South Africa in Full Colors for 2010 World Cup

Soccer City was in full colors at the opening ceremony of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Photo by bbc.co.uk

The opening ceremony for the 2010 FIFA World Cup showed the rich and colorful culture of the host, South Africa.

The ceremony for the 19th edition of the tournament began with the crossing of five military airplanes above Africa's biggest stadium. Soccer City got full by the middle of the show, due to the huge traffic in Johannesburg.

American R'n'B star R.Kelly, South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela, and 1 500 other participants provided entertainment for the fans before the first game.

South African Nobel Prize winner Desmond Tutu was also present in the audience, dressed in yellow and green to show support for his national team.

Ex-president Nelson Mandela's appearance at the opening was canceled, due to his great-granddaughter's death in a car accident Thursday evening.

The first game of 2010 FIFA World Cup will be between the hosts and Mexico and is supposed to begin at 1700 GMT+2.