Blatter commends SA for hospitality

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Pretoria - FIFA President Sepp Blatter has commended the people of South Africa for the hospitality shown towards visitors who descended on the country for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Speaking after meeting with President Jacob Zuma at the Presidential Guest House in Pretoria on Thursday, Blatter said: "This is a great appreciation and compliment."

He encouraged the teams that have been knocked out of the tournament not to lose hope and to continue with their preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup to be hosted by Brazil.

Eight teams are left in the tournament which ends on 11 July.

President Zuma said he was happy with how the country hosted the showpiece. "The competition has reached a very serious stage," he said.

Before addressing the media, the two had a closed meeting where they discussed among other things, South Africa's hosting the World Cup and the closing of the World Cup.

The two also discussed issues pertaining to education and health.