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developments through a lens that they have perhaps never had to before. FIFA, on the other hand, is of interest and importance because in the realm of contemporary international relations and socio-economics, FIFA represents the growing trend of extremely powerful and influential NGOs on the global level. This delicate balance of power is of keen interest to social scientists and IR scholars, and only becomes more interesting when nations subordinate themselves to international organizations by resting hopes for development and economic growth on the shoulders of these bodies and their mega-events. This study is important because if it were found that the relationship between international sporting bodies, their mega-events and developing nations is particularly exploitative and exclusionary then we must prepare for and remedy this in the future.
1.3 Methodology
This will fundamentally be a qualitative research paper that uses primary data sources such as government, LOC and/or FIFA reports and statistics, as well as secondary data such as academic papers & journals, and media & news reports.
In the modern era, the 2010 edition of the FIFA World Cup hosted by South Africa was the first World Cup to be hosted in the developing world and certainly the first in Africa. With that in mind there are no prior events with which to make a case study or comparisons. As a result, I will compare to all or any prior World Cups if and when a comparison is necessary or relevant.
This could be done to highlight the difference in consequence or problem when hosting in the developing world as opposed to the developed world, or a comparison could be made to show a pattern of problems and issues that repeat themselves throughout World Cups or
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events, regardless of location. In similar fashion, owing to its equal status as a sporting mega-event, I shall also compare or refer to scenarios surrounding past Olympic events, particularly Beijing 2008, as China could be described as developing. However, with that said, this study and this paper is essentially a case study unto itself and it presents many nuances and particularities that are unique to South Africa such as the youthfulness of our democracy, our unique and complex economy and our racially divided past that still determines social inequalities today.
Hence, the primary focus and case study will be South Africa itself and I will refer to local case studies or scenarios to support or disprove certain theories or beliefs.
The above independent variables very much inform and are part and parcel of my own theories and hypothesis as shall be explained going forward. With regards to the notion/variable of informal trader exclusions, I am referring to the banning and removal of street traders and vendors from stadiums and their surroundings which are declared as ‘Exclusion Zones’, as well as the harassment and hindering of informal economy activities in general (eThekwini
Municipality, 2010:8). Bear in mind that these vendors are most often in the informal sector because of an inability to contribute in the formal, and they have established their ‘businesses’
in chosen areas because of the foot traffic and relative proximity to clientele and resources they may need to sustain their business. These businesses are traditionally tiny, one-man operations that generate little profit but are essential in supporting families and livelihoods. Proximity to stadia, entertainment areas, trade zones and transport hubs is central to the survival of these informal businesses and subsequently the families supported by them. It is with the above in mind that I ponder just why FIFA, the South African government or the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) would be so adamant on their removal and exclusion. To this end, the first
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justification I can think of runs along the lines of neoliberal capitalism where financial interests are vehemently guarded and monopolies are established in the interest of competition
eradication (Mabugu & Mohamed, 2008). With that said, my theoretical and methodological approach to this paper will be ‘neoliberalism’. Neoliberalism is an ideology that involves a commitment to the rolling back of the Keynesian welfare state’s collectivist institutions and the ethos of universal provision to the rolling out of market mechanisms and competitiveness to achieve economic growth (Peck and Ticknell 2002; McGuirk 2005). If, by definition,
neoliberalism is the use of policies like deregulation, privatization, tax-cuts and globalization to promote rationale self-interest then, by definition, the FIFA World Cup is monumentally
neoliberal. Neoliberal policies are known to encourage economic growth and capital
accumulation but due to the laissez-faire approach, benefits, growth and capital flows are never equally spread and are almost always achieved at the expense and peril of an exploited or excluded group. This dissertation will therefore assess if the World Cup and other mega-events perpetuates neoliberal disparities within a society.
My hypothesis and theory with regards to evictions and forced removals of residents is that in an attempt to look as attractive to tourists and international media the country must present itself in its cleanest, most developed fashion imaginable. Unfortunately, in a country like South Africa where the gap between the haves and the have-nots is alarmingly wide and clear and yet they often live within a relatively close proximity to each other, particularly in the cities, the result of this is to deny and hide the existence of sub-par housing and slums. In cases where said informal settlements are thought to be too much of an eye-sore for tourist and investors
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then they are simply raised to the ground and their inhabitants are ‘asked’ to move elsewhere, usually temporary informal settlements with worse facilities etc. than their last homes
The paper will begin with the approach of a critical analysis in the sense that it will identify and assess how, economically and socially, the World Cup manifested itself in South Africa and what this meant for the population and the economy. To this end my empirical research will seek to find statistics and information on issues such as employment and job creation, forced evictions, small business and entrepreneurship rates and just who was excluded and how. This paper will be a distinct and unique contribution to academia in the sense that where other authors and researches have explored the socio-economics of World Cup hosting, whether that be in South Africa or elsewhere, this paper will be primarily focused on the informal economy (street traders and vendors in particular) as well as the housing rights of evicted and removed people.
Furthermore, I shall be comparing and contrasting these focus groups with the unique and yet unexplored socio-dynamics of the developing world so that developing nations and their emerging economies are better prepared than South Africa was