South Africa can't believe visitors won't by tickets, realise 'crime' must be a problem after all

SHOOT: You could see it a mile away, that -
1) People wouldn't be able to afford the expense of the SWC
2) The long haul and ordinary expenses have been exacerbated by a financial crisis
3) If people were feeling a bit iffy about coming [meaning they had tickets but were unsure] just throw in some shitty PR [Malema-style] and you'll turn away people in droves. That's exactly what's happened. Bite the hand that feeds you and you end up going hungry.
4) South Africa also makes a particularly vulnerable target for terror attacks because it has very porous borders, corrupt police and other leaders etc.

Jordaan and other officials say costs to attend the long-haul World Cup have been a major factor in depressing foreign demand. The government has launched inquiries into both accommodation costs and alleged domestic airline price fixing.

clipped from www.sport24.co.za Johannesburg - World Cup organisers launched a drive on Friday to persuade South Africans to buy up 500 000 unsold match tickets, after European demand for the soccer spectacular fell short of expectations. Fears of crime and high costs have sapped demand in several European countries, especially Germany, and organisers said a "significant number" of tickets had been returned, including by corporate sponsors. They could not give details but said the fifth and final ticket phase would be launched on April 15, spearheaded for the first time by over-the-counter sales in South Africa via 11 new centres in the nine match cities. Of the 2.2 million tickets sold so far, nearly 1 million went to South Africans. The United States, not a traditional soccer nation, surprisingly topped the foreign buyers with 118,945 tickets--way above third placed Britain with 67 654. In Germany, where media reports of violent crime in South Africa have had a significant impact, only 32 269 tickets have been sold.