Soccer fans world-round are already excited at the upcoming World Cup South Africa 2010. The qualifying games are already happening – to tremendous crowds – and we’re over a year away from the opening kick-off of the actual event. But when we’re talking about the single most popular sporting event in the world, you can bet that there are a lot of people paying attention.

And one of the things that we’re paying attention to this year is the host country, South Africa. A tumultuous country with a remarkable history, South Africa is just as much a beautiful paradise of rabid football fans as it is a troubled country on a continent that’s found the challenge of moving into the 21st century almost insurmountable.

Which leads to the quite reasonable question: is South Africa going to be ready for the World Cup when the first kick-off occurs?

A quick peek at a site like SouthAfrica.info and you’ll see they address it directly, saying “The Rugby World Cup, Cricket World Cup, World Cup of Motorsport, Women’s World Cup of Golf, African Nations Cup … If you think South Africa will have any trouble pulling off the 2010 Fifa World Cup, look at the country’s track record for hosting major sporting events – and think again.”

But are they really getting closer to being ready?

Well, it looks like they are. Earlier this month they had a grand lighting ceremony at Durban’s Moses Mabhida stadium to celebrate the completion of the 105-metre high arch that towers over the 2010 semi-final venue. The last few weeks also marked the beginning of ticket sales for the FIFA World Cup 2010, which is a definite sign of optimism, if nothing else.

We’ll keep a close eye on preparations, of course, but here’s hoping that June 11 will be the beginning of a wonderful series of matches and the simultaneous start of a new chapter for the South African nation and its peoples.