2010: South Africa

South Africa, the host country of the 2010 World Cup, is a country of many different people and many different aspects. It is located in the southern most part of Africa. It has an extensive coastline, strechting nearly 1,600 miles. With 471,011 square miles of land, South Africa is the 25th largest country in the world. As you move north and inland, the topography of the land begins to become more hilly and the elevation steadily increases. South Africa is known for having a very temperate climate, but it does vary throughout due to the varying topography. In southern South Africa, there are many desert type climate zones. Up north, you will find a more subtropical climate. This is a great climate for forests and vegetation to grow.

Economically, South Africa is considered a middle-income country. They have many different resources, a blooming communications system, and a stock exchange that ranks in the top twenty in the world. The South African rand, or the ZAR, ranks amoung one of the top currencies in the world, only opposed by the United States dollar. Besides it's currency, South Africa has become the largest energy producer on the entire continent. But it also ranks as one of the largest consumers of this energy. South Africa has become a popular spot for tourists to visit. They mainly come for the diverse culture, the game reserves, and the very popular local wine.

South Africa will have nine different host cities that will all have stadiums hosting the World Cup soccer games. These cities include: Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, Bloemfontein,Johannesburg, Tshwane, Nelspruit, Plokwane, and Rustenburg. Each of these cities posses a state of the art stadium, many of them being built specifically for the World Cup. Most of these host cities, along with the country of South Africa, hope that the World Cup will bring in a lot of money so that it can help sustain the economy of the country.