World Cup 2010 Stadium Guide - Venues in South Africa
There are ten World Cup 2010 venues for what will be the biggest sporting event ever held in South Africa. The World Cup 2010 final itself will be played at the Johannesberg Stadium, known as Soccer City.
Johannesburg Stadium - Soccer City: Capacity - 94,700.
This venue is also known as the First National Bank Stadium. It has the third largest capacity in Africa. The stadium has been renovated for 2010 World Cup, the new design was inspired by traditional African pottery. The stadium will hold the opening match, four more first-round matches, one second-round match, one quarter-final and the World Cup Final of 2010.
Rustenburg - Royal Bafokeng Stadium: Capacity - 42,000.
Originally a rugby stadium. The current capacity of the stadium has been increased to 42,000 for the 2010 World Cup finals. The Royal Bakofeng Stadium will also have a new electronic scoreboard and a new floodlighting system. This stadium has been host to many South African Premier Soccer League games, despite Rustenburg not having a Premier League Soccer Team.
Polokwane - Peter Mokaba Stadium: Capacity - 40,000.
The stadium is one of five new stadiums that has been built for the 2010 World Cup and it will host 4 matches in total. The initial plan had been to upgrade the old city stadium, but then the South African Government and FIFA decided to build a brand new one at significant cost! The Peter Mokaba Stadium will be 2 miles away from the city centre. The stadium was named after Peter Mokaba, a political activist during apartheid.
Nelspruit - Mbombela Stadium: Capacity - 46,000.
The Mbombela Stadium is a new 46,000 seat stadium built specifically for the 2010 World Cup. It will be one of the ten venues for the FIFA World Cup 2010. It will be a multi-purpose stadium and will after the World Cup it will host rugby matches. The stadium is approximately 4 miles from the city centre of Nelspruit.
Bloemfontein - Free State Stadium: Capacity - 48,000.
The Free State stadium hosted group and quarter-final matches at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations in 1996 and the Rugby World Cup in 1995. It is also the home of Premier Soccer League team, Bloemfontein Celtics. The stadium has been upgraded and it has a seating capacity of 48,000.
Port Elizabeth - Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium: Capacity - 49,500.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium is a state of the art stadium and will host both first and second round matches of the World Cup. The city did not have its own have a football dedicated stadium and all international matches were played previously at the Eastern Province rugby team's ground.
Ellis Park Stadium: Capacity - 60,000.
The famous Ellis Park stadium is the home of Orlando Pirates FC, a club in the Premier Soccer League. In 1995, they were the first South African team to win the CAF African Club Championship. It was constructed in 1928, and until the late 80s it was used just for rugby. Then professional and National teams began to play regularly here and the stadium has hosted teams such as Brazil, Arsenal and Manchester United.
Cape Town - Green Point Stadium: Capacity - 40,000.
Another brand new stadium, purposely built for the 2010 World Cup. It is located at Green Point, at the juncture between Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean. During the World Cup, it will host five first round matches, one second round match, one quarter final and one semi-final.
Durban - Moses Mabhida Stadium: Capacity - 70,000.
This new stadium will be part of Durban's King Park sporting complex that will also. include a variety of different sports. It has a seating capacity of 70,000, and the design of the stadium will be characterized by two large archways above the stadium roof.
Pretoria - Loftus Versfeld Stadium: Capacity - 45,000.
Over the years the stadium has undergone various name changes, but locals have always referred to it as Loftus Versfeld Stadium. Minimal upgrading only was required for the World Cup, where it will host first and second round matches. This was the ground where South Africa's recorded their historic 1-0 win over Sweden, their first ever victory over a European team.
The stadium was named after Robert Owen Loftus Versfeld, the founder of organized sports in Pretoria. Through the years the stadium has undergone various name changes as sponsors came and went, though locals have always referred to the stadium as Loftus Versfeld. From 11 June 1998 to 4 February 2003 the stadium was officially named Minolta Loftus after Minolta had become the stadium's name sponsor. Sponsorship was taken over by security giant Securicor, who announced the name Securicor Loftus on 5 February 2003. On the 1st of September 2005 the renaming process went full circle when cellular provider Vodacom, taking over sponsorship from Securicor, renamed the stadium back to the original Loftus Versfeld.
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