Johannesburg is home to two of the World Cup stadiums and is the venue for the tournament opener and the final itself. The newly-reconstructed Soccer City Stadium will kick the World Cup off while also staging the tournament's climax. In the city centre, historic Ellis Park has also had a facelift to play its own part in events.
Soccer City Stadium's design is inspired by the iconic African pot known as the calabash, and is only a short distance from football-crazy Soweto.The original ground, which was known as the FNB Stadium is widely, regarded as the heart of football in South Africa while also hosting the first mass rally by Nelson Mandela after his release from prison in 1990.
Ellis Park is more well known as the fortress of South African rugby and was the site of the Springboks' first World Cup victory in 1995.
Ellis Park was first built in 1928 but was demolished and rebuilt in 1982, again exclusively for rugby. It was named after JD Ellis, a Johannesburg city councilor who approved the use of the land for a stadium, setting aside a full 13 acres.
CITY FACTS
Province: Gauteng Province
Population: 3.2 million
Altitude: 1753m
Geography: Located on the eastern high-lying plateau in South Africa referred to as the Highveld.
