On the brink of a 2010-induced revolution?

The international focus on South Africa’s preparations for the 2010 World Cup usually intensifies with major events – like the 2010 Preliminary Draw and the Olympic Games – or with key dates.

And so it is with January 26, which marks the 500-day countdown to the start of the quadrennial showpiece of international football. It affords us an opportunity to gauge the progress that has been made as well as the challenges that lie ahead.

Millions of South Africans, new to staging an event of this magnitude, have helped lay the foundations for the world’s biggest single-code sporting event. The result is that the skylines of every host city are now dotted with cranes, towering over stadiums and other World Cup-related projects.

And the consensus is that most of these projects are well on track to meet their deadlines. In terms of security, a number of new initiatives have been implemented to ensure that crime and violence do not mar the tournament. These include boosting the ranks of the police, acquiring hi-tech equipment (including helicopters, bomb suits, robots, X-ray machines and crowd-control water cannons) and setting up special courts to deal with offences related to the event.

An entire subcontinent is preparing to play a role in the successful hosting of the event. Already, all of our neighbours have formulated plans to ensure they will be part and parcel of the extravaganza. The spin-offs are enormous, particularly in the tourism sector, which is where most other countries stand to benefit.

On the field, Bafana Bafana are showing real signs of promise (four wins in four international friendlys) and they are well positioned to hold their own in this year’s Confederations Cup – a key curtain raiser for 2010.

The biggest hurdle facing South Africa is surely the political climate. After all, the ruling party has split, its leader remains in the dock and a general election is looming fast. Like 1994, cool heads are needed. Nevertheless, we are not alone with our social and political problems. Just 500 days before the 2006 World Cup, Germany was dangerously divided, but that tournament provided the glue that united a nation in a sea of black, yellow and red.

The reality is that South Africa may be on the brink of a 2010-induced revolution, which could change the country — and the rest of the continent — forever.