World Cup 2010

Landon Donovan's late goal on Tuesday to put the US at the top of the group set off a celebration in the stands. For a good hour, a few hundred US fans partied in the stands and out on the concourse. It reminded me of the scene in 2002 after the US made it through to the second round, but this time there were several times as many Americans in attendance.

The logistics of getting to Ellis Park stadium in Johannesburg were much simpler than with Rustenburg. The stadium is near the city center, and about an hour and fifteen minutes drive from our lodge. Again we had the lodge owners shuttle us to and from, and this time we chose a bar called Pete's Pub as the rendezvous point.

Pete's is within a few blocks of the stadium. It turned out to be the location of choice for a lot of US fans. The place was packed and the parking lot out front was also full.

The Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg is actually located outside of the city on tribal land and the only way to get there was by shuttle buses provided by the World Cup organizers. The surrounding area was said to be closed off to cars, but when we got there it was a chaotic mess of people and cars. As the evening progressed, more and more people crowded in front of the entrance, waiting for the gate to open so they could go inside.

FIFA has begun to crack down on what it considers illegal ticket sales.

The second round FIFA sale has come and gone. I had little hope of getting any tickets from it, and today I got cofirmation from FIFA that I had not.

At this point I am thinking the best strategy will be to try to get tickets through US Soccer, and then use the remaining two FIFA sales phases as backup plans. As a last resort, we can always try to buy tickets from scalpers at the stadiums.

FIFA's partner MATCH has completed the random selection for tickets on Wednesday, April 15. If you haven't heard yet, you should know within a week whether you've won tickets. This is the first of four ticket sales phases.

This should be a little more uplifting than the last message. I am so excited for the World Cup next year. I want South Africa to show the world how great they are, and I know they will put on a great tournament.

On Friday, the first of five ticket sales phases began. It is hard to believe that it has already started. In many ways it seems too soon as a fan to be planning ticket purchases, but for some it makes sense. Here are the basics to help with your decision.

This is a bit old, but I wanted to post something to get myself thinking about planning. FIFA and the South Africa 2010 organizing committee released the official logo a few months back.