Press Release

Bring on 2010: Optimism is up!

BRYANSTON – 69% of South Africans are positive that our country will be ready to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup, according to market research company, African Response.

Since March 2006, African Response’s 2010 Barometer has kept a close eye on the awareness and opinions of South Africans regarding the 2010 FIFA World Cup. African Response spoke to 1,200 South Africans in major metropolitan areas across the country and in this month’s measurement we reveal their views on the county’s preparation for this prestigious event.

Up from 67% in the last reading, 69% of South Africans said that they are confident that South Africa will be ready to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Regional perceptions

Johannesburg and Durban were the most optimistic of regions (79%) – Johannesburg seeing a 6% increase from the last measurement in July this year. Pretoria residents are far less convinced about our preparation compared to the last measurement (down from 76% to 62%). Even though Capetonians are clearly the least confident of regions (55%), they have certainly become more optimistic compared to the last measurement (47%).

Will Bafana Bafana be ready?

Even though confidence in our country’s readiness is high, South Africans are not showing the same faith in our national soccer team Bafana Bafana. Only 38% displayed confidence that Bafana Bafana would be ready to take on the world at the 2010 FIFA World Cup games. This is undoubtedly related to their poor performance over the last year and reinforced by their recent failure to qualify for the 2010 African Cup of Nations.

Personal importance of the World Cup

Whether they believe that the team will be ready or not, South Africans are clearly feeling the significance of this event on a personal level, with 76% of the nation saying that the 2010 FIFA World Cup is important to them.

Those who earned less than R5,000 per month placed the most importance on the event (85%), followed by those in the R5,000 to R9,999 income earning bracket (82%). The more affluent South Africans (earning R10 000 and over) felt slightly less involved with 69% saying that the 2010 FIFA World Cup is important to them personally. More than just being avid soccer fans, it is very likely that the lower income earners are hoping that 2010 will bring business opportunities and prosperity which will improve their financial situation.

The younger, more passionate South Africans (aged between 16 and 34) expressed the highest amount of personal involvement (79%). This prestigious sporting event is only slightly less significant (76%) to those aged 35 to 49. Older South Africans (50+), however, reflect far less personal interest (62%). This age group is generally sceptical regarding most aspects of South Africa’s preparation for 2010.

Groundwork is on the go!

2008 has seen a general increase in optimism across almost all areas of preparation in South Africa’s infrastructure.

Will the following components of South Africa’s infrastructure be ready to cope with the demands of the 2010 FIFA world cup?
Respondents who said YES	Jan 08’ (n = 1200)	Apr 08’ (n = 1200)	Jul 08 (n = 1200)	Nov 08’ (n = 1200)
Restaurants across the country will be ready?	87%	84%	86%
The Telecommunications infrastructure will be ready?	78%	76%	78%
The Information Technology infrastructure will be ready?	77%	76%	78%
Airports will be ready for the influx visitors?	78%	76%	73%
South Africa’s roads will be ready?	64%	62%	56%
Public transport across the country will be ready?	63%	63%	61%
Electricity will meet demands?	52%	36%	35%
The new stadia which are being built for the 2010 FIFA World Cup will be ready in time?	69%	70%	66%
Will Policing and Security be ready?	55%	55%	49%
Accommodation across the country will be ready?	82%	82%	79%
	©African Response 2008

South Africans are noticing the improvements taking place in airports around the country, with confidence jumping up by 6% since July this year. The construction of the new stadia is also evidently being noticed – up 7% from the last measure.

Good news for the dining industry - an impressive 90% of the nation is confident that our restaurants will be able to cater for the influx of customers during 2010. This is the highest this area has achieved since the inception of the 2010 Barometer Survey in March 2006!

With the electricity crisis and load shedding seemingly on hold, the view that South Africa’s electricity supply will be prepared to handle the demand during 2010 has gone up by 6% since the last measure.

Policing and Security, a familiar area of concern in South Africa, has taken a positive turn in this measurement with 55% (up from 49%) of the country convinced that our policing and security systems will be ready to cope in 2010.

Topical Question

For this month’s topical question, African Response asked South Africans whether they felt that the development and construction for 2010 would have a lasting effect on sports infrastructure across the country. Fifty-six percent (56%) of South Africans agreed that the effect on South Africa’s sports infrastructure would be lasting. Interestingly, 23% were neutral on the topic, while 19% disagreed and 3% said that they don’t know.

- Ends -

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About the African Response 2010 Barometer:

African Response has been tracking confidence in world cup preparations since March 2006. The November 2008 results represent the views of 1200 respondents interviewed in major metropolitan areas (Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban) during April to June 2008. Respondents are representative of the South African population in terms of race, gender and region.

Previous African Response 2010 Barometers were conducted in March 2006, June 2006, October 2006, July 2007, November 2007, January 2008, April 2008 and July 2008. These reports can be found at www.africanresponse.co.za .

About African Response

African Response is the most empowered, black owned, black managed research agency in South Africa. We are ISO 9001: 2000 certified and AAA rated by Empowerdex. Established in an equity relationship with Synovate, we offer a full complement of research skills.

 

African Response prides itself upon an exceptional ability to understand and interpret the needs of the South African black urban and rural consumer. We offer clients customized qualitative and quantitative research, innovative ideas and practical solutions. African Response’s vision is to significantly improve clients’ business performance and to achieve excellence through utilization of the wide knowledge and experience of our partners.

More information can be found at www.africanresponse.co.za