South Africa Welcomes The World

Rustenburg welcomes the world to the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The World Cup in South Africa 2010

Rustenberg

Located just over an hour's drive to the north-west of Johannesburg, Rustenburg is the capital of the North West Province. Whilst the mainstay of the economy in this province is mining, there are some areas of outstanding beauty near to Rustenburg.

The World Cup In Rustenberg

The HP Silver Stars' ground is the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace and is the World Cup stadium for Rustenburg.

The stadium was built in 1999 and as a result only required minor changes to make it ready for the tournament. The stadium holds 40,000 people.

Rustenburg will host 4 first-round matches and one second-round match.

Rustenburg Match Schedule

Date	Stadium	Type	Team 1		Team 2
12 June, 20:30	Royal Bafokeng	Group C	England	vs	USA
15 June, 13:30	Royal Bafokeng	Group F	New Zealand	vs	Slovakia
19 June, 16:00	Royal Bafokeng	Group D	Ghana	vs	Australia
22 June, 16:00	Royal Bafokeng	Group A	Mexico	vs	Uruguay
24 June, 20:30	Royal Bafokeng	Group E	Denmark	vs	Japan
26 June, 20:30	Royal Bafokeng	Round of 16 (3)	Winner Group C	vs	2nd Group D

Visiting Rustenberg During The World Cup

Rusetenburg is not a major tourist or business destination, and as a result we anticipate many fans will choose to stay in nearby Sun City, Johannesburg or Pretoria. As with fans visiting every ther host city, space is likely to be hard to find and prices more expensive than many fans might expect.

It is very unlikely that most fans will be able to get their first choice of accommodation, although we will always do our best!

Between Games

9th hole, Gary Player Golf course The most popular trip for fans based in Rustenberg will be to go up to Sun City for the day where they can enjoy the fantastic Valley Of The Waves, the opulent Palace Hotel, play a round of golf (watch for crocodiles in the water hazard at the 13th!) or try their luck at the casino.

With the Pilannesberg National Park offering safari game drives and the chance to go ballooning there really is plenty here to keep fans amused for a couple of days, and with Jo'burg and Pretoria also easily accessable by car Fans should find plenty to keep them happy between games.

Any Chance Of A Safari?

Like fans based in Johannesburg and Pretoria (both of which are only a short drive away), fans based in Rustenburg will find that they have a wide range of options available to them if they are looking to add a safari to their World Cup itinerary.

The Pilanesberg National Park

Just 40 minutes north of Rustenburg is the Pilanesberg National Park, an attractive 50,000 hectare malaria-free park which is centred around an extinct volcano crater.

The Park is home to over 7,000 animals including the Big 5, giraffe, hippo, zebra, jackal, hyena and many antelope, and there are also over 350 bird species.

There is only one safari lodge inside the Park (Tshukudu Bush Lodge), however there are a number of family resorts that border the Park and offer a dinner, bed & breakfast package to visitors looking to drive themselves around Pilanesberg or join a guided drive around the Park leaving from the resort.

Madikwe Game Reserve

The other obvious choice for fans based in Rustenburg is the the 76,000 hectare Madikwe Game Reserve which is about 2h 30mins away from the down by car.

Madikwe is home to 66 large mammal species including the Big 5 and approximately 300 resident and migrant bird species. It is one of South Africa's largest game reserves and a popular safari choice for overseas visitors as it is in a malaria-free area and a number of the lodges also welcome children.

There are no day visitor facilities - only residents at a lodges may enter the reserve.

The Waterberg

The Waterberg area can also be reached fairly easily by road from Rustenburg, and is another option for fans based in the town who do not fancy the long drive or flight from Johannesburg that would be necessary to get them to Kruger, KwaZulu-Natal or Port Elizabeth.

As the Waterberg is a malaria-free area, it is also a great choice for families and others who want to enjoy the African wildlife without the worry of taking anti-malarial precautions.