Football, the 'staple food' of children in South Africa

Football has become like a "staple food" for children in South Africa, which is hosting the World Cup, and you cannot go anywhere without seeing boys and girls kicking a ball around, Julian Azzopardi has found.

"I think it is very important for children in South Africa, as elsewhere, to have the opportunity to play football and even be part of such a great spectacle, which, at the end of the day, is a beautiful game," he said.

Mr Azzopardi, in his mid-30s, is thrilled to be studying in South Africa where he is about to complete his dissertation on development through football as part of his Masters from the School of Development Studies in Durban.

Before immersing himself in his studies, he spent three months in Zambia to promote football as a development tool for children. During the time spent in the village of Lusaka he helped organise three football tournaments and other activities to raise awareness on the importance of sports as a means of reconciliation and peace and responsible citizenship.

Fast forward two years and Mr Azzopardi is rediscovering these values of football on a much larger scale. Rather than uniting the players of a children's team in Zambia, this time there is the hope that the sport serves as a uniting factor for the South African nation. There had been a lot of talk in Europe that the World Cup would serve to unite the country in the post-apartheid era when racial segregation was a legal reality.

"I feel the legacy of apartheid is, unfortunately, still visible... When on average a black South African earns just 13 per cent of what a white South African earns in a year there are bound to be concerns over whether inequality will be rectified by means of hosting the World Cup... There needs to be the right political will to ensure the momentum gathered during the World Cup will not end with the final whistle on Sunday," he said.

However, on the ground, the World Cup seems to have given locals a common goal: rooting for their country. "The atmosphere in South Africa has been a constant escalation. About three months ago, every Friday was declared Football Friday where all employees were allowed and even encouraged to wear football jerseys to work.

"This included the President, members of Cabinet and parliamentarians in a rally towards bringing everyone together for the tournament and in support of the national football team known as Bafana Bafana, which literally translated means 'boys boys'," he said.

Despite the June protests - when thousands of South Africans held a march in Durban against the government's massive spending on the World Cup in contrast with low wages - the nation rooted for its team. In fact, even Mr Azzopardi himself, a staunch Italy supporter, has been converted to side with this host nations' team and all other neighbouring African countries.

To his disappointment, both South Africa and Italy failed to make it beyond the first round. Ghana, the last African country left standing, was eliminated in the quarter finals.

So far, Mr Azzopardi managed to watch two matches: Spain versus Switzerland and Netherlands versus Japan. During these matches, he was armed with his vuvuzela - a South African plastic horn that has been criticised for the monotone sound that, some argued, tortured their eardrums throughout the matches.

"I do indeed have a vuvuzela and, to be frank, I love it. Football in South Africa would not be the same without it," he said.