Mbombela Stadium is a new 44,000-seat stadium currently under construction as one of the ten venues for the FIFA World Cup 2010. It will be located on open land six kilometers west of Nelspruit with the stadium as the centrepiece of a proposed sports precinct with athletics and cricket as well as other sporting codes. Construction commenced in February 2007 with a completion date of mid-2009. The Construction contract has been awarded to a South African–French consortium. It is proposed that most of the seats will be covered by a cantilever roof. The signature feature of the stadium are the 18 roof supports that resemble giraffes. The stadium is close to the Kruger National Park so it is apt that the stadium reflect this inter-relation. Visitors to this World Cup venue will be able to couple this with a visit to the game reserve.
The Mbombela Local Municipality and the Mpumalanga Province has led the way for the Beautiful Game in SA making the world class Mbombela Stadium the envy of SA’s sports-mad nation. The R920-million sports facility set to be ready for use by mid-July 2009 a full year ahead of the June 2010 World Cup kickoff and has been made possible through national government funding. The multi-purpose stadium, which is expected to host key soccer and rugby matches, will also be equipped with conference facilities. The Mpumalanga Premier, Thabang Makwetla, said that the Mbombela Stadium will become one of the finest sports and entertainment assets in the Mpumalanga Province.