"We are expecting the influx of supporters for these teams will translate into high rand figures. The World Cup has been very good for us," Chuene said.
Port Elizabeth's Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Percci) said many of its retail and tourism sector members had reported an increase in turnover.
Some tour operators have been left licking their wounds after the trip was cancelled due to a lack of cabin bookings.
The two cruise ships, the Noordam and the Westerdam, among the most luxurious in the world, were to have docked in Port Elizabeth, Durban and Cape Town and been used as bases for fans.
Africa 4 Real Tours owner Mark Heck said the cancellation was a real blow to the industry, and especially to his company, which had been contracted to provide local transport operations for the tourists.
The municipality said in a statement it was soliciting more applications so traders could “apply for a slice of the 2010 Fifa World Cup cake”.
Municipalities and Fifa had recently come under attack from hawkers and traders who said they had been excluded from conducting business around World Cup events.
"In the South African case, all the stadiams were either renovated or constructed by the government. That means that the commercial consideration was never primary," said economist Stan du Plessis of Stellenbosch University.
"Some of these stadiums are simply not going to be in a position to cover their running costs. In that sense, they will be loss making."
There will be an unusual concentration of World Cup matches in Gauteng [Greater Johannesburg], the economic heartland of South Africa and part of the highest-altitude area, where most teams are also expected to establish their training camps in order to acclimatise.
This is also the area with the worst record of violent crime in South Africa, one of the biggest concerns of tournament organisers.
Eight 2010 games, including a quarter final and a third and fourth place play-off, will be hosted at the city's 48 000-seater Nelson Mandela Bay stadium.
The new ground hosts the touring British and Irish Lions rugby team on Tuesday when they will play a local Southern Kings Invitational side.
The infrastructure for the bus rapid- transit (BRT) public transport system is on track and going ahead unabated, said Transport Minister Jeff Radebe.
He added that the Reya Vaya phase one in Soweto, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth was on schedule.
“The route from Soweto to Johannesburg will be completed in time for the FIFA Confe- derations Cup next month. The taxi industry has been involved in the implementation of the BRT system from inception and government believes that the industry is the nucleus of the BRT system,” said Radebe at a media briefing in Johannesburg.
He noted that the main issue on hold for the BRT system to become operational was the convening of another meeting with the taxi industry to finalise the operational company – as soon as the new African National Congress-led administration had an opportunity.
“Either way, with the global recession, fans will likely be planning much more carefully. So cities will have to mount focused campaigns, aimed at those countries whose teams are coming to Port Elizabeth, and at highlighting what makes the city special – so that they get as many of the visitors as possible.
The policy of Soccer World Cup organising body Fifa is that these things can only be tested properly in a match situation, so each local organising committee has been advised to secure three or four big matches prior to June next year, he explained. Mandela Bay has already secured two of these matches, so Fifa is happy.
The first in a series of multi million rand projects to upgrade the Port Elizabeth city centre, one of which includes a walkway to celebrate the life of former president Nelson Mandela, started this week, a city manager said on Friday.
..."This walk will also celebrate the city as an art gallery and will use murals and other street art lining the entire route to showcase the area's cultural history," Sapere said.
The first phase of Port Elizabeth's upgrade will cost R25-million and will be completed in time for the 2010 soccer World Cup.
Top packages for luxury suites at the city‘s new stadium would cost from $307200 (about R3-million) for 24 VIP guests at a series of matches – and five of the 10 available had already been sold, Match Hospitality regional manager Edgar Baron said. He added that “PetroSA and other people” involved in the Coega development project were among those who had booked the suites.
The price – which includes VIP entrance, catered cordon bleu meals, drinks, and mementos – works out at R125000 for each VIP for the eight matches involved, or about R15600 a head a match.
Meanwhile, local fans will be able to sit in ordinary seats for as little as R140, information issued previously by cup organisers shows. They will be able to eat and drink strictly sponsors-only products.
Jordaan was able to walk on the newly laid pitch and take in a view of a venue that has 40 000 of its 48 000 seats already installed. More than half of the 36 girders that will support the roof have been erected, and the columns, slabs, precast seating, precast raking beams and moat are already complete.
Like every other 2010 stadium, it has come at a price. The initial cost was estimated at R250-million, but this rose to R1,2-billion a year ago and it now stands at R1,95-billion, of which the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality will have to pay 10%.