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Johannesburg - South Africa's 2010 World Cup Local Organising Committee on Tuesday received a timely "Xmas box" in excess of R2bn from Fifa as they completed their activities for the year with a board meeting at Soccer City in Johannesburg.
LOC CEO Danny Jordaan explained that the money was an advance from the world body towards costs for next year's Confederations Cup and the 2010 World Cup and would help off-set the increased expenditure on the new stadiums resulting from the current world-wide economic upheaval.
Jordaan, however, was at pains in giving the assurance that the four Confederations Cup stadiums and the 10 earmarked for the World Cup would all be completed in accordance with their deadlines.
But this did not satisfy one journalist who asked for a more detailed explanation of the LOC's activities and queried the fact that certain deadlines earmarked for the December 1, were unlikely to be met.
"We are the press," he added. "We are entitled to all the facts and figures."
"The press?" replied Jordaan. "That's o'kay. I thought you said you were the bank." Fifa secretary-general Jerome Valcke explained that the four Confederations Cup stadiums, Ellis Park, Loftus, the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg and the Free State Rugby Stadium in Bloemfontein were already in a playable state, with the pitches and seating up to the stipulated standards.
"All that remains to be done," he added, "are such minor matters as the up-dating of the lifts at Loftus and improved carpeting."
Valcke said that hospitality packages for the 2010 World Cup to the tune of R1.15bn had been sold - an amount that is in excess of that at a similar stage before the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
Fifa have also completed negotiatoins for worldwide television rights for the 2010 World Cup - estimated to net more than R30bn for the world body.
The Fifa secretary-general revealed that more than 30 000 hits on the internet had been received since booking for the June 14 to 28 Confederations Cup had been launched earlier in the week - but it was too early to estimate the exact number of tickets that have been sold.
- Reuters