With the "Rainbow Nation" ready to stage soccer's showcase event, excitement reached fever pitch as fans began to stream into Soccer City on Friday ahead of the historic World Cup opening clash between hosts South Africa and Mexico.
Outside the stadium, vuvuzela-blowing South African fans donning their Bafana Bafana uniforms, eagerly awaited the start of the African continent's first-ever World Cup finals, while supporters of the Mexican team yelled "Go Mexico!"
Phillip Pratt, a South African banker who had queued up at the front from the wee hours before the stadium's gates opened, showed his enthusiasm with a colorful rendition of the South African flag painted across his forehead.