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Blatter: Schedule still the same
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Blatter: No worries Photo:
Football365.co.za
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Sepp Blatter insists the match schedule for next year's
World Cup will not be altered as a result of the terrorist atrocity in
Pakistan earlier this month.
The world of cricket is still reeling from the attack on the Sri Lanka
team in Lahore, in which eight people were killed.
A number of events in the sub-continent may now not go ahead, with the
lucrative Indian Premier League among those over which doubt has been
cast.
But for Blatter it will be business as usual at South Africa 2010, with
no thought given to cutting down the amount of travelling the 32 teams
must do.
"We can cross fingers," said Blatter. "So far our game
has never been the objective of any group who wants to destroy.
"What happened in Pakistan against the cricket team has a political
background.
"It would be wrong to look at this example and stop all the travelling
around. The basis of our game is that fans can go from one country to
another, from one city to another, one continent to another. It is part
of the universal appeal of football.
"But naturally we will be careful when organising competitions to
have event security."
FIFA get a run through of their World Cup plans at the Confederations
Cup in June, although the venues are largely based around Johannesburg.
At the World Cup itself, the sheer size of South Africa means competing
teams, and therefore their supporters, will be jetting around what has
previously been viewed as a fairly unstable country from a security point
of view.
Yet Blatter is supremely confident 2010 will pass off smoothly, allowing
football to leave behind a tangible benefit for all South Africans.
"FIFA's wish for the legacy of the World Cup in South Africa is that
the high level of security around the event should be maintained after
the World Cup," he said.
"Then we would have brought something to South Africa more than just
football."
Football365.co.za,
12/03/09
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