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Johannesburg - As the Togo team returns home from the Africa Cup of Nations in Angola, 2010 FIFA World Cup organising committee CEO Danny Jordaan and FIFA president Sepp Blatter have played down security fears for this year’s World Cup in South Africa.
On Friday the bus carrying the Togo team came under fire when travelling from their training camp in DR Congo, killing three people. A large proportion of tickets are still to be sold for the World Cup, which begins on June 11, and there with concerns that the attack may persuade fans not to travel to the tournament.
"I think everybody understands [the attack] has nothing to do with South Africa," Jordaan said. "When there was a bomb in London no-one said we should not have 2012 in London so we cannot have double standards."
"The world must be balanced and must not apply different standards when it comes to the African continent. Our World Cup is secure and we are confident because we have employed a lot of resources to safeguard the event in our country."
Blatter wrote to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) president, Isaa Hayatou, saying: “I have faith in Africa, and it is with this faith that together we will organise world football's showcase event in 2010.”
Togo’s squad was ordered to leave Angola by the country’s prime minister, Gilbert Houngbo, but the country’s minister of sport, Christophe Tchao, revealed Togo has asked CAF to find an arrangement for the team to “catch up with the competition later”, according to UK newspaper reports.
On Friday the bus carrying the Togo team came under fire when travelling from their training camp in DR Congo, killing three people. A large proportion of tickets are still to be sold for the World Cup, which begins on June 11, and there with concerns that the attack may persuade fans not to travel to the tournament.
"I think everybody understands [the attack] has nothing to do with South Africa," Jordaan said. "When there was a bomb in London no-one said we should not have 2012 in London so we cannot have double standards."
"The world must be balanced and must not apply different standards when it comes to the African continent. Our World Cup is secure and we are confident because we have employed a lot of resources to safeguard the event in our country."
Blatter wrote to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) president, Isaa Hayatou, saying: “I have faith in Africa, and it is with this faith that together we will organise world football's showcase event in 2010.”
Togo’s squad was ordered to leave Angola by the country’s prime minister, Gilbert Houngbo, but the country’s minister of sport, Christophe Tchao, revealed Togo has asked CAF to find an arrangement for the team to “catch up with the competition later”, according to UK newspaper reports.
