In a recent contribution to the 2010 Nation Branding Debate, titled A branding bridge too far for a demoralized nation, a senior Business Day analyst argued that South Africa is “a country in crisis”, faces “a political, institutional and social crisis of unprecedented proportions” where “retributive justice has become the norm … local government has become ineffective … and crime is rampant and getting worse”, concluding that “a branding exercise similar to Germany's, with its concomitant successes, is simply not possible in SA”.
Whilst correct in pointing out South Africa's current brand gap in delivering the national brand promise of being ‘Alive with Possibility' (borne out by the fact that SA has dropped from 22nd to 37th place in the Nation Brand Index), the conclusion of dismissing 2010 as an opportunity to rebrand the country is missing the second dimension of nation branding, that is fostering social cohesion, which is a critical component in validating a country's external reputation.
One of the most prolific media spectacles off the pitch during the 2006 FIFA World Cup - and sure to be replicated in 2010 - was the shopping spree of the English footballers' wives and girlfriends (also known as WAGs).
How much can you spend in one hour? While England's players were on the field earning their keep, their WAGs were off it, spending it generously.
A fashion expert from the German tabloid BILD, who spent countless hours following the WAGs around the sleepy German spa town of Baden-Baden, exposed the trophy women's spectacular spending habits. The six partners under investigation from the fashion police managed to blow almost €80 000 in one hour - an astounding €13 300 every 10 minutes.
As the debate as to whether prostitution should be legalised in the run up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup heats up and human rights groups engage in a fierce battle over the (de)merits of any such action, it is worthwhile to cast our gaze back to the previous FIFA hosts and examine how potent a brand football and prostitution are, not just in word but more importantly in deed.
The big 2006 debate
Prior to the 2006 FIFA World Cup, a similar debate raged throughout Germany. The minister for family affairs Renate Schmidt got the ball rolling by making the interior ministry responsible for preventing an influx of illegal prostitutes from abroad.
Schmidt was convinced that the world would be watching and that the credibility of Germany's fight against human trafficking was at stake. The minister even sent a stern letter to the German Soccer Federation demanding that the group live up to its "responsibility to society" by supporting measures to control forced prostitution and human trafficking.
Whilst correct in pointing out South Africa's current brand gap in delivering the national brand promise of being ‘Alive with Possibility' (borne out by the fact that SA has dropped from 22nd to 37th place in the Nation Brand Index), the conclusion of dismissing 2010 as an opportunity to rebrand the country is missing the second dimension of nation branding, that is fostering social cohesion, which is a critical component in validating a country's external reputation. 
How much can you spend in one hour? While England's players were on the field earning their keep, their WAGs were off it, spending it generously.
The 2010 Scorecard measures th...
