A consortium of the Sail Group and Stade de France was named the preferred bidder to operate the multi-purpose Green Point stadium in Cape Town after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Stade de France is an 80 000-seater stadium, one of the most successful and lucrative facilities of this kind in the world, while Sail is the largest sport management company in South Africa.

The City of Cape Town will now negotiate a contract with the consortium by the end of October 2008. Once a contract is signed the operator will become involved before 2010 to ensure detailed design, planning and a seamless handover from FIFA at the end of the 2010 tournament.

"Finding an experienced operator was the most crucial element of this joint bidding process and we believe Sail and Stade de France are an impressive team with an exciting vision for the stadium," says Mike Marsden, Executive Director for Service Delivery Integration.

"They offer extensive experience and a successful track record in sport marketing, stadium operations and events programmes.This combination of international and local expertise is exactly what we were hoping for. We are confident of concluding a comprehensive agreement with them, "said Marsden.

A bid was received from Investec Bank for both the naming and operator rights for the stadium but the bid did not meet the tender requirements.

The City is of the view that it would be more beneficial to offer the naming rights of the stadium once the operator is in place with a defined events programme.

Molo Says: "The countdown to the 2010 Soccer World Cup is steadily ticking away!

Construction is happening at full speed at the Green Point Stadium, and the Green Point Stadium Visitors Centre offers a unique preview with its stadium tours.

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