Construction of what will be known as Safa House gets underway in January next year in Nasrec, south of Johannesburg, and Fifa will foot the bill for a project that will cost between R50m and R70m to complete.

?In 1999, Fifa said all the associations had to have a house of football. Please start building and do it quickly because as from July 2006, the entire world will be focused on SA,? Blatter said.

?I call this a groundbreaking event because it is not everyday that the head of state is present (at a football function).?

Mbeki said soccer was central to the life and future of SA.

Safa have used the giant stadium near Soweto, Soccer City, as their headquarters over the past few years and the local game has been run from the venue.

The new Safa House will be built on the eastern side of the stadium?s stands and yesterday?s announcement added further weight to the belief that Soccer City, also known as FNB stadium, will host the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as the final of the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

The stadium itself will undergo a R364m facelift as part of the preparations for the tournament.

One of the conditions that go along with winning the rights to host a World Cup is that the host association provides office space where Fifa can operate.

Danny Jordaan, the CEO of the 2010 Soccer World Cup local organising committee, said earlier this year that Sandton was envisaged as the possible Fifa headquarters during the showpiece and four sites were identified.

But the football governing body and Safa later felt that it would be more cost-effective to build a new building than to rent office space.

After considering the costs that would have been involved in housing both Fifa and Safa over a five-year period till 2010 in a rented building, the world football governing body approved the decision to build a new building in September at its annual congress in Morocco.

It was decided that the long-term sustainability of South African football would benefit from owning its own state-of-the-art headquarters.

Safa president Molefi Oliphant and Soccer City GM Dennis Mumble were tasked by the football association?s executive committee to oversee the project till its conclusion next year.

The new headquarters are expected to be home to Safa and the Premier Soccer League (PSL).

But the inclusion of the PSL in the plans is still in doubt as the league recently bought a building in Parktown.

The PSL is expected to move into their new building in January next year and moving to Safa House seems the furthest thing from the minds of league officials.

Source: Business Day