South African soccer fans are among the most colorful in the world, leaving lasting impressions on television screens with their colourful gear and sometimes near-silly antics.The afternoon of June 11, if you find yourself in the grandstand of the calabash-shaped Soccer City stadium, chances are you might be seated next to a fan with a supporter's jersey, decorated miners' helmets known as makarapa, oversized goggles and the vuvuzela.
And these are just some of the "must have symbols of pride" every Mzansi fan must have, prominent soccer fanatic Freddy "Saddam" Maake told BuaNews.
You might also see some supporters eating bread to indicate the opposition is their "daily bread", opening the Bible in search of divine intervention and carrying a self made coffin to indicate that they will bury the opponents.
"Come the World Cup, Bafana Bafana supporters will be easily recognised ... we are proudly South African and what better way to show it than to have all our symbols," said Maake, urging South Africans to go all out and buy the range to show their support for the national team.
As the World Cup approaches and with just 28 days to go before the extravaganza kicks-off, entrepreneurs' creative juices are flowing freely, coming up with the most hilarious supporter accessories.
Recently a company launched vuvuzela-shaped earplugs for quieter fans. This after FIFA overturned a call to ban the vuvuzela from World Cup games following heavy criticism from foreign media about the level of noise from the much loved instrument.
Company spokesperson Andrew Chin, said the decision to produce vuvuzela shaped earplugs was a patriotic one, intended to embrace the instrument but at the same time to provide ear protection to those who wanted it.
"The World Cup is a fantastic event and rather than entertaining complaints about the noise from vuvuzelas, we thought we'd do something positive.
"We believe all South Africans should get with the World Cup party, embrace it and have fun at the same time," Chin told BuaNews.
Among other accessories is the Kuduzela, while it is not as popular with locals, the kuduzela is an alternative to the vuvuzela. The wind instrument is in the shape of a kudu horn and sounds like a trumpeting elephant.
The momozela, known as the baby vuvuzela, sounds like a baby crying. While many may find it irritating, soccer fanatics love the sound it makes.
Maake said there is also the vuthela, which he says is more user-friendly for all supporters as it does not take much effort to blow.
And those with a burst of energy to carry extra kilos to the stadium, they might take the baleka or gijima as it is popularly known. Maake said one may need to carry a car battery to operate it.
After winding it for some time, especially when your team is attacking, it makes a sound like an air-raid siren or alarm, he said.
Some supporters simply cannot do without their long and colourful church robes when they go out to support their team, explained Maake, adding that it has become more fashionable for fans to wear it with giant glasses with their team's slogans and logos and an afro wig sprayed with the country's flag colours.
The country's creative entrepreneurs have also made scarves, head bunnies and hand gloves for those who will attend matches in the chilly parts of the country. And of course the country's flag is a must for every supporter. The flag can also be found in car mirror socks - which have become a must-have with motorists.
The makarapa, a modified, decorated miners' helmet, which is adorned with the colours of the supported team, will be a fan favourite.
The makarapa dates back to 1979, according to the man credited with making the first one.
"The way I invented the makarapa is almost as weird as I am," said Alfred Baloyi, 54, a die-hard Kaizer Chiefs supporter, who said the idea came while sitting in a stadium.
"Someone threw a bottle and hit someone on the head." At his next game Baloyi, who worked as a cleaner in Limpopo at the time, wore his work safety helmet decorated with football imagery.
The embellishments commonly include images of favourite players, former president Nelson Mandela, current politicians and team flags and colours, said Baloyi, whose selling price has escalated from a mere R7 in 1979 to a cool R300 a helmet today.
For the World Cup - Africa's first - Baloyi and his employees are making makarapas to suit fans of most of the 32 teams.
Maake, who has over 300 makarapas, boasts that he has one for every occasion.
He said his makarapas have mini portraits of Nelson Madela, Danny Jordaan, Sepp Blatter, Kaizer Motaung, Irvin Khoza and Molefi Oliphant.
"I wear these guys with pride. They contributed significantly in bringing us the FIFA World Cup," he chuckled.
Whether Bafana Bafana wins or loses the World Cup, Mzansi's fans will sure win a million hearts with their fan regalia and over the top antics.
Source - BuaNews