2010
Like phase two, first come first served, so get up early on February 9th 2010.
Last Phase: April 15th 2010 to July 11th 2010
Tickets will be sold at point of sale and again on a first come first served basis.
Please remember, the only place you can order these tickets is from the FIFA Ticketing website - do not be duped into thinking you can get these tickets anywhere else.

2010 World Cup Qualifying Section - Africa

The CAF will receive six spaces at the 2010 Finals, including South Africa, who qualify as the host nation. This leaves 53 nations competing for the remaining five spaces.
This was narrowed down to 48 teams with a preliminary qualifying round for the smaller nations in late 2007 and 12 groups of four teams were drawn. All group winners and the 8 best runners-up advance to the next stage of the qualifying, where they will compete in five groups of four, with the group winners qualifying for the 2010 World Cup Finals.
As a result of the vast number of games African countries have to play to qualify, the qualifying campaign will also serve to determine qualification for the 2010 African Nations Cup finals. For this reason, South Africa will also participate in the qualifying campaign, however their presence at the 2010 World Cup finals is assured, even if they fail during the qualifying process.
The African qualifying campaign is always very interesting. While the European and South American qualifying is normally fairly consistent and throws up few surprises, a large number of African countries including Togo, Tunisia, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria and South Africa have made it to the finals in recent years. With only 6 slots available, it is sure to be an interesting qualifying campaign.