The 2010 FIFA World Cup was hailed by the South African government as an event that would leave a multitude of social and economic legacies. Sibongile Mazibuko, the executive director of the 2010 office, explained, ‘For many years to come we want to look back with pride at this great event. But even more, we want to use the experience of putting it together as a springboard to leap into the future’ (CoJ 2009: 328).

The South African government wanted to ‘also use this opportunity to speed up the delivery of services and infrastructure. The investment related to the World Cup encompasses a large range of projects. These projects will leave a lasting legacy for the people of South Africa’ (GCIS n.d.: 3). However, the jury is still out on the effect of mega events, such as the Summer Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup, on local economic activity (Sterken 2006). Barclay observes that the Summer Olympic Games can stimulate GDP but the FIFA World Cup cannot. He raises doubt as to the effectiveness of such events and goes on to say that reports ‘overestimate the gains and underestimate the costs involved’ (Barclay 2009: 62). A number of other authors have expressed concern about the potentially negative impacts of mega events, such as the possible conflicts of interest that arise (Herzenberg 2011), the capture of huge sums of money for what is essentially an elitist event (Ngonyama 2010), and the relocations that can occur (COHRE 2007).

The question for South Africa is: has a legacy (positive or negative) materialised? And what are the perceptions of the residents of the various precincts who were supposed to have benefited from the World Cup? In attempting to answer these questions, we focus in this chapter on the Ellis Park Precinct (Figure 21.1) and on its residents’ perceptions of the legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup for them and their families.