My World Cup in pics
I've taken more than 1,000 photographs while I've been in South Africa. Given I've used my phone rather than a camera, the quality could probably be better. But they're still enough to stir so many vivid memories of my six weeks here. I decided I would share with you five photos that, for me, help to sum up the 2010 Fifa World Cup.
ONE: ELEPHANTS
This picture was taken before the World Cup had even begun when the England players spent a day on safari. I was lucky enough to be one of the reporters covering the trip. Personally, of course, it was wonderful to be able to see so many animals close up but I believe the day symbolised so much about the England team. As I followed the players around Pilanesberg Game Reserve, I couldn't help but draw comparisons between the players and the animals. The players felt that they were being hunted, trapped for long periods within the confines of their hotel. They rarely looked happy. While other teams mixed freely with supporters after training and in the days between matches, the England players came across as aloof. Wayne Rooney revealed what he thought of the fans when his frustration was caught on camera after the draw against Algeria. Perhaps England's chances of mounting a serious challenge at a major tournament would increase if the players could find a way to relax and smile a bit more.
TWO: VUVUZELAS AND EMPTY SEATS
No summary of South Africa 2010 would be complete without a mention of the vuvuzelas. But this photo also shows something else that was seen too frequently - empty seats. Whatever the reason for so many missing spectators, Fifa must make sure it never happens again.
THREE: WING MIRROR COVERS
These wing mirror covers were the must-have accessory of the World Cup. The South African people could not have done more to get behind their team. Yes, South Africa became the first host nation to fail to progress beyond the group stage but the legacy of the way that Bafana Bafana pulled the population behind the South African flag will live on.
FOUR: BUS BREAKDOWN
I took this photo when the minibus taking the BBC News team to Bloemfontein broke down. You'll note that I was happy to take the pictures while others pushed! There's a serious point, though, behind my decision to include this. I, like everybody else, had heard all the scare stories about security in South Africa. I'd been told about all the terrible things that could happen if you were stuck in a broken-down vehicle at the side of the road. Well, they didn't happen to me. That's not to say that South Africa is totally safe - I have friends and colleagues who had problems here - but I do believe that some of the warnings about safety were too severe. The vast majority of the South African people are warm and welcoming. I would like to thank them for giving me such an enjoyable World Cup.
FIVE: PATIENT FANS
I took this picture a few hours before the semi-final between Spain and Germany in Durban. A Spanish and German fan were waiting for the turnstiles to open. In six weeks in South Africa, I have not seen a single act of hooliganism. Supporters from all over the world came together for a festival of football.
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~02~RS~)
I've been a Sports News Correspondent since 2001. During that time I've covered three World Cups, two Summer Olympics, two Winter Olympics and plenty more besides - so you won't be surprised when I tell you that I believe that I have one of the best jobs in the business. You can also follow me on 
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Of all of the above, what are the lessons that London needs to learn for it's big show in 2 years?
Thanks for the excellent coverage - and if Jake Humphrey can get his pictures up on a page, I'm sure you should be allowed to, too.
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Excellent Blog James!
Think you are spot on with your remarks on the England team. So much for the 'Golden Generation' eh?
Your point about the fan and distinct lack of Hooliganism is another well made. It's just a shame that their hasn't been more widespread acknowledgment of the fantastic behaviour of all the fans who travelled (bar a certain gentleman getting lost on the way to the toilet!)
Your coverage on Twitter has been great, wth the pics and vids really giving a sense of the emotin at the tournament, particularly the Ghana squad celebrating!
Roll n 2014!
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I remember the snide comments months ago wondering whether South Africa would ever have the stadia ready and would be able to pull off staging the World Cup much in the same way our efforts to stage the 2012 Olympics are being derided.
I have to state here that I only have the most passing of interests in football but your comments, reports and feedback from South Africa coloured in the picture most eloquently and you actually dragged me into following the events, both on and off the field.
Thank you so much for making the tournament enjoyable for someone like me - I really appreciated your efforts and will follow your future assignments with interest.
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I think everyone is overdoing it about there being empty seats. I would say that 90% of the matches were at least 90% full or more. I would say that the empty seats are partly due to the high cost and low take up of the hospitality packages, partly due to people with tickets not arriving (there must always be empty seats in stadia due to people not being able to come at the last minutes for whatever reason), and partly due to FIFA's inflexible ticket re-sale process together with touting which probably meant that touts ended up with tickets in their hands which they couldn't resell due to FIFA and the police clamping down on touting. For instance I had tickets to Japan vs Cameroon as part of a TST package. I couldn't get there as it was in Bloemfontein and I live in Jo'burg. FIFA wouldn't resell the tickets as they were part of a package. I asked them to just send them to Bloem and give them away but they wouldn't do that either. Also stadiums were apparently on average larger than previous tournamants.
The fact that the total attendance was more than 3 million and the average attendance per game close to 50,000 should really be enough to end the discussion and negative comments on this point.
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Typically we complain when other countries run the competition.
I remember in Euro96 there being plenty of empty seats - many due to people buying tickets in anticipation of teams making certain knock-out stage games. When the team takes another route the seats are left empty.
The solution is to either easily resell tickets (logistically difficult) or have local schools standing by to accept free tickets for local children. Again may be tricky to implement but twas ever thus.
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Got back last week from SA, like you had a wonderful time over 3 weeks there, it changed my opinion on the country for sure, and I will return for a holiday in future.
As for the tickets, they were simply too expensive for the majority of locals to afford.
We had a couple of spares for the England games and gave them to our minibus drivers who we had hired for the day, they were made up.
FIFA however need to look at this for Brazil 2014 and offer tickets at prices that the locals can afford, its their world cup as much as its ours too so why price them at European prices?
Anyway thank you South Africa, and good luck Brazil for 2014 I have started saving already.
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With regard to the issue of the empty seats, I think James was bit over exagerating there, most of the stadiums exept one, PE Stadium, always had more than 90% capacity. The obvious reason being that, of all South African Provinces, Eastern Cape is by far the poorest and people could not afford to buy tickets. Secondly, in comparison to the previous world cups, South African Stadiums were on average bigger in capacity, the smallest probably had 44000 seats. And with FIFA having r
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