Song, Skill And Heartache

A look back at the only World Cup to be held on African soil. In 2010, South Africa hosted a party that will never be forgotten.

- Nick Said

The 2010 World Cup was billed as a party like no other previous tournament, and so it proved as South Africa sung, danced and trumpeted through four weeks of football.

An abiding memory of mine was sitting on a flight from Johannesburg to Cape Town at 2AM, the night skies having been opened to commercial aircraft so fans could move more quickly between venues and not miss match days.

The atmosphere on the plane was electric; there were no tired bodies, only smiles, laughter, the sound of vuvuzelas and the excited chatter of fans. It was surreal. I have been on hundreds of flights in my life, but this was like a party in the sky and everyone was having a good time.

The cynic in me would say it was just as well that the tournament was so entertaining off the pitch, because the football on it was mostly poor.

Teams were too defensive, too scared to lose, and for those playing at altitude, perhaps trying to keep too much in the tank before the lack of oxygen wore them down.

It is an oddity, because the World Cups in Germany (2006) and Brazil (2014), on either side of the South African event, were lauded for the attacking, stylish football. But despite the good conditions, mostly full stadiums and the expectant watching world, the tournament never entertained to the same degree.

For many, the vuvuzela will be their lasting memory of the tournament, though having been on the football beat for more than a decade before the World Cup, it was a sound I was well used to and could tune out.