South Africa's World Cup passion

Political parties across the spectrum have echoed President Jacob Zuma's praise for South Africans, attributing the success of the 2010 Fifa World Cup to the passon and patriotic spirit of ordinary citizens of the country.

As Spain lifted the 2010 Fifa World Cup on the chilly evening of 11 July, South Africans across the country were filled with a sense of pride in a spectacle well hosted.

A stadium in Oregon, a beer garden in Germany, a pro-democracy protest in Hong Kong, a pride march in Seattle, and 2010 Fifa World Cup fan fests everywhere: South Africa's vuvuzela is taking over the world. View MediaClubSouthAfrica.com's gallery of the invasion.

The Black Stars of Ghana received tremendous support from host nation South Africa throughout their 2010 Fifa World Cup campaign, and were given a send-off parade in Johannesburg on Sunday for a final show of local admiration.

All the African teams taking part in the 2010 Fifa World Cup have felt the impetus of home ground advantage. As the last African team remaining in the tournament, Ghana have become the focus of South Africans' passion for football and uncontained joy at hosting the first Fifa World Cup on the continent.

Darkness fell hours ago, and the crowd's breath rises visibly through the winter air at Johannesburg's InnesFree Park. Yet Chuma is drenched in sweat. And no wonder. For the past two-and-a-half hours, the 27-year-old has been leading friends and strangers, locals and tourists in an indefatigable display of singing and dancing at this lively Fifa Fan Fest.

"Bafana Bafana are out of the World Cup, but they won the hearts and minds of all South Africans and the whole world tonight." Local Organising Committee CEO Danny Jordaan summed it up after Tuesday's match in Bloemfontein, where the national team beat France but failed to qualify for the last 16 of the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

Bafana Bafana bowed out of the 2010 Fifa World Cup with heads held high in Bloemfontein on Tuesday, playing with style and belief to score South Africa's first ever win over France. The 2-1 victory left them placed third in Group A, level with Mexico on four points, losing out only on goal difference.

In 1994, when South Africa shed the shackles of apartheid, it did not mean the country was automatically set on a path of unity. Sport – starting with the 1995 Rugby World Cup, followed up by the 1996 African Nations Cup, and continuing with the 2010 Fifa World Cup – played and continues to play a major unifying role.

President Jacob Zuma has wished the national team, Bafana Bafana, well ahead of their crucial Group A match against France on Tuesday, while reminding South Africans that, whatever the outcome of the game, they are "already winners."

Thulani Ngcobo's passion for football has scored him a place in sporting history, after he set a new Guinness World Record for the most Fifa World Cup matches attended by an individual at a single finals tournament.

South Africa's national team raised their game in the opening match of the 2010 Fifa World Cup on Friday, holding a Mexican side placed far above them in the international rankings to an enthralling 1-1 draw – with Siphiwe Tshabalala unleashing a blistering shot to score the first goal of the tournament.

In one of the largest displays of national spirit ever seen in the country, South Africans took to the streets at midday on Wednesday in a massive display of support for the home team, as a proud nation let the world know just what kind of tournament Africa's first World Cup will be.

With days to go to kickoff, World Cup fever has hit South Africa in earnest. Confidence and excitement levels on the streets have reached a 10-year high as the country counts down to what many South Africans are describing as a "second miracle," after the country's transition to democracy in 1994.

He may have skippered the first South Africa team to play on the world stage, but Lucas Radebe says nothing can compare with the excitement currently sweeping the host country with 24 hours to go before the 2010 Fifa World Cup kicks off.

Just as the 2006 World Cup had Germans smiling, drinking beer and waving the national flag en masse for the first time in 60 years, so the first African World Cup in South Africa could have an equally dramatic effect on promoting social cohesion in a country with a lingering legacy of racial inequality, writes John Battersby.

With more and more cars flying the national flag on the country's roads, and Bafana jerseys increasingly evident on Football Fridays, it's clear that South Africans are gearing up for the month-long mother of all football parties!

"What is happening in the country at the moment is a marvel to watch," President Jacob Zuma said as South Africa celebrated the 50-day countdown to the 2010 Fifa World Cup. "This harmony should define us, and resonate in a wide range of spheres, even outside sport."

"We are waiting ... It is time for the people to stop putting us down and to come see for themselves that Africa can do it." So says Gordon Mokonyane, Johannesburg resident, family man, Orlando Pirates fan - and supporter of the 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa.

Pretoria's streets were a sea of yellow and green on Tuesday as South Africans wearing Bafana Bafana jerseys celebrated the 100 days countdown to the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

Johannesburg residents took a break from their busy schedules, donned their Bafana Bafana jerseys and kicked back with the rest of the country on Tuesday to celebrate the 100 days countdown to the 2010 Fifa World Cup.