The head of FIFA has given the organisation of the Confederations Cup the nod, and he looks forward to an "exciting" World Cup next year.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has hailed the Confederations Cup as a success, giving the organisation of the event a score of 7,5 out of 10.

Speaking to the media on Monday, 29 June, Blatter said he was "happy" with the way the Confederations Cup had been run said he looked forward to "an exciting" 2010 FIFA World Cup™ next year.

No doubting the support

The Confederations Cup ran from 14 to 28 June, and was won by Brazil on Sunday.

"The World Cup is a very important issue for the FIFA family. After long hesitations and criticisms many members of the FIFA family are now convinced that the decision to award the World Cup to Africa was right."

He said South Africa, however, had to do a "little more" to ensure things ran smoothly during the tournament. If the country was a student, it would be on its way to university with the score he had given it.

"But the student still has to ensure that he graduates university by scoring an eight and then qualify for masters; so South Africa has to do a little bit more."

Referring to the Confederations Cup as "the rehearsals" for the World Cup, Blatter said the event had been undertaken "satisfactorily". Security had been under scrutiny and had passed the test.

"The hospitality of South Africa is remarkable but we have to work on logistics. There is a problem of transport and accommodation which has to be solved before the 2010 World Cup, when we expect about 450 000 visitors into the country."

Most of these visitors - who would be football fans - would follow their teams and reliable transport and accommodation were essential.

On the sometimes controversial issue of vuvuzelas, Blatter said the plastic trumpets were here to stay despite grumblings from some quarters. "They are part of the football culture [in South Africa]."

Zeroing in on the 16 matches played in the four host cities of Johannesburg, Mangaung/Bloemfontein, Tshwane/Pretoria and Rustenburg, Blatter said "good football" was the order of the day.

The last four matches stood out, producing "attractive" football. "This shows that the big teams enjoyed playing in the ambiance of South Africa. I also saw fair play."

Local team Bafana Bafana had improved between the first and the last match they had played during the eight-nation tournament, according to Blatter. He singled out the team's performance against Spain in the third and fourth place match and their semifinal match against Brazil as commendable.

"They have improved technically and have brilliant individual players. What they need is to bring all these qualities together and score goals. Compliments to Bafana Bafana [for their performance]."

Johannesburg, the centre stage of the Festival of Champions, as the Confederations Cup is popularly called, was "happy" with the way the tournament was conducted. The opening and closing ceremonies and the opening and final matches of the tournament all took place in the city of gold.

"For now we are happy. We are busy consolidating everything and a full report will be issued very soon," said Linda Ngwenya, the director of 2010: bid book compliance in the City's 2010 Office.

Danny Jordaan, the chief executive of the 2010 World Cup Organising Committee South Africa, was also optimistic about the preparations for next year's tournament. The Confederations Cup was a success, proved by the way people had shown their enjoyment throughout the competition.

Blatter appealed to people to support the World Cup as it was more than just a football event. "Football is a human game. Please help us to create a better world. This World Cup in Africa is more than just an event, but a way to bring together humanity."

Related stories:

• Festival of Champions
• Confed Cup kicks off in Jozi
• Jozi welcomes the champions
• The teams taking part
• We're ready and excited