World Cup 2010: Celebrities & Royalty at the tournament in South Africa
It’s safe to say that the100 million dollars South Africa spent on its World Cup Media Campaign was money well spent. Spectator turnout at the games has consistently been to full-capacity and the country has had a major boost in tourism, at a time where there is usually a drop due to the weather. However, everyday folk haven’t been the only ones at the stands; this World Cup sees more celebrity sightings than ever before. From Royalty to Musicians, Models to Heiresses, From Hollywood to Bollywood- This World Cup final has as much to offer!
The kick-off concert itself boasted of world-class pop acts ranging from the Shakira to John Legend. As the matches have progressed, we’ve caught Will.I.Am and Alicia Keys at the South Africa versus Mexico game. The two English Prince’s, Harry and William, at USA versus England match. Bill Clinton and Mick Jagger at the USA versus Ghana game, and many more including John Travolta, R. Kelly, and basketball player, Kobe Bryant. It’s not just the sightings that are picked up by the camera on the pitch though, which has highlighted the presence of these A Listers, but rather their own twitter postings!
Twitter released a statement stating that the number of tweets per second has hit a record high of 3,283 during this world cup, a number which is well above the sites average rate of 750 tweets per second. Akon, Kimmora Lee Simmons, Paris Hilton, Will I Am , and Kim Kardashian, are all among the stars who have used the social networking site to express their thoughts on being in South Africa for this event. Celebs have used twitter as a platform to express their connection, gratitude, and pride with South Africa, others simply to write about the games, and many just to run with the trend, either way, the attention drawn via celebrity tweets, has been a major boost for SA. Hosting the World Cup in the age of Twitter has been extra beneficial for South Africa, since it has been using the tournament to transform the world’s perception of Africa and with celebrities sharing pictures of beautiful tourist spots and giving their personal seal of approval, the country is on a sure fire path to achieve its goal.
Of course, along with Celebrities comes the Paparazzi and how can we have a segment on Celebrity Sightings at the Finals without a note on all that’s been reported. Apparently, the English team got a surprise locker room visit from their Prince’s after the USA versus England game. Paris Hilton travelled to South Africa for a 2 weeks stay with 13 Louis Vuitton Suitcases. Mick Jagger shared a joke with Bill Clinton during the Ghana match!
However, it is safe to say that the presence of these celebrities and all the drama they seemingly bring with them has not taken away from football. The main focus of the viewers has consistently been the games, rather than celebrity sightings. Despite the ever-pervasive presence of the paparazzi with its glitterati focus, Celebrities and fans alike, have come together to enjoy the game of football rather than indulge in the media frenzy.
Tags: