Less than a month away from the kick off of the World Cup in South Africa, it seems a good time to place context around what will be a landmark event in that country and on its continent.


For all the glitz, glamor, and pomp surrounding the world's biggest soccer tournament, there is a dark side to the event that we should endeavor to prevent from going unnoticed. Much of what the watching world will focus on will happen only in refurbished and brand new cathedrals to the game meant to give the impression that South Africa is a modern nation capable of pulling off the monumental task successfully.


At this stage, there's reason to believe that a smoothly run tournament is approaching. FIFA will roll in with their three ring circus, set up their tents and carefully staged backdrops, fete the South African people even while the people themselves pay for the party, then steal away with nary a thought to the long term ramifications of their month-long visit. It's those far-reaching effects, and the condition of the county from an economic, social, and cultural standpoint both pre- and post-tournament that should not get conveniently swept under the rug.


During the run up to the cup, writers from around the media and blogging world have taken time to focus on some of the issues facing South Africa. Without the intense magnifying glass of the World Cup, these issues might only rarely draw the eye, giving us occasional pause; spotlighted as they are during the run up to the tournament, they should exert a industrial-strength magnet-like pull.


Apartheid may have ended in 1994, but the policy of state sponsored racism still casts a long shadow over the county and its black majority. Neil W. Blackmon of Yanks Are Coming penned a piece addressing apartheid's echo across the last sixteen years, wondering aloud if South Africa has overcome the debilitating effects, then providing a stark, and obvious, answer.


FIFA itself benefits from the ubiquitous nature of soccer the world over with overflowing coffers and the mandate to take the game almost anywhere in the form of its tournaments. Nations line up to get the World Cup, committing to, and the spending if they are awarded the bid, billions of dollars to build the infrastructure needed. South Africa's own outlay is on the order of $4.5 billion; questions remain if hosting the World Cup will create the kind of economic impact, not just during, but after, that would make such an expenditure justifiable.


South Africa may well host a glorious tournament. Organizers and government officials will certainly work to shine the best possible light on their country (something that may come with its own price), improving South Africa's world standing. But the happenstance of Africa's first World Cup also brings with it an opportunity to give proper examination to the nation's many problems, problems which won't likely be washed away by a month of the best the game of soccer has to offer.