This article first appeared in the May/Jun 2010 issue of World Gaming magazine.
FIFA WORLD CUP 2010 OFFICIAL MASCOT
The official mascot for the 2010 FIFA World Cup is Zakumi, who is a leopard with green hair, and his colours are the same as the South African playing strip.
He was born on 16 June 1994 (he will turn 16 during the World Cup), and his birth date coincides with a day known and celebrated as Youth Day in South Africa, which this year falls on the same day as the home team’s second group match.
The year 1994 saw the first non-racial nationwide elections in South Africa. Zakumi’s official motto is: “Zakumi’s game is Fair Play.”
I bet they wish they had Pai Yao instead, but World Gaming refused to release our mascot for World Cup duties.
| Match | Date | Time | Venue | Group | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11-Jun | 16:00 | J’burg (Soccer City) | A | SOUTH AFRICA | vs | MEXICO |
| 2 | 11-Jun | 20:30 | Cape Town | A | URUGUAY | vs | FRANCE |
| 3 | 12-Jun | 16:00 | J’burg (Ellis Park) | B | ARGENTINA | vs | NIGERIA |
| 4 | 12-Jun | 13:30 | Port Elizabeth | B | KOREA REP | vs | GREECE |
| 5 | 12-Jun | 20:30 | Rustenburg | C | ENGLAND | vs | USA |
| 6 | 13-Jun | 13:30 | Polokwane | C | ALGERIA | vs | SLOVENIA |
| 7 | 13-Jun | 20:30 | Durban | D | GERMANY | vs | AUSTRALIA |
| 8 | 13-Jun | 16:00 | Pretoria | D | SERBIA | vs | GHANA |
| 9 | 14-Jun | 13:30 | J’burg (Soccer City) | E | NETHERLANDS | vs | DENMARK |
| 10 | 14-Jun | 16:00 | Bloemfontein | E | JAPAN | vs | CAMEROON |
| 11 | 14-Jun | 20:30 | Cape Town | F | ITALY | vs | PARAGUAY |
| 12 | 15-Jun | 13:30 | Rustenburg | F | NEW ZEALAND | vs | SLOVAKIA |
| 13 | 15-Jun | 16:00 | Port Elizabeth | G | IVORY COAST | vs | PORTUGAL |
| 14 | 15-Jun | 20:30 | J’burg (Ellis Park) | G | BRAZIL | vs | DPR KOREA |
| 15 | 16-Jun | 13:30 | Nelspruit | H | HONDURAS | vs | CHILE |
| 16 | 16-Jun | 16:00 | Durban | H | SPAIN | vs | SWITZERLAND |
| 17 | 16-Jun | 20:30 | Pretoria | A | SOUTH AFRICA | vs | URUGUAY |
| 18 | 17-Jun | 20:30 | Polokwane | A | FRANCE | vs | MEXICO |
| 19 | 17-Jun | 16:00 | Bloemfontein | B | GREECE | vs | NIGERIA |
| 20 | 17-Jun | 13:30 | J’burg (Soccer City) | B | ARGENTINA | vs | KOREA REP |
| 21 | 18-Jun | 13:30 | Port Elizabeth | D | GERMANY | vs | SERBIA |
| 22 | 18-Jun | 16:00 | J’burg (Ellis Park) | C | SLOVENIA | vs | USA |
| 23 | 18-Jun | 20:30 | Cape Town | C | ENGLAND | vs | ALGERIA |
| 24 | 19-Jun | 16:00 | Rustenburg | D | GHANA | vs | AUSTRALIA |
| 25 | 19-Jun | 13:30 | Durban | E | NETHERLANDS | vs | JAPAN |
| 26 | 19-Jun | 20:30 | Pretoria | E | CAMEROON | vs | DENMARK |
| 27 | 20-Jun | 13:30 | Bloemfontein | F | SLOVAKIA | vs | PARAGUAY |
| 28 | 20-Jun | 16:00 | Nelspruit | F | ITALY | vs | NEW ZEALAND |
| 29 | 20-Jun | 20:30 | J’burg (Soccer City) | G | BRAZIL | vs | IVORY COAST |
| 30 | 21-Jun | 13:30 | Cape Town | G | PORTUGAL | vs | DPR KOREA |
| 31 | 21-Jun | 16:00 | Port Elizabeth | H | CHILE | vs | SWITZERLAND |
| 32 | 21-Jun | 20:30 | J’burg (Ellis Park) | H | SPAIN | vs | HONDURAS |
| 33 | 22-Jun | 16:00 | Rustenburg | A | MEXICO | vs | URUGUAY |
| 34 | 22-Jun | 16:00 | Bloemfontein | A | FRANCE | vs | SOUTH AFRICA |
| 35 | 22-Jun | 20:30 | Durban | B | NIGERIA | vs | KOREA REP |
| 36 | 22-Jun | 20:30 | Polokwane | B | GREECE | vs | ARGENTINA |
| 37 | 23-Jun | 16:00 | Port Elizabeth | C | SLOVENIA | vs | ENGLAND |
| 38 | 23-Jun | 16:00 | Pretoria | C | USA | vs | ALGERIA |
| 39 | 23-Jun | 20:30 | J’burg (Soccer City) | D | GHANA | vs | GERMANY |
| 40 | 23-Jun | 20:30 | Nelspruit | D | AUSTRALIA | vs | SERBIA |
| 41 | 24-Jun | 16:00 | J’burg (Ellis Park) | F | SLOVAKIA | vs | ITALY |
| 42 | 24-Jun | 16:00 | Polokwane | F | PARAGUAY | vs | NEW ZEALAND |
| 43 | 24-Jun | 20:30 | Rustenburg | E | DENMARK | vs | JAPAN |
| 44 | 24-Jun | 20:30 | Cape Town | E | CAMEROON | vs | NETHERLANDS |
| 45 | 25-Jun | 16:00 | Durban | G | PORTUGAL | vs | BRAZIL |
| 46 | 25-Jun | 16:00 | Nelspruit | G | DPR KOREA | vs | IVORY COAST |
| 47 | 25-Jun | 20:30 | Pretoria | H | CHILE | vs | SPAIN |
| 48 | 25-Jun | 20:30 | Bloemfontein | H | SWITZERLAND | vs | HONDURAS |
| Match | Date | Time | Venue | Group | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49 | 26-Jun | 16:00 | Port Elizabeth | Rnd of 16 | Group A winner | vs | Group B second |
| 50 | 26-Jun | 20:30 | Rustenburg | Rnd of 16 | Group C winner | vs | Group D second |
| 51 | 27-Jun | 16:00 | Bloemfontein | Rnd of 16 | Group D winner | vs | Group C second |
| 52 | 27-Jun | 20:30 | J’burg (Soccer City) | Rnd of 16 | Group B winner | vs | Group A second |
| 53 | 28-Jun | 16:00 | Durban | Rnd of 16 | Group E winner | vs | Group F second |
| 54 | 28-Jun | 20:30 | J’burg (Ellis Park) | Rnd of 16 | Group G winner | vs | Group H second |
| 55 | 29-Jun | 16:00 | Pretoria | Rnd of 16 | Group F winner | vs | Group E second |
| 56 | 29-Jun | 20:30 | Cape Town | Rnd of 16 | Group H winner | vs | Group G second |
| 57 | 2-Jul | 16:00 | Port Elizabeth | Qtr Final | Game 53 winner | vs | Game 54 winner |
| 58 | 2-Jul | 20:30 | J’burg (Soccer City) | Qtr Final | Game 49 winner | vs | Game 50 winner |
| 59 | 3-Jul | 16:00 | Cape Town | Qtr Final | Game 52 winner | vs | Game 51 winner |
| 60 | 3-Jul | 20:30 | J’burg (Ellis Park) | Qtr Final | Game 55 winner | vs | Game 56 winner |
| 61 | 6-Jul | 20:30 | Cape Town | Semi Final | Game 58 winner | vs | Game 57 winner |
| 62 | 7-Jul | 20:30 | Durban | Semi Final | Game 59 winner | vs | Game 60 winner |
| 63 | 10-Jul | 20:30 | Port Elizabeth | 3rd place | Game 61 loser | vs | Game 62 loser |
| 64 | 11-Jul | 20:30 | J’burg (Soccer City) | Final | Game 61 winner | vs | Game 62 winner |
