Bessie Mazibuko, 59, gave up church for football on Sunday to join a stadium of buzzing fans for the kick-off of South Africa's first Confederations Cup match.

"I didn't even go to church today — I was so happy to come here," the clerk told AFP while having her face painted with the South African flag for the tournament regarded as a dry run for next year's first African World Cup.

"We want to dance. You can't dance in the house. We want to just enjoy because it's the opening day," said Mazibuko, who lives in the sprawling township of Soweto on the outskirts of Johannesburg.

The 59-year-old was one of the first fans to filter into the 52 500-seater Ellis Park stadium on Sunday amid final touches for the opening ceremony and match kick-off between the hosts and Iraq.

Wearing zany football outfits of refashioned miners helmets and carrying uniquely local trumpets known as vuvuzelas, the arrival of the opening match after five years of preparation was a proud moment for South Africans.

"It's finally here. It's happening," said Lesego Madingwane, a 25-year-old engineer from Johannesburg.

"This is a curtain raiser for the World Cup — should we get this right, then the World Cup won't be a problem. There were sceptics but I'm saying we're ready."

Carrying a plastic replica kudo horn, plastered with pictures of South African football stars, Sandrick Mdaka had a hand-sized vuvuzela stuck in his refashioned plastic helmet that fronted a picture of Bafana Bafana midfielder Steven Pienaar.

"I'm ready for everything. When I'm tired of the big thing, I'll use the small one," he said as the buzzing filled the air around the stadium.

"It's very important to be seen having a World Cup here. Our country, now, we can see that we are going somewhere. I'm very excited about it. It's very important to me."

Also getting flags painted on their faces was first-time soccer match goers Dave Jacobsen, 25, and Stacey de Jager, 21, who were among the few white South Africans as the gates opened for a game that traditionally has been a black sport in the country.

"We can't wait to see the energy from everybody," said De Jager. "Everybody is really positive and we haven't even started playing yet. Imagine if we win? It's going to be fantastic."

"I think it's fantastic — good experience for the whole country," said Jacobsen.

Soweto resident Tebogo Hlabolwa, 26, said the tournament was a sign of how far South Africa had come in the 15 years since apartheid with the country's first all-race elections in 1994.

"I'm proud to be South African," she said. "I think this country has been through a lot and a game of soccer, sport in general, brings people together."

It's "a sign of how things have changed — we are heading for success, prosperity."

Geoffrey Setausi, 36, travelled south from rural Limpopo for the match.

"If I lose this opportunity, I may not have another. This is the only opening international ceremony that I have," he said.

"I feel very honoured as a citizen for us to host a tournament of that calibre."

However, Setausi said the ticketing was not readily available to rural South Africans.

"I heard them talking about buying tickets over the Internet — that is sharply excluding people in the rural areas. There are no computers or Internet there," said the educational curriculum specialist.

Despite their team Bafana Bafana's mixed fortunes on the field, the South Africans were optimistically patriotic.

"Bafana Bafana have got a chance," said Solley Mphahlele, a 45-year-old driver from Tembisa, a township east of Johannesburg, whose love for football paraphenalia was displayed even in his shoelaces.

"South Africa is going to win. The cup is going to stay here in South Africa," he said.

AFP

RSS
Digg
de.li.cious
facebook
LATEST FEATURES
Vintage start to the Open Written in a castle with limited connectivity, Dan Nicholl talks up the Scottish experience.
Is the Tri-Nations needed? (c) AFP iafrica.com columnist Jon Harris is struggling to get excited about the 2009 Tri-Nations.
How to beat the 'bonk' (c) AFP With riders burning 10,000 calories per day, the right fuel is essential to avoid the 'bonk'.