Virtual 2010 stadiums grow

Says MTN chief marketing officer Serame Taukobong, "It helps City Parks to breathe much-needed life into the township communities and enables us to add dimension, integrity and very real meaning to MTN as a brand at work, making a difference in the lives of its target market.”

The TV sites deliver football, education and entertainment free to township communities on giant television screens in family friendly environments, which means that all the excitement of local and international live big screen football is now available in a total of 15 township park sites around the country.

These sites not only give township communities the chance to feel what it's like to be part of a big stadium crowd, but will also encourage community togetherness and bring much needed social upliftment to some of the country's underserviced areas.

More than 80 000

More than 80 000 fans packed into the previous 10 existing MTN sites; Ivory Park, Eldorado Park, Diepsloot, Diepkloof, Alexandra, Thokoza, Joubert Park, Lenasia, Orange Farm and Elandsdoorn (Limpopo) during the FIFA Confederations Cup. They watched the eight teams "at home" and were also treated to other activities such as five-a-side soccer games, DJs, world of soccer, foosball, on-screen SMS competitions and interactive games, to make their football outings even more memorable.

All TV community parks operate along the same lines; screens switch on at 2pm with cartoons, Disney channel and educational programming for the communities' children. Later, the programming switches to music, followed by sport. Closing time is generally 7pm, but on days featuring late football, closure is after the last game.

Additional MTN Ekasi TV sites are planned for imminent rollout so more communities can look forward to 2010 along with the rest of South Africa.