Soccerex opens to 4 000 delegates
Michael Appel
25 November 2008
Soccerex 2008, the biggest exhibition in the world focusing on the business side of football, kicked off in Johannesburg on Monday with over 4 000 delegates from 95 countries in attendance.
Hundreds of exhibitors are taking part, showcasing the latest services, products and technologies that the football world has to offer.
Welcoming local and international football industry leaders to the exhibition, Soccerex chairman Tony Martin said football had a massive social impact, helping to set standards of morality and companionship throughout the world.
"Professional football is also one of the biggest industries in the world, with an audience of over 1-billion viewers."
The world economy, said Martin, was in turmoil and the collapse of the world's banking systems due to overzealous trading was going to have an immense impact on the business of football around the world.
Soccerex, he said, would give the industry an opportunity to review the costs and capital structure within the industry and try to quantify the scale of the economic burden on the football industry.
Irvin Khoza, chairman of the 2010 Local Organising Committee (LOC), told delegates that the business of football was a global phenomenon, and that hosting Soccerex was "another milestone for South Africa on the road to the World Cup."
Gauteng Premier Paul Mashatile said that more African countries were registering to be a part of Soccerex, showing the vigour with which Africans were trying to get into the business of football ahead of the World Cup.
"Soccerex is an ideal opportunity for decision makers within football to network and do business," Mashatile said.
"We will use Soccerex to further the experience of Gauteng in the hosting of major events, leading up to other events like the A1 Grand Prix in February 2009, and the international super bikes race in May next year."
Gauteng province hosted the prestigious inter-business exhibition in 2007, and will host it again next year to coincide with South Africa's hosting of the 2009 Fifa Confederations Cup, now a mere six months away.
Source: BuaNews
