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Johannesburg - The local organising committee of the Soccer World Cup said on Wednesday its budget is "tight" and conceded that it is under pressure to deliver the tournament without overspending.
"We are under a lot of pressure right now in terms of budget," said Greg Fredericks, a top aide to committee chief executive Danny Jordaan. "We believe at this stage we are within budget. (But) I think it's tight."
Fredericks addressed a government committee on sports and culture in Johannesburg earlier Wednesday and updated it on the preparations of the Gauteng province, which includes host cities Johannesburg and Pretoria, where the opening and closing ceremonies, the opening game and the final will be played.
But Fredericks expressed concerns over the $430 million given to the LOC by FIFA to organise the tournament. He said at one stage organisers thought they were going to run out of money, "but the exchange rate saved us."
South African organisers were handed the budget in US dollars in 2005, but have faced rising costs.
"By 2010 it's a different world," Fredericks said.
He said the LOC's allowance had been hit hard by the cost of ensuring all 10 World Cup stadiums have their own electricity supplies and backup power generators to guard against unexpected power cuts, which occasionally happen in South Africa.
"The cost is just astronomical," Fredericks said.
Fredericks spoke to the Gauteng Legislature's committee in the absence of Jordaan, who was in Cape Town for the arrival of the World Cup trophy.
According to organisers, the world's most famous football prize will be kept out of sight until it goes on display at the Khayelitsha township near Cape Town on Friday.
Also Wednesday, FIFA put "a few thousand" match tickets back on sale for games it had previously said were sold out.
FIFA said in a statement the tickets had become available for matches in Cape Town and Durban, the coastal cities popular with tourists, after "ongoing finalisation of seating arrangements ... and further adjustments of different ticket allocations."
FIFA said soon after they launched the final ticket sales phase on April 15 that all matches in Cape Town and Durban had been sold out.
According to the statement, 270 000 World Cup match tickets are still unsold.
