Africa, the true victor

The prestigious title of world football may have gone to Spain in Europe, but an overall assessment reveals a victory for Africa … not just in view of the activities on the pitches, but everything about development, peace, security, etc.

Since the announcement that Africa would host the World Cup, for the first time in its history, commentaries on the world’s most popular sporting event had been generally characterized by cynicism… the focus had constantly been on either the capability to host it (citing security and all what not) or the performance of African teams.

Finally it came, and we watched it like never before… yes! Like never before!
A statement by the UN, released Tuesday, endorsed this point. “Irrespective of the result of the final, the real victor of the 2010 World Cup is Africa and the South African people.”
For one whole month the whole world focused on Africa, a continent that had been wrongfully identified with only misnomers… and what did the world see within this period?
A fantastic display of organizational ability.
As one blogger put it: “Even if the fetishists and the talented marabous of this great continent that lacks everything except wizards weren’t able shackle the non-African teams, we won big in terms of organization.
Look at FIFA SA 2010 as a complete success for the continent through the Rainbow Nation who won the bet of the organization in the face of strong challenge from those who saw only insecurity as a reason to deny the continent this rare opportunity.
"One of the lessons learned from the World Cup is that Africa affirmed and asserted its position,” Issa Hayatou, CAF president and member of FIFA Executive committee, said Wednesday.
The performance of Ghana, as the indefatigable defender of Africa’s footballing pride, crowned the whole argument.
We are honored! Really honored!
Congratulations to Spain, by the way!
I will conclude with these words from Ban Ki-Moon: “It is my hope that the momentum that has been gained through the World Cup will carry through in the coming years and hopefully be amplified even further through the engagement of governments.”