FIFA launches 2010 FIFA World Cup Legacy Trust for South Africa
Following a meeting with the President of the Republic of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter presented the 2010 FIFA World Cup Legacy Trust at Soccer City in Johannesburg.
This trust will support a wide range of public benefit initiatives in the areas of football development, education, health and humanitarian activities in South Africa. The trust forms part of FIFA’s 2010 FIFA World Cup™-related legacy programmes and delivers on FIFA’s pledge to ensure that South Africans will continue to benefit from the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.
The trust amounts to USD 100 million, USD 80 million of which is being allocated directly to social community projects. The remaining USD 20 million was already provided to the South African Football Association (SAFA) in the build-up to the event for preparations and for the construction of SAFA House. As a first project financed by the trust, FIFA purchased 35 of the team buses and a fleet of 52 cars, which were handed over to SAFA today for transport of their regional teams.
The trust will be administered by international auditing company Ernst and Young while the trustees, consisting of a representative each from FIFA, SAFA, the government and the private sector, will evaluate into which public-benefit projects the money is invested. All projects must be submitted to the trustees for review with one of the decisive conditions being that they must be for public benefit only. Read more
GeoEye Releases High-resolution Satellite Imagery of 2010 FIFA World Cup Venues in South Africa
Images Give Soccer Fans Bird’s-eye View of the Stadiums
GeoEye announced that it has imaged all 2010 FIFA World Cup venues located in South Africa. This year’s international tournament is scheduled to take place June 11 – July 11 and marks the 19th anniversary of the games and Africa’s first World Cup event. The high-resolution satellite image of Mbombela Stadium is featured on GeoEye’s home page. All ten images may be accessed directly from the online sports venues gallery.
– Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit
– Soccer City and Ellis Park Stadiums, Johannesburg (host of the opening and closing ceremonies)
– Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria
– Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban
– Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane
– Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg
– Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
– Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
– Green Point Stadium, Cape Town
All of the images were taken from 423 miles in space as the Company’s high-resolution GeoEye-1 and IKONOS satellites moved over the Earth in a north-to-south orbit at 17,000 miles per hour or four miles per second.
2010 FIFA World Cup LIVE: SIRIUS XM to broadcast all 64 matches
SIRIUS XM will broadcast every match in its entirety International soccer legend Giorgio Chinaglia will offer exclusive analysis on “The Football Show” throughout the tournament.
SIRIUS XM Radio will broadcast all 64 matches of the 2010 FIFA World Cup live from South Africa from June 11 through July 11.
English language broadcasts of every World Cup match, produced by ESPN Radio, will be available nationwide on SIRIUS XM. When multiple matches are played simultaneously, additional SIRIUS XM channels will be devoted to play-by-play, allowing listeners to hear every match in its entirety.
SIRIUS XM listeners will hear ESPN broadcasters JP Dellacamera and Tommy Smyth. Dellacamera has called the last six FIFA World Cups for a variety of television networks as well as the past two Summer Olympic Games. Smyth has called more than 2,500 international matches from leagues all over the world and has worked three FIFA World Cups.
In addition to live play-by-play of every match, SIRIUS XM will offer exclusive analysis throughout the tournament from international soccer legend Giorgio Chinaglia and Charlie Stillitano, who will host special World Cup editions of their SIRIUS XM program, The Football Show. Chinaglia, one of the game’s most prolific goal-scorers, played for Italy in the 1974 FIFA World Cup and earned international renown as a striker for the Italian club Lazio and the New York Cosmos. Stillitano is the former general manager of the NY/NJ Metrostars and a U.S. Soccer Foundation founding board member. Read more
Daniela Rodriguez of Houston, Texas wins ESPN Deportes DREAM JOB: EL REPORTERO
Rodriguez to travel to South Africa this summer for her first assignment as an ESPN Deportes reporter
ESPN Deportes announced that Daniela Rodriguez of Houston, TX has been selected as the winner of its second installation of the network’s reality series Dream Job: El Reportero. Rodriguez was chosen among the seven finalists during the special three-episode show telecasted on ESPN Deportes. As the winner, Rodriguez will travel to South Africa this summer to serve on her first assignment as an ESPN Deportes reporter to cover the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
After being selected in Dallas as the only female finalist in the competition, Rodriguez stood out from the seven contestants with her broadcasting skills, personality, camera presence and her general knowledge of soccer. Throughout the competition, Rodriguez and the finalists competed in a series of on-air tasks such as anchoring a studio show, acting as a reporter, conducting interviews and participating in numerous debates. During the final show, Rodriguez competed head-to-head with Dhaniel Sanchez selected in Los Angeles and Rafael Luna selected in San Diego, proving to the judges that she has what it takes to become an ESPN Deportes reporter. In addition to becoming an ESPN Deportes reporter, Rodriguez won a brand new 2010 Ford Fusion Sports car. Read more
Fans can Tweet teams to victory in Sony Ericsson Twitter Cup
With everyone gearing up for the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM), Sony Ericsson is offering fans exclusive and exciting ways to support their team online
As excitement builds in anticipation of the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM) in South Africa, Sony Ericsson, the Official Mobile Handset of the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM), introduces a new way for soccer fans in the Unites States to get behind their team online through a unique social networking initiative.
The Sony Ericsson Twitter Cup will see the 32 teams competing in the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM) in South Africa, battle it out in an online tournament where the fans decide who will win. Fans will be able to participate in this exciting competition either online or via their mobile handset(1).
The tournament kicks off on December 4th 2009, coinciding with the draw for the group stage of the official tournament. To get team U.S.A. through each round, fans need to show their support by Tweeting (#TWCUSA). The team with the most Tweets in each round will prevail and go on to the next stage, regardless of how the real team fares in South Africa.
“Sony Ericsson is dedicated to providing soccer fans with the best experience of the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM), giving them more ways to support their team and get involved with all aspects of the game,” said Karen Morris, vice president of Marketing for Sony Ericsson North America.
Tweets about the U.S. team are represented by the colors of the national flag in the virtual stadium – the bigger the U.S. flag becomes, the more popular the team and the closer they are to being crowned the winner of the Sony Ericsson Twitter Cup. The wall chart view will let fans see the progress of their team and who’s playing who in the knockout stages, so it’s easy to compare the results with the real 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM).
The Sony Ericsson Twitter Cup rules are as follows:
– The Sony Ericsson Twitter Cup follows the same format as the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM). There are group and knockout stages, including quarter finals, semi finals and the final itself
– However, unlike the physical tournament, teams’ success in the Sony Ericsson Twitter Cup depends on how many Tweets they get
– The more Tweets a country gets, the more fans they have and the better chance they have of progressing to the subsequent rounds
– Sony Ericsson will monitor all the activity on Twitter – from the first round draw on December 4th 2009 through to the final on July 11th 2010
– A general Tweet about the U.S. team will win the team one point; a Tweet with (#TWCUSA) is worth five points for the team
Sony Ericsson is uniquely placed to be a champion of soccer fans worldwide. Mobile communications is an integral part of the fan experience – whether watching in the stadium, at home or at a fan park, fans bring their handsets with them. Sony Ericsson will use its soccer partnership and expertise in mobile phone entertainment to energize and enrich the experience of consumers worldwide.
Sony Ericsson is the Official Mobile Handset of the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM), which arose through Sony Corporation, as the Digital Life Partner of FIFA. Sony Ericsson agreed to sub-license the category from Sony Corporation and the agreement includes all FIFA events until 2010 including the 2010 FIFA World Cup(TM) in South Africa. The Digital Life category includes mobile handsets as well as consumer electronics, professional and broadcast AV and other equipment, personal computers, movies, music and gaming.
Source: Sony Ericsson