As we enter the final week of South Africa 2010 I am interested in gauging reactions to Sepp Blatter's dream of hosting a World Cup on African soil. There has been endless pre tournament debate about security, infrastructure, technical ability, accommodation, ticketing and how the local people will benefit from overseas interest.

How has it all stacked up?

Being fortunate to now have visited Korea/Japan, Germany and now South Africa here are some personal thoughts.

Security Not wanting to go back over every statistic printed on this subject one has to accept that living in South Africa is probably more dangerous than living here in the UK. Travelling fans are very much advised to take heed of the public warnings to be vigilant whilst attending South Africa. 2010. While in Seoul, Tokyo and in Germany one could freely move around the city centre bars and late night drinking establishments on offer however while in Johannesburg last week these places were clearly 'off limit'. My group were under strict advice on this point so stories of intense partying are at a premium. There was a serious pre event incident which made headline news here in the UK. A bunch of local people were caught up in a crush going into a Johannesburg stadium for a friendly match. It certainly sharpened the nerves for this traveller.

Happily I have to report that after attending five matches at different stadiums it appears that the authorities have got match day security spot on. With huge police presence and many official helpers on hand getting in and out of the grounds is relatively problem free. Wandering around the main tourist attractions also seems to be well covered.

It seems as though South Africa have got the basics right in this regard. Infrastructure Roads, public transport and stadiums are huge factors in the life of a World Cup visitor. With teams travelling around the vast country fans need to know that they can follow suit and then once in the ground there is a certain amount of comfort and safety. After landing at the hub airports one can immediately feel a lack of public transport on offer. The road network is the best option offering freedom of travel in a relatively safe environment. We travelled every where by car using either the park and walk facilities or securing back street parking spots. Maybe we just got lucky bur our car was always in place, unharmed, ready for our return.

The five stadium we visited were all fantastic grounds with each differing characters. I particularly enjoyed Ellis Park in Johannesburg. It’s a huge four sided traditional ground capable of creating a big match atmosphere.

Again, it seems as though the basics have been well covered to these regards with good roads and well lit, comfortable and safe stadiums. On the flip side the stadiums in Korea offered sensational local environments of water features, garden sculptures and local entertainment. It was a real treat for football fans to experience these things. There was nothing as grand in South Africa.

Technicalities Everything seems to be coming out of Africa okay with good quality pictures and sound. The locals are being well catered for with all the games shown live and a stream of repeats and highlights through the terrestrial channels.

Accommodation Finding reasonably priced places to stay in Korea and Germany was a breeze however in South Africa, rates seemed to have been hiked to ridiculous levels. For example I was quoted £500 for eight nights for a bed in an eight man dorm based in Johannesburg. For a modest B&B the price rose to £1,300. Luckily, I secured accommodation with in a friend’s residential apartment paying a minimal charge. It made my trip to S.A. financially viable, Not having a huge insight into world cup digs it is unfair that I pass comment. With out doubt though, many people would have shelled out a lot of money for their accommodation leading to spiraling total costs. I got lucky.

Ticketing After purchasing your tickets on line you actually pick them up via various outlets or through ticketing machines. To be honest it all appeared to have gone like clockwork. Most people would have spent the past 12 months trying to get tickets through FIFA. But to the astute supporter some tickets were available right up to kick off. We managed to purchase England v Germany tickets 24 hours in advance and there are still tickets for the remaining games.

I would say that FIFA has organised a fair and efficient ticket distribution system being the best yet. In Germany there was many a long queue to be joined for picking up purchased tickets.

World Cup experience for locals It is evident that South Africans are football mad. With the world elite in their back yard the locals have embraced the World Cup and turned out in vast numbers at the games, in the fan parks and in front of TVs. Supporting Bafana Bafana was the biggest passion for home fans but after going out early general interest has remained at a high level. There has been an estimated 300,000 world cup foreign visitors pouring through the borders all with varying amounts of spending power. Europeans, Americans and Australians would all be cash rich in South Africa and most would have taken advantage of the weak rand. Dining out, paying for petrol and present buying is relatively cheap. To be honest it is very questionable if any of these euros, pounds and dollars would have ended up in the pockets of the poor. Instead much of the generated wealth would have gone to corporations, Government bodies and well off restaurateurs/hoteliers What about national expenditure on roads, stadiums and the new Gautrain project in Johannesburg? Cash spending on these things are there for everyone to see. The roads are good, stadium spectacular and that Gautrain experience is wonderful. It is highly unlikely though that revenue generated will match the spending leaving the fragile economy managing a serious debt situation. That will be a problem for later but for now the people of South Africa have new and exciting facilities to utilise.

South Africa has now been partying for three weeks in the grip of World Cup fever. Clearly, it has given the whole nation pride and a focal entity to concentrate on. The world has been tuning in giving South Africa the chance to showcase their wonderful country. Post World Cup there will be a national hangover to endure but hopefully the people will be left with sense of a job well done and having some useful new facilities.

In conclusion, many of the post tournament worries have been unfounded, and so far South Africa has staged a well organised and professional event. In the main visitors have had easy and safe access to stadium, accommodation and eateries. With most matches being played under flood lights atmosphere in the grounds has been unique, robust and very noisy. If there are no major problems in the coming days I am sure that the world will look upon 2010 as being a huge success allowing South Africa the confidence to bid for the 2020 Olympics in Durban.

By that time many of those 300,000 people will be hankering for a return trip back to the rainbow nation.