The 2010 FIFA World Cup™, which stirred up the world with a tide of enthusiasm and excitement, is now over. Everyone seemed to be inspired by the first-ever World Cup to be held on the African continent, and the keyword "first" could be heard everywhere.
The Final was fought between Spain and the Netherlands, both contending for their first World Cup title. Spain came through as the winners, only the eighth country in the history of the FIFA World Cup to become the football champions of the world.
The tournament was also a "first" challenge for Sony. Sony became a FIFA Official Partner in 2007, and this was the company's very first FIFA World Cup experience.
Both during the buildup to the World Cup and also during the tournament itself, Sony planned and implemented a variety of initiatives at different locations all over the globe, with the aspiration "to share the dreams and excitement evoked through football with people around the world" and "to connect the world through football".
For the first time ever, Sony captured FIFA World Cup matches in 3D, propelling football fans worldwide into a whole new viewing dimension. Furthermore, as part of its CSR programs, Sony implemented "Public Viewing in Africa" events to provide children living in areas where television sets are still rare with the opportunity of watching the World Cup action. At the same time, many original footballs developed by Sony were donated to African children. These programs intended to provide opportunities "to connect the world through football" were promoted as Sony's CSR activities in which anyone could join and participate under the team name of "Earth F.C."
In fact, huge numbers of people supported these activities-those who visited the Sony Booth for the public viewing events at Nelson Mandela Stadium and other World Cup stadiums in South Africa as well as one or more of 4,000 Sony stores around the world to experience and enjoy the 3D footage, those who participated in the Earth F.C. programs, and those who supported the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ with Sony... We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to everyone!
Being involved in the FIFA World Cup, Sony received very enthusiastic responses, assuring us that football does indeed connect people's minds.
The 2010 FIFA World Cup™ official song "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)", sung by Shakira, had a magical power to unite everyone at the tournament. Its irresistible rhythm naturally encouraged everyone to dance together, sing together, and to have fun together.
We also witnessed the excitement of football fans in various parts of the world being truly connected, such as those who happened to be in the same place at the same time to experience 3D videos or to enjoy a public viewing.As for Earth F.C., a total of 26 public viewing events were held at 19 locations in Cameroon and Ghana. These events were attended by approximately 24,000 spectators. And thanks to everyone who participated in Earth F.C., Sony will be delivering around 3,300 original footballs to different parts of Africa.
The tide of enthusiasm is now connected to the next FIFA World Cup in Brazil in 2014. The four-year long countdown has already started, and Sony is launching upon a new challenge. To share the passion and enthusiasm, to deliver the dreams and excitements and to connect the world through football again, Sony, as a FIFA Partner, will continue to develop various activities.
