2010 FIFA World Cup Fans

The finals began on 11 June with the group stage, in which the 32 qualifying teams played in round-robin groups of four teams for points, with the top two teams in each group proceeding. These 16 teams advanced to the knockout stage beginning on 26 June, in which games level after normal time are settled using extra time and, if necessary, a penalty shootout, up to and including the World Cup Final, scheduled for 11 July at Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg. The tournament will be the first ever World Cup held outside Europe to be won by a European side and the final, between Netherlands and Spain, will be between two teams that have never won the World Cup before.
Africa was chosen as the host for the 2010 World Cup as part of a short-lived policy, abandoned in 2007, to rotate the event among football confederations. Five African nations placed bids to host the 2010 World Cup: Egypt, Morocco, South Africa and a joint bid from Libya and Tunisia.