216,975 Fans Want to Go to the 2010 World Cup!

Applications from 128 countries for 216,975 World Cup tickets were received Saturday via the FIFA website 24 hours after tickets went on sale across the globe, FIFA officials said.

WOW!

The biggest number of orders came from South Africa followed by Britain, the United States, Germany, Brazil, Australia, Japan, Mexico, Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain and Argentina.

"These are fantastic numbers, underlying yet again the fervor taking hold around the world for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the first on the African continent," David Will, chairman of the FIFA ticketing sub-committee, said.

"It is very exciting and further evidence that the global football family wants to be part of this unique event on this very special continent," the statement quoted him as saying.

"We are absolutely ecstatic with the phenomenal response of football fans around the world to the start of ticket sales for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa," chief executive officer of the FIFA local organizing committee, Danny Jordaan, said.

Fans have until midnight March 31 to make their ticket applications on the FIFA website.

FIFA has about three million tickets available for 64 matches ranging from 80 dollars for group stages to 900 dollars for the final.

Tickets will be available in three types of sales phases: the random selection draw, the first come first served, and last minute sales.

MY POV: So ... did you apply? Are you going to South Africa for the Cup?!?