Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who died aged 90 on Sunday, was a major figure in warming South Africans' spirits in a freezing cold winter of 2010 and revving them up on the eve of the hosting of the Fifa World Cup.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu and then Vice President of the United States Joe Biden attend the 2010 Fifa World Cup Group A match between South Africa and Mexico at Soccer City in Johannesburg on June 11 2010.Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who died aged 90 on Sunday, was a charismatic figure warming South Africans' spirits in a freezing cold winter of 2010, and revving them up on the eve of the hosting of the Fifa World Cup.
Mandela and Tutu played a crucial role convincing global leaders and football bosses that SA was a safe venue with the infrastructure to be able to host a football World Cup. The day after the concert Tutu sat in front of then-US Vice President, now President, Joe Biden at Soccer City. He celebrated Siphiwe Tshabalala's opening goal of the tournament as Mexican President Felipe Calderon and SA President Jacob Zuma, who were seated next to each other, looked on.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu addressing the media about the 2010 Fifa World Cup in a press conference in Cape Town on 21 June 2010. Tutu said he was overjoyed by the national unity and spirit of generosity that had developed in SA over the previous two weeks.He said he was overjoyed by the national unity and spirit of generosity that had developed in SA over the first two weeks of the tournament, and that even if SA did not progress the country had a lot to be proud of.
Kidjou recounted: “Then came the most touching moment of my trip. After my performance, I sat next to Desmond Tutu on the side of the stage as he waited to make his speech. He told me, 'We just want to say we can do it. Yes we can, said [Barack] Obama. Now it's our turn to say we can. And we will!'
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