By Barry Moody JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africans swelled with pride on Saturday at the spectacular start to the World Cup, which wowed the globe and confounded sceptics who said they could never do it. Ayoba, Mzanzsi! (Cool, South Africa), said the Saturday Star newspaper in a giant headline, reflecting the pride and relief of a nation which is often tortured by self doubt and still riven by racial and wealth divides 16 years after the end of apartheid. For years critics and domestic pessimists said South Africa would never pull off the world's most watched sporting event, that its stadiums would be late, money would run out and organisation would collapse. But the opening match in Johannesburg's cavernous Soccer City stadium, filled with jiving and singing fans dressed in extraordinary costumes and blowing vuvuzela trumpets, lived up to all the expectations. Soccer City, Africa's biggest arena, is one of six stadiums, out of the 10 tournament venues, that stand comparison with any in the world and exceed many in their modernistic design. The host team Bafana Bafana (the Boys), written off as no-hopers last year but now national heroes, even came close to making the dream perfect by winning the opening match before Mexico's late goal forced a 1-1 draw. The significance of the successful opening, even though everybody realises there is a month to go before the tournament can be declared a success, went way beyond football. "RESPECT! That's what we earned yesterday. Defying the prophets of doom and gloom, South Africa pulled off a stunning World Cup opening ceremony," the Saturday Star said. NEW EYES "We are feeling it. It's going to be a big step for South Africa. It's going to push our tourism up ...This World Cup is boosting South Africa in many ways," said Jeandre Petersen, 16, in the Southgate Mall near Soccer City. Ronnie Tarr, 59, agreed. "Everyone is happy the World Cup is here. I've seen a lot of changes taking place. There is upgrade of the roads, new stadiums and there is a change of attitude. The change means people are starting to live in harmony. Racism is falling away. It will last. We can say now we are like a first world now." The World Cup also looks like fulfilling a wider hope, that a successful tournament will overturn stereotypes of disaster, famine and war and boost the continent as a fast-growing destination for major future investment. "Sometimes one wonderful day in our lives is much better than years of misery. We remember that day, how wonderful and how exciting it was and it gives us hope," former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the BBC. Anti-apartheid hero Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who danced with joy at the pre-tournament concert and the opening ceremony, rejected critics who said South Africa could not afford the $5 billion cost while it still has an army of poor and some of the globe's greatest wealth disparities. "Even if people say maybe we could have used this money to build houses...human beings don't live on bread alone, you need things that inspire you, that say to you, you can do it," the ebullient Nobel prize winner said in the same BBC programme. Other Africans share the view that the tournament can change the continent's image forever. "It's good for us that the World Cup is hosted on our continent. The limelight will shine on Africa and all African countries, and it will project Africa as an advanced place to live in," said Nagwa Mahmoud, an interpreter in Cairo. Sophisticated investors have already spotted Africa's potential. Half of the 10 fastest-growing countries will be in Africa next year according to the International Monetary Fund. The World Cup could change the perceptions of many other foreigners forever. (Additional reporting by Phumza Macanda and Gugu Lourie in Johannesburg, Sherine El Madany in Cairo; Editing by xxx)
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