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Johannesburg – South Africa hosts the World Cup from June 11 to July 11, the first on African soil, 16 years after the fall of white minority rule.

A look at the country:

- Geography: The Republic of South Africa occupies the southern extremity of the African mainland. It has borders with Namibia to the northwest, Botswana and Zimbabwe to the north, Mozambique and Swaziland to the northeast. Lesotho is surrounded entirely by South African territory. South Africa's coastline touches the Atlantic Ocean in the west and the Indian Ocean to the east. The surface area is 1 224 297 square/km.

- Population: 48.5 million inhabitants of whom about 80% are black, 9.5% white.

- Capital: Pretoria is the administrative capital, Cape Town is the legislative capital, Johannesburg is the business and industrial capital and Bloemfontein is the judicial capital. Johannesburg is the most populated city.

- Languages: Eleven official languages (English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa, Sesotho and six other African languages)

- Religion: Christian (76%), indigenous religions and Hindu, Jewish and Muslim minorities.

- History: The southern tip of South Africa became a Dutch trading post from 1652 and the territory was colonised by the British from 1795. In 1910 four British dependencies were merged to form the Union of South Africa, which was granted independence within the Commonwealth in 1931. In 1961 the government declared a republic and left the Commonwealth.

The conservative National Party which came to power in 1948 institutionalised the system of apartheid.

After Nelson Mandela was released from 27 years imprisonment in February 1990, and his African National Congress (ANC) unbanned with other anti-apartheid groups, official talks began in May between the government of President Frederik de Klerk, the ANC and other parties.

White-minority rule ended on April 27 1994 when the ANC won the first ever multi-racial legislative elections by a large majority. Mandela was inaugurated on May 10.

In 1999 Thabo Mbeki was elected president, and re-elected in 2004, but was forced to resign by the ANC in 2008.

Jacob Zuma was elected president in April 2009.

- Political institutions: From 1994 it has been a presidential republic with a multi-racial bicameral parliament. A new constitution adopted on May 8 1996 and which came into force on February 4 1997, is considered one of the most liberal in the world.

- Economy and resources: Very rich in mineral resources including gold, platinum, diamonds, coal and uranium.

After the world financial crisis, the economy began growing again in the second half of 2009 after falling into its first post-apartheid recession.

But job losses have hit hard with unemployment officially standing at 25.2% but approaches 40% when discouraged jobseekers are included.

- GNP: $5 760 per capita in 2007 (World Bank).

- Defence: 62 334 troops (the International Institute of Strategic Studies, 2008).

- HIV/Aids: South Africa has the world's greatest number of HIV-positive citizens – about 5.5 million in 2007.