Linsi pleased with South Africa stadium progress

Urs Linsi, the FIFA general secretary, still feels South Africa is on track with all its preparations to play host for the 2010 World Cup.

Linsi had a meeting with the Board of Directors of the 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee in Johannesburg, and said he was impressed with the progress on stadium work and the infrastructure needed for the event.

"I think progress is really clear," he said. "We are very pleased with what has happened in South Africa in the past two months. The fact that a record 204 associations have registered to participate in the 2010 World Cup is another sign that the world is waiting for 2010. The entire football world is eager to be here. It is a commitment from the football world that this is the right place to host the tournament."

Linsi said officials need to make sure construction of five new stadiums, including the main FNB stadium in Johannesburg, and refurbishment of five others, is completed on time by the 31 October 2009 deadline.

Linsi's bright picture was set against the backdrop that FIFA supposedly was getting impatient with a slow pace of stadium construction, the first nation on the African continent to host the World Cup.

The nation's preparations faced a new challenge on Tuesday when a South African environmental group asked a high court to block construction of the 68,000 seat stadium in Cape Town, one of nine World Cup host cities. The Cape Town Environmental Association said the proposed USD 403 million stadium at Green Point violated environment regulations.

Cape Town Mayor Helen Zille said she would fight the blocking attempt. Danny Jordaan, chief executive of South Africa's 2010 organising committee, said the country could not afford significant construction delays in any host city but did not consider this a major hurdle.

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.