The night was foggy and the environs of the Royal Bafokeng Stadium poorly lit. We had just finished a nightmare journey to reach the Eng land v U SA clash at last summer's World Cup on-time, though little did we know the absurdly long drive to Rustenburg from Johannesburg would be as nothing compared to the never-ending story that was the trip back. Two hours after the final whistle we were still waiting to leave the car park, or rather the strip of wasteland commandeered to house the many vehicles used by visiting fans at the 42,000 venue; Rustenburg lacked a railway station. What was FIFA thinking handing the World Cup to a place like this, I thought. A veritable nightmare for visiting fans, by some margin the most inconvenient of the six World Cup finals I had attended. Then I got my answer - a military helicopter, searchlights beaming through the gloom, hovered in to land. The doors opened and a posse of security ushered US Vice-President Joe Biden into the stadium. Biden doubtless had a five-star experience of the W orld Cup like all FIFA dignitaries did, and the TV feed did its job in pumping the games into people's homes across the globe. But what about the real fans, those of us who had shelled out to be there in the South African winter in person. Did anyone care about our experience of the World Cup? Talking of winter, and in South Africa the thermometer dipped below zero on many nights, a winter World Cup in the Middle East in 2022 looks ever likelier now the International Players' Union has come out in favour of it. FIFPRO has added to calls from Franz Beckenbauer and Michel Platini, endorsed by Sepp Blatter and Jerome Valcke, for the Qatar tournament to be shifted to the European winter months, presumably January when the African Nations Cup takes place to avoid th at continent's oppressive summer heat. "Tourists are advised not to travel to Qatar in the summer months," said FIFPRO's spokesman Tijs Tummers. "Inhabitants of Qatar leave the country en masse during this period." Tummers went on to note how supporters would suffer in the 50C midday heat "The summer months in Qatar do not provide suitable conditions for a festival of football." Did someone mention supporters? Those quaint old aficionados who pay an arm and a leg to support multi-million pound stars across the world. Since when were they a cons ideration for the game's decision-makers in Switzerland? South Africa was a challenge for them: The distances between venues was vast, the public transport next to non-existent and the road network wholly inadequate for a show of the World Cup's magnitude. The clogged one-lane highway in and out of Rustenburg will live long in this European fan's memory. Brazil, the World Cup host in 2014, has equally vast distances and poor transport options compared to recent European and Far-Eastern host nation s, plus a crime problem at least as worrying as South Africa's. 2018 host Russia has more enormous distances to cover in addition to a train network below Western European standards, problems shared by Euro 2012 hosts Poland and Ukraine. And then there is Qatar. The fans, the lifeblood of the game after all, as it is they who provide the lion's share of club revenues in their ticket purchases, have become the last thought, if considered at all, by the game's decision makers. What visiting this summer's World Cup finals, and witnessing Russia and Qatar win the right to host future ones confirmed to me was that TV rights, sponsor revenue, FIFA politics, moneyed suitors and geo-political pulls have left the poor fans, the real ones that is, facing more mammoth journeys and myriad inconveniences in their unwavering, yet increasingly unrequited love for the Beautiful Game. (c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile Tags World Cup Pens World Cup Posters Euro 2012 football

We are currently working with Hyundai on their upcoming FIFA World Cup campaign. To spearhead this campaign they’re running a pretty amazing competition. For a chance to win an all inclusive trip to the World Cup (flights, hotel, tickets), football fans around the UK are being invited to upload a video of themselves via Facebook - answering the simple question ‘What Would You Trade?’ It’s best explained with this short video here: Tags World Cup Hyundai

The 30 referees and their assistants for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa have been chosen. There are 4 referees and their assistants from Africa, 4 from CONCACAF, 6 from South America, 2 from Oceania, 4 from Asia and 10 from UEFA. Joel Aguilar (El Salvador) William Torres, Francisco Zumba Khalil Al Ghamdi (Saudi Arabia) Hassan Kamranifar (Iran), Saleh Mohamed Al Marzouqi (UAE) Carlos Amarilla (Paraguay) Ruiz Roa, Nicolas Yegros Benito Archundia (Mexico) Hector Vegara (Canada), Marvin Torrentera Hector Baldassi (Argentina) Ricardo Casas, Herman Maidana Carlos Batres (Guatemala) Leonel Leal (Costa Rica), Carlos Pastrana (Honduras) Mohamed Benouza (Algeria) Nasser Abdel Nabi (Egypt), Maamer Chabane Olegario Benquerenca (Portugal) Jose Manuel Silva Cardinal, Bertino Miranda Massimo Bussaca (Switzerland) Matthias Arnet, Francesco Buragina Koman Coulibaly (Mali) Redouane Achik (Morocco), Maniel Candido (Angola) Jerome Damon (South Africa) Celestin Ntagungira (Rwanda), Enock Molefe Franck De Bleeckere (Belgium) Peter Hermans, Walter Vromans Martin Hansson (Sweden) Henrik Andren, Stefan Wittberg Michael Hester (New Zealand) Jan-Hendrik Hintz, Tevita Makasini (Tonga) Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan) Rafael Ilyasov, Bahadyr Kochkarov (Kyrgyzstan) Victor Kassai (Hungary) Gabor Eros, Tibor Vamos Stephane Lannoy (France) Eric Dansault, Laurent Ugo Jorge Larrionda (Uruguay) Pablo Fandino, Maurico Espinosa Eddy Maillet (Seychelles) Evarist Menkouande (Cameroon), Bechir Hassani (Tunisia) Subkhiddin Mohd Salleh (Malaysia) Yuxin Mu (China), Jeffrey Gek Pheng (Singapore) Yuichi Nishimura (Japan) Toru Sagara, Jeong Hae-sang (South Korea) Peter O'Leary (New Zealand) Brent Best, Matthew Taro (Solomon Islands) Marco Rodriguez (Mexico) Jose Luis Camaego, Alberto Morin Roberto Rosetti (Italy) Paolo Calcagno, Stefano Ayroldi Oscar Ruiz (Colombia) Abraham Gonzalez, Humberto Clavijo Carlos Eugenio Simon (Brazil) Altemir Hausmann, Roberto Braatz Wolfgang Stark (Germany) Jan Salver, Mike Pickel Alberto Undiano (Spain) Fermin Martinez, Juan Carlos Yuste Howard Webb (England) Darren Cann, Michael Mullarkey Tags World Cup Pens World Cup football

David Beckham looks set to miss out on the 2010 World Cup after tearing his Achilles tendon playing in A.C. Milan's 1-0 win over Chievo in Serie A today. The England international pulled up in the 87th minute at San Siro today and hobbled off, claiming he heard his tendon snap and felt his calf muscles spasm. He was carried off on a stretcher, with the nightmare of missing the World Cup unfolding before his eyes. Recovery from an Achilles rupture to being able to run is from 6-8 weeks following the operation Beckham will have tomorrow, but the proximity of the finals in under three months means a call-up of an unfit Beckham for the World Cup is now extremely unlikely. The most probable scenario is of Beckham missing the World Cup but making a return to MLS later this season. The will-he, won't-he saga of Beckham's once unlikely journey to a fourth finals had looked set to end happily with a place in Fabio Capello's final squad, but his road to South Africa now seems to have finally run out of gas. His attempt to break Peter Shilton's England appearances record also looks to have bitten the dust, ten games short. Perhaps the most celebrity of England footballers has even played his last game for the Three Lions. Becks' World Cup debut age 23 in France '98 was a colourful one - after initially having been dropped in favour of Teddy Sheringham, the young Manchester United star played a leading role in England's campaign, supplying the pass for Michael Owen's wonder goal against Argentina before getting himself sent off for retaliating against Diego Simeone. Beckham's expulsion forced England into a rearguard action for the rest of the second-round clash, lost eventually on penalties and coach Glenn Hoddle blamed him afterwards for the defeat. Four years later and Beckham, recovered from the tsunami of tabloid opprobrium following France '98, arrived in Japan a soccer idol, especially in the Far East. But a broken metatarsal shortly before the finals meant the England captain was not in peak condition. He got his revenge on Argentina with a winning penalty, but Brazil's silky skills got the better of a prosaic and unimaginative England in the quarter-finals. Beckham scored the winner in the second round of Germany 2006, a set piece against Ecuador , but his third World Cup finals ended again at the last eight stage, as Portugal beat another solid but uninspiring Three Lions team forged by Sven-Goran Eriksson, this time on spot-kicks. Tearfully resigning as captain , it looked like the World Cup had seen the last of Becks as he jetted off for the sunny climbs of Los Angeles and Major League Soccer. Steve McClaren's first act as England manager was to telephone him to say farewell but before long McClaren's obvious frailty in the job saw Beckham back from the dead in the national team fold. Now shorn of what little speed he once had, Beckham concentrated on his dead ball delivery and arching crosses, providing a unique attacking option from the right wing. Becks' prowess as an impact substitute with his penetrative deliveries ensured continuous call-ups under Capello, his former coach at Real Madrid and at the age of 34 looked set to have a final World Cup swansong, if not a starting role. His tears as he left the San Siro field today were as intense as when he left the field against Portugal, both times believing he had played his last World Cup game. This time, it looks like he has. (c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile Tags Soccer News football

Brazil 2:0 Republic of Ireland Emirates Stadium, London 40,000 Fabio Capello was in the stands at Arsenal tonight, one of no doubt an army of World Cup team spies on hand to watch the South American giants and joint favourites for the World Cup. The England coach will have left Ashburton Grove pondering just what his team can do in South Africa to defeat what, along with Spain, is the most impressive team going into the tournament. Ireland , in their first outing since the trauma of Thierry Henry's handball in Paris wrecked their African dream, were the fall guys for the samba storm. The Irish started confidently though and were unlucky not to steal the lead when Julio Cesar made a fingertip save to deny Kevin Doyle a quarter of an hour in. Robbie Keane, back from injury, and Damien Duff on the left were real irritants to Brazil 's muscular back four. There are worse teams than Ireland who will be in South Africa this summer, and few better fans. For Giovanni Trapattoni, who was not his usual jolly self post-match following a sobering evening, there is a manageable Euro 2012 qualifying group to look forward to, with Russia and Slovakia the main challengers. Ireland had battled well from the off, but with a minute left until the interval, disaster struck as Robinho received a pass from Maicon in what looked a decidedly offside position on the right wing. No flag appeared and the Santos star's whipped-in cross was tragically diverted by Keith Andrews's outstretched leg past his own goalkeeper to give Brazil the interval advantage. After the break, the South Americans were just too hot to handle, driving a fiery wedge down the middle of the Irish half, with Kaka once more the prime instigator. Robinho seemed to be enjoying himself immensely on his return to England, scoring one, missing a sitter and watching another in the net disallowed for offside. For a while the Irish looked like whipping boys and a rout was even on the cards. Daniel Alves came on and hit the side netting with his first foray when he might have scored, while substitute striker Grafite , who plays in Germany for Wolfsburg, was also a real danger in attack. Michel Bastos , in only his third appearance for his country, gave an assured performance with his left-sided link play and could yet be an unheralded star in South Africa. The killer second arrived in the 76th minute when a flowing forward charge involving Kaka and Grafite let Robinho slot coolly under Shay Given with a right-footed finish. The Emirates was only two-thirds full, thanks to tickets priced more than England v Egypt the following night, no doubt to pay for this stop on 'Brazil's World Tour'. That said, the 40,000 present were largely pro-Brazil and generated some noise once the selecao really got into their stride after the break. On tonight's showing, Brazil look likely contenders for the crown in South Africa, with perhaps only Spain capable of upsetting them when they are on top form. Dunga 's pragmatic approach found room for Adriano as the main striker tonight in Luis Fabiano 's injured absence, but the former World Cup winner apparently has shut the door to another veteran hero - Ronaldinho . Repeated questions at the press conference afterwards elicited the same response - that every player has had their chance to impress and there are no practice games left to stake a claim. "We have the team already built and decided," Dunga told journalists. Ditto no entry for Milan teammate Alexandre Pato , frozen out but aged only 20, nine years Ronaldinho's junior and with years left in him. Ronaldinho's absence in South Africa will disappoint many a fan and marketing man but the determination in Dunga's face was evident. "We have been working three and a half years." Republic of Ireland: Given, Kelly, St. Ledger, McShane, Kilbane, Lawrence (McCarthy 69), Whelan (Gibson 56), Andrews, Duff (McGeady 56), Doyle (Best 78), Keane. Subs Not Used: Westwood, Brian Murphy, Foley, Wilson, Stokes, Cunningham, Long.

Choose from one-day or multiple day safari-style tours of South Africa while in the country for the 2010 World Cup in June and July this summer. Day Tours - Hluhluwe Imfolozi Game Reserve, St Lucia Estuary, Durban City Half Day Tour, Anglo-Zulu War Tour, Zulu Culture Tour. Overnight Tours in South Africa - Sani Pass, San Rock Art, Sun City & Pilanesberg National Park Tour, Champagne Valley Central Drakensberg & Rock Art Tour, Tanzania & Kenya Tour. Contact us to advertise your property for rent for FREE or low cost. You choose the plan to suit your budget. Tags World Cup South Africa

4000 tents available in a very secure tented town near four Soccer World Cup stadiums. Each tent is a four man tent which sleeps only up to two people for comfort. Mattress, pillow and electric lighting will be provided. Extra bedding can be purchased at the on-site 24hour shop or bring your own. In the village: big screen TV’s, transport to and from stadiums as well as airports, live entertainment, beer gardens, kiosks, ATM, food stalls with a huge variety of foods, curio shop, clean ablutions, etc. Contact us to advertise your property for rent for FREE or low cost. You choose the plan to suit your budget. Tags World Cup football

The draw for the 2010 World Cup is complete. A couple of the groups contend for the "Group of Death" label. Group D with Germany, Australia, Serbia and Ghana and Group G with Brazil, Portugal, Ivory Coast and North Korea. England got lucky paired with USA, Algeria and Slovenia in Group C. Hosts South Africa have a tough draw but will remain hopeful home advantage can lift them out of the group stage. Group A: *South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France Group B: *Argentina, South Korea, Nigeria, Greece Group C: *England, USA, Algeria, Slovenia Group D: *Germany, Australia, Ghana, Serbia Group E: *Netherlands, Japan, Cameroon, Denmark Group F: *Italy, New Zealand, Paraguay, Slovakia Group G: *Brazil, North Korea, Ivory Cost, Portugal Group H: *Spain, Honduras, Chile, Switzerland * seeded teams Tags Soccer News football

The World Cup 2010 seeds for South Africa are: Argentina Brazil England Germany Italy The Netherlands South Africa Spain Tags World Cup football