The local organising committee (LOC) is not impressed with the turnout of soccer fans in Port Elizabeth during the Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
"On the issue of Nelson Mandela Bay, this concern is shared by all of us... it’s just that we are surprised by the level of that (fans not coming in numbers to the stadium),” LOC CEO Mvuzo Mbebe told reporters in Johannesburg on Friday (01/02/2013).
What was more surprising, according to Mbebe, was that complimentary tickets had been issued for fans in Port Elizabeth, on top of the free transport made available to spectators.
More measures were being put in place in an attempt to increase the turnout at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
"We are looking now at the system of, instead of us issuing complimentary tickets beforehand, we only give people tickets when they arrive at the bus station or the train station.” With these efforts, the LOC hoped that fans would come out in their numbers for Saturday’s quarter-final match between Ghana and Cape Verde.
Meanwhile, Mbebe confirmed there were only 6000 tickets left for next weekend’s Afcon final at the National Stadium in Johannesburg.
People were advised to buy the tickets in advance, rather than waiting to see which teams would reach the final.
The LOC was pleased with the running of the tournament since it started on January 19.
"We got the thumbs up from Caf (Confederation of African Football), and we also got the thumbs up from the public of South Africa,” Mbebe said. - Sapa
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