Johannesburg - The local organizing committee (OC) of the 2010 World Cup announced Tuesday that they had dropped Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth from the venues for the 2009 Confederations Cup. The OC met in Johannesburg on Tuesday and said that whilst they noted significant progress in the building of the stadium, it was unlikely to meet the March 30 deadline for completion of the stadium.
In a statement the OC said that a FIFA delegation had been present at their meeting.
"At the last Board meeting, the OC Chairman Dr Irvin Khoza said that the OC was closely monitoring all the Confederations Cup stadiums and that if there was a chance that any of them failed to comply with the agreed deadlines, they would be removed from the FIFA Confederations Cup schedule," they said.
"We acknowledge the progress that has been made on the Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth stadium in recent months. With the complex nature of the construction and erection of the roof of the stadium, however, it was decided that it would be too high a risk to keep the stadium in the Confederations Cup schedule," Khoza said.
FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke said that they supported the decision. "The Board showed that it is not afraid to take tough decisions to ensure the overall success of the Confederations Cup.
"Nelson Mandela Bay stadium bears the name of a great man who, at the host announcement in 2004, told of how inspirational this tournament is to him.
"And in 2010 it will be an outstanding stadium in a great location worthy of the big name it stands for - there is no doubt about it", said Valcke.
The OC also said that they had been overwhelmed by the response to a call for volunteers for the Confederations Cup. "The number we need has already been exceeded in just one week since the application process opened."
The OC confirmed that the opening match of the World Cup would be held in Johannesburg on June 11 2010.
