Fifa floats 2010 turf idea for South Africa World Cup
Fifa president Sepp Blatter says the 2010 World Cup in South Africa could be played on artificial pitches.
SPEAKING to BBC Sport, Fifa President Sepp Blatter said “We have envisaged, though it is not yet a final decision, that the 2010 World Cup could be played on artificial turf.”
Blatter also suggested future Africa Cup of Nations tournaments should be played on artificial turf. “I think it’s now time in this region to think about artificial turf,” said the head of football’s governing body.
Many players and coaches dislike artificial pitches arguing the surface disadvantages teams that are not used to playing on them.
In October of last year England struggled in a crucial Euro 2008 qualifier against Russia in Moscow, losing 2-1 on an artificial pitch.
Under the “Win in Africa with Africa” project, Fifa is laying an artificial pitch in all 53 of its
member countries on the continent, with the exception of South Africa.
Playing surfaces in many African countries can be badly affected during the rainy and dry seasons. “An artificial pitch gives you the same conditions during the whole year,” said Blatter, who expressed his concern over the quality of the 2008 Nations Cup pitches in Ghana.
“I’ve followed, with a lot of interest, most of the matches of this competition, and I have to say that African football is at a very high level,” he said. “What I have not not liked so much is the turf, especially in Accra - the grass is too high.”
“Artificial turf is a solution to the owners of stadiums - you can use it more than just once a week, you can use it for other sports. I think it is better than uneven ground, where control of the ball not easy.”
Sport worth over £15bn a year to nation’s economy
A growth of nearly 50% says report commissioned by Sport England
RESEARCH commissioned by Sport England shows that sport-related economic activity in England reached a record high of £15.47 billion in 2005. This includes everything from sales of sports clothing and equipment to jobs in the sports industry.
This is nearly a 50% increase since 2000. The growth in England’s sport economy has outstripped that of the economy as a whole, as well as comparable sectors such as gambling.
Karren Brady, CEO of Birmingham City Football Club and Board Member of Sport England, said:
“This research shows the sporting pound is very important to the economic health of the nation. More people are using their wages to go and watch matches, buy sports clothing or splash out on the latest sports equipment. More importantly, new jobs are being created and sports clubs are benefiting from increase in subscriptions.”
Key findings from the report include:
• Consumer expenditure on sport in England increased from
£11.81 billion in 2000 to £16.58 billion in 2005; an increase of 40%
• The highest category of consumer spending is ‘participation subscription and fees’ at £3.5 billion in 2005
• Spending on sports-related equipment increased from £0.7 billion in 2000 to £1.2 billion in 2005, an increase of 67%
• Sports clothing (20%), subscriptions and fees (20%) and sports equipment (19%) accounted for the majority of consumer expenditure on sport in 2005, while admission to events accounted for just 4% of consumer sport expenditure
• Sport-related employment in England stood at 434,000 jobs in 2005, an increase of 68,500 jobs (19%) since 2000
The majority of sport-related jobs (76%) are in the commercial sector, with 12% in the voluntary sector and 12% in the public sector.
Public and voluntary sector sport- related jobs increased from 63,000 in 1985 to 103,000 in 2005.
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