Speech by the City’s Executive Mayor, Alderman Patricia
de Lille, at the flag-raising ceremony and media launch
of the African Nations Championship 2014
The Chief Operations Officer of the Local Organising Committee, Andrew
Dipela,
Representatives of the South African Football Association,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Members of the media,
Good afternoon, goeiedag, molweni, as-salaam alaikum.
The City of Cape Town is honoured to be part of the three cities that will
host the 2014 edition of African Nations Championship.
I want to assure both the Local Organising Committee and the
Confederation of African Football (CAF) that we will do our best to ensure
that both the opening and closing ceremonies are a spectacle that all
football lovers will cherish.
The African Nations Championship 2014 is a welcome addition to the
City’s exciting calendar of sports events for the next year.
Together with the annual Cape Argus Cycle Tour, the Two Oceans
Marathon, and the Metropolitan Under-19 Premier Cup, they will boost our
ongoing efforts to position the City as the events capital of Africa.
The 2014 African Nations Championship will be the first major African
football tournament played in Cape Town.
It is an important event in terms of the City’s broader plans to establish
Cape Town as the gateway to Africa.
We look forward to hosting the national teams from Mozambique, Mali,
Zambia, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Burkina Faso and Morocco – who
will all play some of their games here.
We will make their stay in the city as comfortable as possible so that they
can prepare well for the tournament.
I hope that they will also make time to explore the natural beauty and
hospitality of the city during their stay here.
We are pleased that, in addition to hosting the headquarters of the
tournament, Cape Town Stadium will be the home of Bafana Bafana’s
group matches during the tournament.
The diverse supporters who always fill Cape Town Stadium whenever
Bafana Bafana play here will be the 12th player they need to succeed in
the tournament.
2014 is a historic year for our country. In addition to marking 20 years of
freedom, it will also be beginning of Cape Town’s tenure as the World
Design Capital.
Football, like design, can transform lives.
It can provide the platform many of our youngsters need to escape the
lure of drugs and crime.
It can create opportunities for aspirant footballers to establish their
professional careers. The success of Cape Town footballers locally and
internationally is a testament to this.
The legacy of tournaments like this will help produce the next generation
of football stars our country needs for our national teams to be in the
league of world champions.
The success of every tournament depends on how well the organisers
prepare for activities off the field and on the field.
For our part, we will ensure that both Athlone and Cape Town stadiums
and all of the training grounds are ready for the tournament. We will also
provide transport services for fans for identified matches.
We have already shown that we are capable of successfully hosting high
profile matches such as the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ group fixtures and
quarter-finals and the biennial International 8 Nations Under-20
tournament which were well attended.
The City of Cape Town will assist the Local Organising Committee and CAF
as best as we can to deliver the best edition of the African Nations
Championship to date.
Thank you, baie dankie, enkosi.