Stellenbosch

With only a bit more than 150 days until kick-off, excitement for the 2010 Soccer World Cup is building across the country, and Stellenbosch is no exception.

Although the town has yet to be chosen as a host town by one of the qualifying teams, Stellenbosch University Sport Performance Institute (SUSPI) CEO Gugu Ntuli explains there are still numerous reasons to be proud of the town’s campaign, and to be optimistic about the gains to be made during June and July next year.

Speaking at a morning lecture forming part of the 2009 ’BoschFest, Ntuli said the University’s local awareness campaign is the envy of other South African universities. Furthermore, SUSPI is looking into the possibility of hosting a country’s fan base as an alternative to a team hosting partnership, should no team choose to train at Stellenbosch.

Either way, Ntuli says roughly 450 000 fans are expected to visit the country during the four week tournament, and that 70% of these fans are expected to pass through the Cape Town region for leisure activity. In other words, the region could benefit tremendously from the tourist traffic alone.

Perhaps the most exciting university-driven initiative, however, is the focus on the legacy to be left after official 2010 activities. The development at Lentelus, for instance, includes a number of new soccer pitches to be built. Artificial turf, grass, beach soccer and Futsal courts (for five-a-side soccer) are all part of these plans, creating a diverse facility that will aim to encourage sports development in the area.

As for hosting a team, Ntuli said that many of the countries SUSPI originally targeted play all or most of their matches at stadiums far from the Stellenbosch area, making it impractical for them to consider training here.

When it comes to attracting other teams, Ntuli is positive, but hesitant. “Stellenbosch is a great destination,” she adds, “But at the moment the weather and altitude is against us.” She was referring to the region’s wet winter weather, as well as the current debate around the effect of changing altitudes on players’ performances.

Whatever happens, it’s clear the region is bound to benefit from SUSPI’s current and future initiatives in and around Stellenbosch.

Ref: http://blogs.sun.ac.za/news/2010/01/04/stellenbosch-ready-for-2010-and-beyond/