Cape Town Hosts 2010 Final Draw

The Mother City gears up to host World Cup decider

As the world's best football nations fight through gruelling qualifying campaigns to make it to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, one of the world's most picturesque cities stands ready to warmly welcome them.

FIFA has confirmed that Cape Town has officially been awarded the prestigious event where the final 32 teams taking part and the groups they play in will be announced.

Cape Town mayor Dan Plato and Chief Executive Officer of the 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South Africa (OC), Dr Danny Jordaan have officially signed the service level agreement for Cape Town to host the tournament's Final Draw at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on 4 December 2009.

The Draw, which is expected to be broadcast in almost 200 countries and attended by about 2 000 guests and around 800 media representatives, will determine the match order for the world's top 32 teams who will contest Africa's first FIFA World Cup from 11 June to 11 July 2010.

The 2010 World Cup Final Draw is a major opportunity for Cape Town to show the world what it’s made of. The event will be watched by billions of people across the globe and will substantially raise the city’s profile in the international arena.

The service level agreement, which sets out the roles and responsibilities for the two parties in staging the event, was signed in a typical Cape Town manner. It was only fitting that the famous Cape Town Minstrels provided the musical accompaniment of Welcome to Cape Town during the signing of the 2010 agreement.

Executive Mayor Dan Plato said excitement and anticipation amongst the residents of Cape Town was starting to mount as the Final Draw and the 2010 FIFA World Cup approaches.

"We can't wait for the fourth of December and we can't wait for 2010 to welcome all the visitors and spectators to our city. Cape Town is ready and prepared to deliver a memorable Final Draw and to provide unique visitor experiences for visitors and the soccer fraternity alike." the mayor said.

Jordaan said the Final Draw in the Mother City would capture the imagination of the football world and would be a week-long event featuring a number of activities to get the excitement flowing.

"The Final Draw in Cape Town is a critical date and an important milestone for us. And we could not find a better city in which to host it. Cape Town's a wonderful location and its Green Point stadium is a landmark, one of the best in the world," Jordaan added.

For more exciting news and more up to date information on the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa browse our Sport & FIFA 2010 Section.

To keep up-to-date with 2010 World Cup developments subscribe to our Editor’s Picks Newsletter and follow us on Twitter @ wcsoccer2010.

Interested in seeing where the stadiums, fanparks and other interesting 2010 locations are situated? Download our innovative Google Earth 2010 map.