Argentine Elizondo for opener

Zagreb: Croatia have bowed to a request by FIFA to change the design of their World Cup jerseys because there was too much white on them, the Zagreb daily Vecernji List reported yesterday. The decision means the team will play in Germany with a different strip to the one they used in the qualifications and to the replicas sold to tens of thousands of fans. FIFA ordered the change after they discovered the shirts – red squares on white – had 30 per cent more white on them than allowed under the federation’s rules. The problem was resolved by adding red squares to the back of the jerseys to reduce the area of white.

S. Africa to launch 2010 Cup emblem in Germany

Durban: South Africa, host of the 2010 Soccer World Cup, will officially unveil an emblem of the tournament in Berlin, Germany on July 7, local organisers announced. The launch before the end of this year’s World Cup in Germany is a first in the history of the tournament, said Danny Jordaan, CEO of the South Africa World Cup committee. This will be followed by a concert in the German capital on the same evening and later South Africa will also unveil their African Legacy Programme, a new venture in that for the first time a hosting World Cup country will attempt to make the event one of total continental involvement, the SAPA news agency reported.