In the case of the 2015 FIFA scandal, it was found that the bidding process was tainted by the bribery of then-FIFA chief Chuck Blazer.
Host: South Africa
Groups: 32
Color: Group stage, knockouts
Similarities: 64
Objectives: 145
Winner: Spain
Finalists: Netherlands
Golden Shoes: Thomas Muller (Germany)
History
The World Cup came to Africa after FIFA’s decision to move the tournament.
Applications for the 2010 edition were open only to African countries and came from Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, as well as joint ventures from Libya and Tunisia.
Morocco, who have been bidding for some time, missed out by four votes as Nelson Mandela proudly lifted the trophy as South Africa was declared the winner of the vote.
In the case of the 2015 FIFA scandal, it was found that the bidding process was tainted by the bribery of then-FIFA chief Chuck Blazer.
France and Italy, last World Cup finalists, failed to advance to the finals. It left Argentina, Brazil, Germany and Spain as favourites.
Diego Maradona’s Argentina were thumped 4-0 by Germany, while Brazil were knocked out by the Netherlands in the quarter-finals.
The final between the Netherlands and Spain saw 14 yellow cards handed out amid violence, mostly from the Dutch.
The match went into extra time when goalkeeper Iker Casillas made a one-on-one save from Arjen Robben of the Netherlands.
Andres Iniesta, one of the pioneers of the tiki-taka game, scored in the 115th minute to end Spain’s World Cup bid.
The tournament saw the widespread use of vuvuzelas in stadiums, and the practice was also seen in other sports.
High quality
Africa participated in the first World Cup.
Mandela appeared at the closing ceremony.
Paul the octopus became a sensation after correctly predicting all the matches involving Germany, including the final.
Shakira’s song from Colombia called Waka Waka (It’s Time for Africa) became one of the most popular songs of the World Cup.
Low
The marketing strategy was found to be fraudulent.
South Africa were eliminated after the group.
World Cup player Jabulani was criticized by players for his appearance, which led to his unexpected flight.
