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 It’s a question that has been asked since South Africa won the right to host the World Cup back in 2005 and will probably continue to be asked well after the final whistle to end the tournament on July 11: What are the benefits of hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup?
It is a question that has polarised opinion among South Africans.
It is still not clear how much the government of South Africa has spent in preparing for the tournament: the official US$4.277 billion (R33 billion) or the rumoured US$6.5 billion (R50 billion). Some look to financial and material gains while others prefer to look at the achievement of the country in staging an event of such magnitude in the first place despite doubters.
The 373,000 estimated World Cup tourists spent about R8.8-billion in the duration of the tournament.
There is no doubt that sport has played an important part in unifying the people of South Africa, a country that for hundreds of years was polarised by racial disharmony.
Who can forget the iconic moment in 1995 when the then-president Nelson Mandela - wearing rugby captain François Pienaar’s jersey - lifted the Rugby World Cup Trophy?
Over the years, South Africa has gone on to stage several high profile sports events such as the Africa Cup of Nations, the seventh All-Africa Games in 1999, 2003’s Cricket World Cup and the Twenty-20 Cricket World Cup in 2007.
But none are as significant or powerful as the FIFA World Cup. The sport provides a powerful unifying tool in a country that regularly exhibits racial brittleness. The thousands of people of all races who turned out at support marches for the national team bear this out. So much was the outpouring of nationalism and support for the Bafana Bafana that in major retail chains replica jerseys of the national team ran out months before the tournament actually started - this with a team containing just one white fringe player.
Standard Bank chief economist Goolam Ballim points out that the World Cup was an investment decision in the long-term growth of South Africa. If this investment pays off, it has the potential to elevate South Africa's longer-term growth rate, which will mean more jobs over time.
Ballim believes that the long-term benefits of the World Cup will be immeasurable and that a successful hosting of the event would leave foreign visitors and media with a positive image of the country so that we see growth not only in our tourism, but also in trade and investment flows.
"If you see already the visibility of South Africa on the global stage, you realise that this is a marketing opportunity without precedent," says Ballim.
Possibly, the biggest benefit from the World Cup is the investment in networking infrastructure - namely telecommunications, roads, rail and power which would have otherwise taken decades to achieve.
Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille points out that the World Cup has been ‘fantastic for nation-building and for our self-belief.
"The World Cup is not just about showing off picture-perfect game parks and traditional dancers. Far more importantly, we will be showing off South Africa as a highly modern, technologically capable, cutting-edge country. That's the real golden opportunity.
"And it's a triumph for a developing African nation,” she said.
The real benefit of Africa’s first World Cup will be in maintaining the united front created by the tournament. South Africans must not shelve their sense of national worth and patriotism along with the Bafana Bafana jerseys, flags and vuvuzelas after the final whistle has gone.
PULL-QUOTE
The World Cup is not just about showing off picture-perfect game parks and traditional dancers. Far more importantly, we will be showing off South Africa as a highly modern, technologically capable, cutting-edge country. That's the real golden opportunity.
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