FIFA world cup of soccer steps into the dark ages. another add to the top of my list, why I hate sports! who does this to a sentient, living being? if slaughtering animals "shows that we are africans", it seems to do the country a disservice. shame on FIFA for participating.

South Africa’s traditional leaders want to see ritual animal slaughter at the 2010 FIFA World Cup matches.

Traditional Affairs minister Sicelo Shiceka on the eve of the Final Draw expressed support to the proposal of the ritual animal slaughter at each 2010 Fifa World Cup stadium before the tournament.

Right, FIFA President Sepp Blatter holds aloft the trophy during the 2010 World Cup Final Draw in Cape Town. (AP/Schalk van Zuydam) Below, right, dancers perform during the Final Draw extravaganza.(AP/Karel Prinsloo)

Addressing the gathering of traditional leaders, Shiceka said slaughtering of cattle shows that “we are Africans.”

“The World Cup will be on the African continent and we will make sure that African values and cultures are felt by the visitors,” said Shiceka.

This follows the traditional leaders’ announcement last month that they were set to propose beast-slaughtering rituals at all the World Cup venues ahead of the tournament next year.

Zolani Mkiva, in charge of organizing cultural activities for the tournament, said that the tournament needed to be blessed in true style.

“We want the rituals to be performed at all stadiums. It is necessary that an inkomo (a cow) be slaughtered at each one of the stadiums and by doing so we would be inviting our African ancestors to be with us throughout the soccer event,” he said.

Meanwhile today (Friday December 4) a judge in South Africa ruled that Zulu’s could go ahead with their practice of bare-handedly killing a bull. Animal rights groups had taken the matter to court in an attempt to halt the practice. At issue was the December 5 the Umkhosi Wokweshwama (first fruits) festival at the Nongoma palace in KwaZulu-Natal of Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini.

The judge said earlier that ruling against the ritual would prevent 10 million Zulus from carrying out a ritual that was part of their culture.

He said his understanding was that by killing the bull, the Zulus believed they were transferring power to their king. Read more here.

A bull is killed during the ceremony as a symbolic way of thanking God for the first crops of the season. Read more here.

Witnesses had claimed that the killing took 40 minutes, during which dozens of men trampled the bellowing, groaning bull, and wrenched its head around by the horns to try to break its neck. A spokesperson for the king said the killing was brief and painless.

Festival organizers had said the killing of the bull would go ahead regardless of the judge’s verdict.