Paris (AFP)

Vuvuzelas concert, goal of Tshabalala and everywhere "Waka Waka": thus began the first World Cup of football on the African continent, June 11, 2010. Ten years later, the heritage of the competition is contrasted in South Africa .

"It was a legendary moment, not only for me but also for South Africans, the continent and the world," said Siphiwe Tshabalala, when asked about his goal against Mexico during the opening match on June 11, 2010.

"I am also proud to have, in one way or another, acted on the lives of people (...) I made them happy, I united them by marking this goal", estimates the medium of field, quoted by the South African newspaper The Times.

If the Bafana Bafana (the nickname of the South African selection) quickly became the first hosts of the World Cup to take the door from the group stage, football still took root in the land of Springboks.

- Stabilized championship, stadiums frequented -

Created in 1996, the national championship has reached cruising speed, thanks to the financial consolidation prompted by the millionaire Irvin Khoza, the president of the league.

The sixteen formations engaged in the South African elite receive each month 2.5 million rand (130,000 euros approximately). The winners of the championship and the three annual knockout competitions share a cumulative fortune of 34.5 million rand (1.83 M EUR).

Last week, the Premier Soccer League however lost its main sponsor Absa, who has been accompanying him since 2007 but will not continue beyond the 2019-2020 season.

At the sporting level, the South African clubs are still struggling to shine beyond their borders. Since 1996, only the Mamelodi Sundowns have won (in 2016) the CAF Champions League, the most prestigious trophy for African clubs.

This does not prevent supporters, football and other sports, from flocking to the stadiums. Unlike other host countries, South Africa has successfully converted most of the ten arenas where the high mass of world football was played in 2010.

"The stadiums host football, rugby, concerts and religious events," said Tex Riba, an expert in the marketing of South African speakers, in 2018.

"They have conference rooms and lecture halls that can be rented by companies," he added in Business Media magazine.

The only exception to the rule is the Sport Palace in Rustenburg (north-east), whose 45,000 seats have struggled to fill up since the relegation, sale and relocation of the Platinum Stars, the club that performed there.

- "The selection is of an average level" -

Rather prosperous at the domestic level, South African football has, however, struggled to export. The national selection, its main showcase, missed qualification for the 2014 and 2018 World Cups and has not raised the African Cup of Nations since 1996.

"I do not understand why the selection is of an average level, when the national championship is one of the best in Africa", was surprised in 2019 the ex-star striker of FC Barcelona, ​​the Cameroonian Samuel Eto ' o.

The answer may be found in Europe: among the five major championships on the continent, only Ligue 1 has players from the rainbow nation.

In the absence of figureheads, like Steven Pienaar (former player of Tottenham and Everton) or Benni McCarthy (Ajax Amsterdam and Porto) could be, the Bafana Bafana no longer seduce the crowds.

During international matches, the influx painfully reaches 5,000 spectators, against 90,000 during a preparatory match for the 2010 World Cup against Colombia.

And salvation will probably not come from the Football Federation, monopolized by struggles for influence. The omnipotence of its president Danny Jordaan is notably criticized by the former general manager of Safa, Dennis Mumble.

Not enough to start the optimism of Mr. Jordaan, who welcomed Wednesday, in a rave release for the Safa, a 2010 World Cup "flawless".

In this complicated context, the next chapters in the history of the selection may be written by women: in 2019, the Banyana Banyana participated in France in their first World Cup.

© 2020 AFP