Indian team colours its boys with body paints for World Cup
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Art and cricket have merged in a novel campaign to take the game and its cult heroes to the masses in the run-up to the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup for Pepsico India, the main sponsor of the Cup.
The campaign, to run across all media domains from Jan 15, will feature popular cricketers sporting their favourite colours on their bodies in intricately painted body art.
Every art work has been themed and captioned to suit the personality of the wearer and his style of play according to ancient Chinese and Indian astrology, where each colour of the seven rainbow shades bears an astro-significance.
The glamour boy from Jharkhand and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni will flaunt the 'fire in the belly look' to symbolise his high-spirited game and body language on the field.
Fire is a symbol of power, passion, aggression and destruction. Dhoni's colour palette will be a peppy mosaic of blue, green, yellow and orange. The pattern does not incorporate his contribution to the pitch but conveys a graphic image of a blazing fire in his belly and his desire to win.
Spin bowler Harbhajan Singh will wear the 'fiery ball' to gel with his vigour and attitude. The graphic image of the ball on his body is symbolic of his strength on the field and an explosion of red light at the tail of the ball reflects the aggression with which he commands situations on the pitch.
Flamboyant opener Virender Sehwag will flaunt a 'moving star' on his body. The star is Sehwag personified on the wicket telling the way he tackles the ball on the ground. It defines the brute force, nifty footwork and the sure-fire batting style of the ace batsman.
'Directed arrows' will capture the persona of Suresh Raina, the young southpaw, when on the field. The shooting set of arrows will show his magical power to hit the ball the way he pleases. The different sizes of the arrows project his growth in the game of cricket over the years.
Middle-order batsman Virat Kohli will sport the 'fast forward' look made of two solid triangles that replicate to represent his high-speed, energetic and exuberant movements on the pitch.
The creator of the look, Santosh Padhi, the chief creative officer and co-founder of Taproot India said the body paint campaign was an attempt to bring alive the 'passion that the cricketers have for the game'.
The executive vice-president of marketing, PepsiCo India, Sandeep Singh Arora, said: 'Cricket is more than just a game in India, it is like a faith and its followers include millions of passionate young Indians. With our campaign, we wanted to reflect the same fervour and energy that the fans and the players have and what can be more passionate than wearing it on your body.'
Body art over the last decade has become a rage in India and the sub-continent with the tattoo culture catching among the GenNext. The most common forms of body art in India are tattoos and body piercing.
India, however, owes its body art lineage to the ancient Kathakali and Kudiyattam traditions of performing arts in Kerala that make use of elaborate facial make-up in different colours to symbolise the personalities of the mythical characters in which the plays were based on.
Historically, green, blue, red, black and yellow are the most prevalent colours used in Indian body art.
Labels: Fans
posted @ 11:17 AM,
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South Africa 2010 offers the ICC a lesson: let crowds be themselves
Monday, July 19, 2010
The vuvuzelas of the 2010 Football World Cup might have drove us all mad at times, but as Jeremy Loadman explains they gave the tournament an identity, something that the 2007 Cricket World Cup sadly lacked.
Now that the Football World Cup is behind us, there is time and energy to watch other sports once more, cricket of course being a high priority for a lot of us.
With some people arguing that the football played in South Africa as a whole was not exceptional and for large chunks even quite bland, many of you might have even returned to your normal sports watching habits some time ago.
But putting the quality of the football to one side, the accounts that the tournament was run superbly made me turn my mind back to the 2007 Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean, not because it was similarly well-run but because it was pretty much the exact opposite from an operational perspective.
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In 2007, cricket administrators endured much criticism for presiding over a tournament that never really took-off, went on too long and in the end barely crawled over the finish line as it ended in pitch black and in farce at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown.
We can only hope that the next Cricket World Cup to be played in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in 2011 doesn’t repeat the mistakes of 2007.
Trying to compare a Football World Cup to a Cricket World Cup is in many ways a fruitless exercise largely because of the massive difference in magnitude between the two tournaments. However, there can be one useful comparison made between the 2007 Cricket World Cup and the 2010 Football World Cup and strangely it centres around one thing. Yep, the vuvuzela.
The interminable blowing of vuvzelas inside the stadiums drove many a person mad – some commentators even suggesting its monotonous drone matched much of the football played by some nations. By whatever you’re opinion on it, it was undeniably South African. It acted as a constant reminder that it was South Africa’s World Cup.
Compare this to the many noiseless stadiums of the 2007 Cricket World Cup. Where were the drums and the trumpets which previously created so much atmosphere inside Caribbean cricket stadiums? Atmosphere’s that could make your heart pound non-stop for an entire session.
The kind of atmosphere that many Australians were introduced to in 1991 when an Australian tour of the Caribbean was broadcast live into Australia for the first time.
There was great excitement surrounding this tour. For the first time in a long time there was a feeling in Australia that the team sent over was up to the fight and would not be chewed up and spat out like previous touring sides.
Australia fought valiantly throughout the series but lost it 3-1. But people didn’t really care about the result (the West Indies were unbeatable anyway – or so we thought), everyone was just so excited about the vibrant nature of cricket played in the Caribbean. It was wild, fun and full of sound. Even rain proved no obstacle for the brilliant atmosphere that we so strongly sensed through our television screens – to dry the crease out the groundsmen simply lit a fire on it.
With stadiums jam-packed with locals singing and dancing, this tour for many was the perfect portrait of cricket in the West Indies.
So roll around 2007 what happened? Where had all the music and excitement gone? Well the instruments were banned by members of the ICC that thought they would upset the overseas tourists attending the tournament. Little did they know that these tourists weren’t coming anyway.
And the excitement? Coupled with ticket prices that made it too expensive for many locals to attend, as well as food prices inside stadiums not dissimilar to domestic air fares, a tournament that should have delivered a party atmosphere liked no other turned into a one that many wanted to forget as quickly as possible.
So the lesson is for the ICC, let the people of the countries which host the 50-over and T20 World Cups put their own stamp on it – even if this is to be something that drives most people up the wall.
Labels: Fans, FIFA, ICC Cricket World Cup 2011
posted @ 11:14 AM,
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World Cup Fans
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Sports fan Mark Thompson has spent £400 transforming his living room into a football stadium. Mark, 45,and his 55-year-old wife Karen decked out their lounge with England emblem wallpaper, erected a towering stadium mural, festooned it with St George flags and marked out their green carpet with a six-yard box and penalty spot. The project features three false walls, including one covering the entire front window, a painted crowd of spectators and flags and bunting extending into a St George-themed gazebo in the back garden.
Living room now and before the change
Now the sports-crazy couple, who have been together for twelve years and have three grown-up children between them, are looking forward to holding a host of World Cup parties as friends and family round to watch the tournament over the next month, with food themed to each country the Three Lions are taking on.
Joiner Mark, who has lived in the house in Oldham, Greater Manchester for the past twelve years, said: 'The neighbours just keep laughing and they think it's really cool, all the young kids too. I'm a hero on our street. 'We're going to be watching all the games at our house. We've got a theme for every match. We're doing a food theme for each one. We're having burgers for the USA match then curries for Algeria then goulashes for the Slovenia game.
Where are you watching this wold cup?
Labels: Fans, World Cup 2010
posted @ 12:28 PM,
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FIFA World Cup South Africa - 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
The stage is set for football lovers for the biggest event in history of the sports where teams from 32 countries are going to battle hard to prove their worth. FIFA World Cup 2010 is being played in South Africa, from June 11 to July 11, 2010 and football fans have already gathered there to watch the thrilling game and the rest are glued to different media channels to find what is happening.
The passion for Football is certainly sweeping every one in Pakistan this time, particularly the sportsmen and the youth. In addition to conventional media, Pakistani football fans are going online to find all sorts of information about the championship, including multimedia content such as brief video clips of stars and highlights from games from earlier championships. Many Internet sites have sprung up which are reporting each and every thing about the World Cup. "The hype this time is of an entirely different order," says Zahir Khan, footballer and a student in Business and Information Technology.
Earlier football fan frenzy started when the 18 carat gold FIFA World Cup Trophy was taken on whirlwind global tour jointly organized by FIFA and a beverage company where it received an unprecedented welcome. Commencing on 21 September 2009, from Zurich - the home of FIFA - the Trophy Tour has undertaken an exciting journey, making history along the way by visiting 50 African cities from Abidjan, Ivory Coast to Yaounde, Cameroon. The Trophy was greeted by passionate football fans in 34 countries around the world, from established football nations including Brazil, Italy and England to countries where fan enthusiasm is growing such as New Caledonia, Malaysia and Kazakhstan. FIFA World Cup winners including Pele, Lothar Matthaus, and Christian Karembeu have shared in the Trophy Tour experience along with fans around the world who have enjoyed the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour celebrations. Not only that, welcoming the magic of the FIFA World Cup to their countries, 44 heads of state have made time in their schedules to greet the prestigious Trophy's arrival.
The tour gives an idea that FIFA is cottoning on to the idea of an equivalent to the Olympic Torch for football. Two years ago, instead of being carried by athletes to the Olympic Games in Greece, the torch made a tour of all the countries that had hosted the games. This year, the World Cup trophy was taken from country to country before it finally reached in Germany. It is not just visiting the countries which have hosted the tournament, but the idea seems to be along the lines of Olympic Torch.
Pakistani fans are very alive to the World Cup and are looking forward to it. When asked about their favorites, many replied, "Brazil is the favorites to win the World Cup. Spain will try hard for the top honor, but Brazil is the main candidates because of their players' abilities and because of their recent performances. Aamir Bashir says, "I have no doubts that Brazil will be at the top. I wish to be at Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg where the final will be played on 11 July 2010, but it is costly for me."
"Being a Pakistani, I expect Pakistan to play and win," said Kamran Mirza, “but when Pakistan is not playing, I will still watch the game with concentration and enjoy without accompanying tension and verbal duel of traditional rivalries as are seen in Indo-Pak cricket series.”
“We Pakistanis are used to kind of sporting atmosphere, with fans rapt to the game, extremely cheering for players and teams," says Taha Riaz, player and an ardent football fan, "It is always a joy to see international tournaments and understand the game. Seeing my favorite stars at their best improves my own game." That is why football fans from around the world will watch the World Cup even if their own teams are not participating.
Tahir Abbas, an ex army football color holder has his 15-year-old son Mubarak who has got the love for the game from his father. Most of his friends play the game in a satellite colony where they live and have a football ground nearby. "I will certainly be following World Cup," he says enthusiastically. I asked him how many of his friends would be following the World Cup. "Oh, about 20, and my father has invited them to come a watch the matches at our home," was his answer. His father told, "Mubarak's interest in football is due to my own passion for the game mainly and our stay in cantonments where this game is regularly played.
Tahir Abbas is disappointed that our country is not participating in FIFA World Cup in South Africa. For Pakistan he says, "as far as the future is concerned, we have great potentials. Some talent hunt, some sponsorship from public and well as private sectors may take Pakistan in next championships."
Great supporting events have different impact on economies too. Remember closed bazaars and low turn-out in offices and educational institutions on the eve of India Pak cricket matches across the country in the past. South Africa will have upward economic surge due to large number of foreigner fans coming to watch World Cup in the country. On the other hand it is feared that the World Cup finals might have negative impact on some economies. During the 2002 World Cup (May 31-June 30), the Stock Exchange of Thailand slipped 4.34 percent. In Singapore, when England played Nigeria at the last World Cup, turnover on the market plunged and the Straits Times Index fell 11 points on a lack of buying interest.
"This time we are expecting dwindling sale during the Word Cup. Which is why we are putting up big screen TVs for the customers to sit and watch the game," says manager of a reputed café on M M Alam Road, Lahore. "Football fans are already enquiring about when we will put up a multimedia for the Word Cup as we do for cricket," he adds. Many other cafes and posh eating joints across the country are putting up bigger screen televisions to attract the Word Cup enthusiasts.
Athar Mahmood, good football player of his own time and father of two promising football players says, "Football is one of the greatest and most powerful filed activities. It is an economical activity as well. The amount of money and trade passed during Word Cups is remarkable. So many sports retailers, shops, transport channels and restaurants do good business during the championship; football creates many potential jobs for those who have that unique gift. Football gives our children hope and dreams. In places such as Brazil and even Cameroon, people love the beautiful game. We too should encourage others to become involved in the game. I can see footie fever striking Pakistan like cricket, hockey in near future."
Representation of Pakistan – once a credible ‘footballing’ nation, grinding its way into Asia's top 10 with players in demand from league clubs in different countries - in the 2010 World Cup is limited only to providing the hand stitched "Made in Sialkot" balls for the game and the attendance of few officials at the opening ceremony.
Unlike cricket that can be played on streets, football game needs wider grounds. And there is dearth of open spaces and grounds in our cities. That is one of the reasons that this game has not been popular in the past. But "football craze is picking up here too. There are many ardent fans who are looking forward to the Word Cup, for entertainment if nothing else," says Waqar Haider, manager marketing in an international concern who was on Lahore School of Economics team in his own times. Sports are often referred to as the world's finest form of entertainment. They are healthy social activities that hold the attention of an audience as well as its participants. "Football does it best," Waqar adds".
I am going to spend my time immersing myself in the world's most amusing and impulsive drama: Word Cup 2010. You are invited. [From Here]
Labels: Fans, Football, Soccer, Soccernomics
posted @ 7:17 PM,
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Football Fanz Franzy
Saturday, June 5, 2010
A German soccer fan is seen prior to a soccer friedly match between Germany and Bosnia Herzegowina in Frankfurt, Germany, on Thursday, June 3, 2010. (apn Photo/Daniel Maurer)
Labels: Fans
posted @ 9:43 AM,
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Supper Cameronian
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Ngando Pickett warming up for the World Cup at a Cameroonian Premier League match.
This week I met up with the Cameroonian national team’s mascot, a pot-bellied, larger-than-life character named Ngando Pickett.
He’s hard to miss during a game. It might have something to do with the fact that he’s often painted from head to toe in green, red and yellow stripes, like the national flag. Or that he strips to a g-string and shakes it when Cameroon scores.
But Ngando’s back-story is equally attention grabbing. Like many young men at the time, he celebrated Cameroon’s wins at the Africa Cup of Nations in 1984 and 1988. But it wasn’t until 1998 that Ngando’s true calling came. He was sleeping outside in the Sahara Desert between Morocco and Mauritania when had a vision of himself painted in the Cameroonian colours.
“I told the Cameroonians I was travelling with that I had found my path,” he told me.
That year, Cameroon was playing in the African Cup of Nations in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso’s capital. Ngando packed up his bags and travelled thousands of kilometres overland from Nouakchott in Mauritania to Dakar, Senegal capital and then from Dakar to Bamako, Mali and finally to Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso. He asked a Cameroonian acquaintance in the country to help him find the coloured body paints of his dream.
Since that day, Ngando says he has geared-up for every single game. “It’s a passion,” he says. “It’s like I become another person when I put on the colours.”
Cameron’s success when he’s in the stands has led some people to speculate whether Ngando is some sort of sorcerer. At times, opposing teams won’t even let him into the stadium to work his “magic.” During the 2002 African Cup of Nations in Bamako, Mali, Ngando says that when he arrived at the stadium for the semifinal against the home team, there was a huge crowd blocking the entrance.
“There were at least 100 soldiers waiting for me,” Ngando told me. “They undressed me — I was naked… then they punctured my troupe’s drums and confiscated them. So we took a taxi to another neighbourhood and watched the game on TV – Cameroon still won 3-0!”
Cameroon then went on to take home the Cup.
At home, on the other hand, Ngando is a true celebrity. I followed him to a local league game and watched people swell around him. The children danced with him until the sides of their faces were smeared with body paint. Older people cheered him on in amusement, filming Ngando’s trademark dance moves on their mobile phones.
Even out of costume, Ngando is recognized everywhere. I walked through the central market with him and every step there was a new chorus of people calling out “Pickett!” or “The Mascot!” I can assure you neither Britney Spears nor Paris Hilton would get this type of attention here.
Like any public creature, Ngando is ever friendly, finishing every public greeting with a deep giggle. He became so well liked that the Cameroon’s Ministry of Sports started sponsoring Ngando and his troupe of drummers to attend the national side’s games.
But although his travel and subsistence during tournaments is provided, being a mascot isn’t actually an official state position. So when Ngando is not travelling with the Cameroonian delegation, he lives on a small sponsorship from a mobile phone network, by performing at weddings and other private occasions, and mostly by donation.
By the end of the afternoon that I spent with Ngando at the football stadium, his group of six had earned about 9000 CFA in tips – less than $20. It’s not great, but enough for a round of sodas and chilli chicken sandwiches on the streets of Douala’s Deido neighbourhood, where Ngando lives.
He does what he does for love, not money, he explains.
Ngando: a marketing dream
Ngando personifies everything that you would want in a World Cup-themed advertisement: real-life passion, patriotism, and over-the-top love for football.
That’s probably why his painted half-naked image (you can see it here if you scroll down), with the line: “How deep is your love,” plastered over the top lines the Parisian metro system – a publicity campaign for Puma.
What a great opportunity for Ngando right? The problem is that although Puma sponsors the Cameroonian team, they don’t actually sponsor Ngando. Ngando wasn’t even aware that his image was going to be used in their advertisements. The first Ngando heard about the campaign was from the Cameroonian diaspora in France. “I started getting several calls a day,” says Ngando.
On one hand, the global exposure has made Ngando really happy. Him image has united Cameroonians for years and will now unite the world. But at the same time, he felt duped. “Those images belong to me,” he explains, in an almost apologetic tone. “And it should be up to me to decide whether my image can be used for a film or advertisement.”
In Cameroon, I’ve found that people are extremely very suspicious of journalists – civilians worry that anyone armed with a camera is going to make money off of them. It took days of meetings to explain to Ngando and his troupe that I wanted to tell their story, not use their image for commercial means. When I first arrived, I was extremely frustrated – but now I understand. If you let someone take your picture, you could end up being the poster-boy for a herpes cream. (I know there isn’t the same connotation with Puma sportswear, but I guess it’s still the same principle).
I tried contacting three Puma officials in Europe and North America about the issue multiple times, but haven’t received an answer. Equally, the Cameroonian Ministry of Sports has been tight-lipped.
“It’s not my place to comment on what happened,” Mr. Ondoa, the Minister’s second technical advisor (who deals with the national side’s support groups) told me.
So plainly, I don’t really know where the fault was committed. Did Puma really put Ngando’s half-naked image on posters around Paris without consent, or did Cameroon’s Ministry of Sports OK the picture as part of the sponsorship deal for the Indomitable Lions? Finally, now that the publicity is out, what can a poor man like Ngando do to stand up for his rights against the government and a multinational corporation?
Ngando, who always seems to have the right attitude, doesn’t seem that fazed. With or without help – he says he’ll always be there to support the Lions. His life path is born from passion rather than greed.
But it still bothers me that everyone but he and his family seems to eat from his love for the game, including his managers, his neighbourhood, his government, and now even Puma.
Zangalewa
Ngando isn’t the only such story. FIFA selected Colombian singer Shakira to make the 2010 World Cup anthem. The song, which was done in collaboration with South African band Freshlyground, is called “Waka Waka” (Time for Africa).
So much was the hype that a pre-release of the “new” song was buzzed about on the Internet. That’s where a friend of the band (that was living in the U.S.) heard it. It wasn’t “new” at all. It was a reinterpretation of a “self-titled” 1986 hit (by the Cameroonian military band Zangalewa (www.groupezangalewa.com). The song is a celebration of the country’s independence and uproot of the colonials.
I’m told the Zangalewa video was one of the first to come out in Cameroon and that the song was so popular it even played at the beginning of the nightly newscast. It then went around the world and has been re-sung in many other countries facing the same issues. The band Zangalewa broke up over a decade ago — and if it hadn’t been that one of the band members living in the US, the group might have watch Shakira perform their hit for the first time at the World Cup ceremonies.
Thankfully, it was caught early before the release of the song and they’ve struck a compensation deal. They are now negotiating whether Zangalewa will be invited to see the performance of the song during the World Cup in South Africa.
I keep hearing about how much South Africans are going to have to pay in taxes for all the infrastructure put in place for the World Cup, while FIFA sits back and enjoys the pay cheque. So I’m wondering whether this World Cup is actually bringing as much business to the continent as everyone had anticipated, or if is it just another round of exploitation? Let me know what you think in the comments section.
Next time: An interview with International soccer start Roger Milla on his birthday, as well as one of the best juggling shows I’ve ever seen by Cameroonian soccer player Edmond Atango.
You can watch video of my time with Suliat, the Nigerian female soccer player (), as well as a short clip of my time in Nigeria.
As always, you can follow me on Twitter.
Posted by Anjali Nayar
posted @ 11:37 AM,
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Go Fans
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
The global campaign, which originally debuted in Latin America in 2009, includes television, print and out-of-home advertisements, usage promotions, experiential offers for cardholders and merchant discounts.
Go Fans was developed to connect with football fans worldwide to drive preference for and usage of Visa products, promote Visa’s association with the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa and reinforce the ways in which Visa enhances the fan’s Fifa World Cup experience. Today, 78 markets throughout the world are activating Visa Fifa-themed marketing programmes with over 200 clients.
Utilising the flexibility of the More people go with Visa campaign, advertising creative from the Go Fans campaign will be customised and will appear in 30 markets around the world to strengthen the campaign’s relevance in those regions. In addition to Go Fans, customized advertising extensions of the campaign will utilize Go Football and Go [Country] (e.g. Go Brazil) taglines.
Visa CMO Antonio Lucio says, "Football fans are unlike any other sports fans in the world. We’ve created a campaign that captures these fans’ inspirational passion for the game, taps into their nationalistic pride and reminds them how Visa can help enhance their experience."
"Building off Visa’s legacy of creating integrated marketing campaigns in support of global sporting events, our platform enables us to reinforce the ways that Visa enhances the fan’s World Cup experience while also advancing our own business and that of our clients".
The Go Fans campaign celebrates the common love that all fans have for football and creative executions featuring the colors of the national flags of each of the 32 qualifying countries, symbolize the expression of each fan’s true colors and love of country. The campaign reinforces the ways that Visa enables fans to express their true colors in support of their teams by offering an easier way to pay, their Visa card.
Television Advertising and Customisation :
Localised versions of Visa’s Anthem commercial, which debuted on 1 March 2010 in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, shows footage of fans throughout the world expressing an array of emotions while viewing football matches.
The creative execution is overlaid with the colours of individual national flags and follows the natural progression of anticipation, tension, joy and heartache displayed by football fans during a match. The spot illustrates how fans are divided by their passion for their favourite teams but united in a shared love of football.
The soundtrack to Anthem is an original composition written by South African natives Nonkululeko and Philisiwe Moya called Stand as One, Unite and is performed by the Agape Children’s Choir. First documented in the critically acclaimed film "We Are Together," the Agape Children’s Choir is made up of children from the Agape Orphanage in Durban, South Africa who find hope in song. In February, Visa made a donation of $150,000 to benefit the Agape Children’s Choir and assist with the children’s school fees, education costs and the orphanage’s administrative costs.
Anthem was directed by Jake Scott, the son of Ridley Scott, whose previous work includes the music video Fake Plastic Trees for Radiohead, as well as two films including the forthcoming Welcome to the Rileys starring Kristen Stewart and James Gandolfini.
Cardholder Experiences and Usage Promotions :
For the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa, Visa has created the Go 2010 Football Experience to provide fans with unique access and once-in-a-lifetime experiences which include a pre-match Stadium Tour, viewing the team warm-up by the pitch, and a half-time pitch-side tour. More than 500 Go 2010 Football Experiences have been offered to Visa cardholders worldwide.
Visa has also introduced customisable usage promotions in core markets that provide Visa cardholders with the chance to win tickets to the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa every time they use their Visa cards.
FIFA World Cup Sponsorship Activation: In the lead up to the Fifa World Cup, Visa provides financial institutions and merchant partners throughout the world with Fifa-themed creative and marketing materials to enhance their card-marketing efforts, help drive business and achieve corporate brand objectives. {#}
Labels: Fans
posted @ 1:50 PM,
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Salman and John
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
It's a well-known fact that Salman Khan is quite gung ho about the FIFA World Cup and is going to be visitng South Africa around the time. Of course, he's going to make it at various games in various cities. A sport enthusiast himself, it's no wonder that Sallu, who is the first to be a part of any charity soccer match is excited about the international event.
Now, what's interesting is that actor John Abraham, too, is expected to be at the football matches. After doing a movie on soccer titled 'Goal' for the sheer love of the game, John, we are told is keen to watch the event real time and in real space!
Now if the two rivals - Salman and John - come together in the same box, we wonder what they'd do. For starters, let's hope they're supporting the same team. That could be a good bonding point. But if not, this rivalry is only going to get worse and the plot is going to thicken. Let's wait and watch who will score the goal in this match between animosity and friendship!
Labels: Fans, FIFA, John, Salman
posted @ 9:41 AM,
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Fifa to factor in SA fans
Friday, January 15, 2010
The complicated online ticketing system has been blamed for poor ticket sales for Bafana Bafana's matches and those of other African teams.
New Safa chief executive Leslie Sedibe has said that the ticketing process would be discussed with Fifa at a meeting scheduled for later this month.
"One thing we need to do is identify a simpler way of ensuring they [South African fans] have access to the tickets. We are meeting Fifa before the end of this month, where the issue of tickets will also be discussed," Sedibe said.
Sedibe said he was disappointed that most World Cup tickets bought in the country were for teams like England, Germany, Italy, and Argentina.
This after Local Organising Committee chief executive Danny Jordaan announced this week that tickets for Bafana's matches were not even in the top 10 rankings. If the trend continues, the country would be the first host nation in the 80-year history of the Fifa World Cup not to top the ticket sales list.
As with the Confederations Cup event last June, pressure is mounting on the organising committee to persuade Fifa to allow over-the-counter ticket sales, which suits South African fans who are used to that ticketing process.
While Fifa will open over-the-counter sales to fans by April 15 at official ticketing centres in each of the host cities, it might be too late.
Chairman of the Fifa ticketing sub-committee Horst Schmidt said: "It seems that in South Africa this method [over-the-counter] has a higher importance than it did four years ago [in Germany]."
He did not, however, say that the over-the-counter sales would begin sooner.
Joe Mcgluwa, the Independent Democrats spokesman for sport, said: "It's as simple as bringing services to the people. Surely we have reached desperate times? Fifa needs to take into consideration that the majority of this country's population cannot access the same mediums as used in previous World Cups."
He added: "The organisers really need to be more tolerant and understand that this is the first time in the continent that such a massive event is being staged, so as a developing nation all possible resources will need to be used to carry out a successful World Cup."
Schmidt said, however: "The South African market requires us to take into account that a lot of people do not have access to the Internet or have credit cards, so Fifa added the opportunity to apply for tickets through FNB branches where tickets can be bought with various payments including cash."
He added: "It is true that at previous events the host nation's team tickets were usually the most popular within that particular host city, but we do hope that in the next few days South Africans make their applications to support the hosts."
Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper said that country's football federation has sold only about 1000 of the 21,000 tickets for the three group games against Australia, Ghana and Serbia.
The English and Dutch associations, which traditionally have large followings, have also not managed to sell their ticket allocation.
The Dutch, who have sold between 2000 and 3000 tickets per group match but had reckoned up to 10,000 would be sold, have now asked Fifa to extend the deadline.
Fifa's media officer, Delia Fischer, said that right now there was "no chance" of an extension for national football associations to sell tickets. She did reveal that meetings were scheduled to discuss the matter further.
posted @ 10:54 AM,
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FIFA 10' Kicks Excitement Up a Notch
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Soccer's not one of my favorite sports. Actually, it's not even in the top five after basketball, football, baseball, badminton and bowling. Soccer's probably like seventh or eighth, depending on where I'm placing horseshoes.
That's how I know Electronic Arts' "FIFA 10" is one heck of a futbol game.
It sucked me in more than "Madden." Its gameplay is the equal of the seminal "NHL '10," and only a few matches in I was screaming "Gooooal" louder than the overly excitable announcers on Telemundo.
I also realized I have a lot to learn about professional soccer. The extent of my knowledge was that Landon Donovan and David Beckham play for the L.A. Galaxy in Major League Soccer — and that there's a team actually named "The Red Bulls."
So, FIFA's glut of leagues from across the world came as a shock. Not that they exist, but that all of them are in the game. I started to get just as excited over a Manchester United vs. Manchester City Premier League match as I would over any NFL showdown.
Told you this game was good.
The manager mode is great, and recalls the glory days of "Madden's" owner modes. The entire team is at your fingertips, and your bosses judge you harshly and may fire you if goals aren't accomplished. It's up to you to put a winning squad on the pitch and keep everybody happy.
The controls are also spot-on this year. By pulling the left trigger and using the right stick, a Pele-like assortment of moves are literally at your fingertips. Using the right moves at the right time with the right player to score a goal gives a sense of satisfaction few games match.
The graphics and overall presentation are what keep the game from being a classic. In some ways I understand why they're lackluster. There are so many players, so many stadiums, it's not like everything can have Sistine Chapel-like detail. The pitch is a big place, so the camera has to be zoomed out so you can see everyone. I get that. Still, when I lined up for a corner kick, the immersion factor drops a notch because of the bland players and surroundings.
Another gripe I have again seems to be unavoidable given the nature of the sport, but it's an issue nonetheless. "FIFA 10" automatically switches you to the closest defender to the ball. Oftentimes you'll be taking a great angle for a tackle only to have the game switch to another player at the last second.
However, it wouldn't surprise me if EA spruced up the atmosphere and fixed the minor control quirks for next year. Until then, "FIFA 10" is the best soccer game out there. {#}
posted @ 9:56 AM,
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FIFA Fans in South Africa
Monday, January 4, 2010
Every South African is being asked what they are going to do to welcome the world to South Africa during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, according to the Daily News newspaper in the coastal city of Durban.
Danny Jordaan, the chief executive of FIFA's local organizing committee in South Africa, told the newspaper that for five years the country had worked hard to prepare for the World Cup.
Five of the 10 football stadiums for the tournament had been built from scratch and plans for the support infrastructure were on track.
"What is needed is greater public enthusiasm... the challenge now is to mobilise the nation," he said.
The country needed South Africans in their workplaces and their communities "to stand up and decide what they are doing to welcome the world ... every South African must ask: 'What am I doing to be a good host?' "
More than 15 000 volunteers from 52 countries would soon be selected and begin training to help the country deliver the games and host the multitudes of visitors, he said.
From now on people must "play their part" in ensuring that we "come together as one nation to deliver the best Fifa World Cup ever".
The successful hosting of the event was the responsibility of all South Africans.
"This is the year when as a nation we will open our doors, hearts and sporting spirits to the world. This is our time. This is our year."
Jordaan's spokesman, Rich Mkhondo, said: "There are many ways that people can help. Are they learning Spanish and French so that they can greet visitors? What about volunteering to be a marshal at a public viewing area?" .
Deputy mayor of Durban Logie Naidoo said that since the final draw at the beginning of December "you can already feel the excitement and vibe".
He was heartened by the fact that he had already seen multi-racial audiences at the Durban's massive Moses Mabhida Stadium.
"This is an indication that we are uniting as a nation around soccer and preparing for 2010."
Durban would be launching a publicity campaign to promote the event and the city, and South African Tourism would be holding a celebration at the 100-days-to-go mark (in March) "to get the whole country involved".
More than three million people will attend the 64 matches in the tournament, of whom 450 000 will be from overseas.
More than 300 broadcasters and 18 000 journalists will cover the games, which will be watched by a cumulative audience of 26 billion around the world. {#}
Labels: Fans, FIFA, South Africa
posted @ 8:40 AM,
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