Germany vs England game, 2nd Half stage
I am currently watching the 3rd game of the last 16 stage, where Germany and England are playing. While I am enjoying the quality of the game, I am rooting for England to progress to the Quarters. This wish may not be fulfilled though, if the way Germany are currently playing is going to last for the rest of the game.
The game is on the stroke of 69th minute. Germany are 4-1 up against England, and they also have had at least 2 clear shot-on-goal chances. Yes, England were denied a goal when a ball hit the top post and crossed the goal line as shown by TV replays on the 35th minute, but they are not looking good against Germany at this stage.
The reason why I am rooting for England is because Visa’s stats for the last 10 days of the world cup in my beloved country, South Africa, show that English tourists have been the biggest spenders at R192 million, followed closely by USA at R191 million. Australia came in a distant 3rd at R47 million. Germany lies 6th at a paltry R30 million.
As can be imagined for our country that spent an estimated R65 billion to make this world cup a success that it is right now, this event is not only about the best nations winning but also about the anticipated tourism spend by fans associated with the nations that progress to the advanced stages of the tournament. Things are looking rather gloomy with Australia having been knocked out at the group stage already, USA were knocked out by Ghana in the 2nd game of the last 16 last night. Now England are facing the prospect of not making the Quarters too. We are talking 3 nations whose fans have been the top world cup spenders thus far!
Effectively, this means that the projected R27 billion in tourism spend associated with the world cup will not be achieved come the 11th of July.
All one can say is that this world cup continues to produce interesting surprises and break records, not all of which are good for South Africa.
End of the game
Unfortunately, the game ended with England having not been able to reverse the 3-goal deficit against Germany. Paul The Octopus was right “his” prediction, after all. Good luck to our tourism sector, as English tourists are almost certainly going to follow their team back home long before the end of the world cup and take their pounds with them.
This post was written by: Bra Willy, Chief eNitiater
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