FIFA to release tickets of disappointed fans

Durban: FIFA said on Wednesday it would release 2,000 tickets for the World Cup quarter-finals which had been reserved by fans who hoped their teams would reach the last eight but had seen them eliminated.

"Tickets for the quarter-finals will be, as of noon today, released," FIFA spokesman Nicolas Maingot said at a media briefing on Wednesday.There are 500 tickets available for the Brazil-Netherlands match at Nelson Mandela Bay stadium in Port Elizabeth; 1,200 for the Uruguay-Ghana match at Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg; and 300 tickets available for Argentina-Germany match at Greenpoint stadium in Cape Town. Maingot said FIFA would release more information regarding the Paraguay-Spain match at Ellis Park in Johannesburg.The soccer governing body also said almost 4 million fans had watched games at fan fests, with about 1.7 million going to sites in South Africa and about 2.2 million to its six international venues. Bureau Report