Merkel meets Zuma

Cape Town - German Chancellor Angela Merkel met with President Jacob Zuma before heading to the stadium to watch her country's World Cup team take on Argentina in a quarter-final.

Also on Saturday, Merkel and Helen Zille, leader of the Democratic Alliance, toured a community development programme in Cape Town's Khayelitsha township.

A German taxpayer lobby group had questioned Merkel's decision to attend the match in Cape Town, given her government is implementing an austerity plan.

But government spokesperson Ulrich Wilhelm has said it is important for foreign leaders to acknowledge the significance of Africa's first World Cup.