The draw for the qualifying round of the 2010 World Cup will take place
in November next year in Durban.
Khoza has issued a warning to Cape Town
Over a six-day period from November 27, the city will also
play host to a series of meetings by officials from the world governing
body Fifa to discuss preparations for the tournament.
Local organising committee (LOC) chairman Irvin Khoza told reporters at
a regular briefing that around 3,000 delegates, including Fifa top brass
and national team coaches, are expected to attend the event in Durban.
Meanwhile, Cape Town has ben warned that it would be deprived of a role
in the 2010 World Cup if it delays the construction of a new stadium.
"The LOC will not tolerate any delay. If there is any delay in Cape
Town, Cape Town is out," Khoza said.
South Africa's tourist hub is due to host one of the two semi-finals at
a yet-to-be built stadium.
However, residents are considering launching a legal challenge to the
decision to grant planning permission for a site which is currently home
to municipal pitches and a public golf course.
While locals have accused the LOC of trying to blackmail them into backing
down over their threat of court action, organisers say that construction
work on the 68,000-seat arena must be up and running early next year.
"Without withholding anybody's democratic rights, we have to deal
with a very strict timeframe and we don't have time to be engaged in litigation,"
Khoza added.
Khoza did not respond to a question on how the organisers would proceed
if Cape Town was frozen out and an LOC source acknowledged there was no
"Plan B."
LOC chief executive Danny Jordaan said negotations were ongoing with the
Cape Town municipality and expected an announcement would be made later
this month.
"The city council wants the semi-final in Cape Town. The debate is
much broader now," he said at the regular press briefing.
South Africa is expecting nearly half a million foreign tourists to visit
during the World Cup and Cape Town has traditionally drawn many more visitors
than other cities.
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13 Dec 2006.
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