JOHANNESBURG //The first World Cup finals to be held on African soil kicked off yesterday amid a jubilant cacophony as the opening ceremony and match were greeted by 84,000 flag-waving fans inside the Soccer City stadium in Soweto, and watched on television by millions of people around the globe.
Two hours before South Africa, the hosts, played Mexico, hundreds of African dancers paraded on the pitch, clad in a multitude of bright colours. An eclectic group of artists, including R Kelly and Femi Kuti, performed, while the constant hum of thousands of vuvuzelas, traditional African horns, was drowned out only by a brief flypast by military jets. The stadium was far from full during the ceremony as huge traffic jams brought the area to a standstill. But local fans whose cars were stuck remained content, showing their patriotism through flags, wing-mirror covers and facepaint.
Open-topped buses were filled with people dancing to the sounds of K'Naan and Shakira, while street vendors walked the queues offering everything from hand-painted trumpets to North Korean flags. Supporters were dressed as one in South Africa's green and gold. They wore friendly smiles and oversized, lensless glasses, and they filled the streets, giving the city a visible, throbbing heartbeat. It had been reported that Nelson Mandela, the country's former president, would attend the month-long tournament's historical curtain-raiser. But Mr Mandela, 91, did not appear after his 13-year-old great-granddaughter was killed in a car crash while travelling home from the official World Cup concert the previous night.
Jacob Zuma, the South African president, stood alongside Joseph Blatter, the president of Fifa, football's world governing body, to open the afternoon's football action. Mr Zuma passed on Mr Mandela's wish for the fans to enjoy the game, before proclaiming: "The time for Africa has come." The opening match ended in a 1-1 draw, with both goals coming in the second half. gmeenaghan@thenational.ae
