The trip to Asia that constituted the first stage of the FIFA World Cup Welcome Tour was a complete success, according to Organising Committee President Franz Beckenbauer.
June 23, 2006 (Press Release) --
The trip to Asia that constituted the first stage of the FIFA World Cup Welcome Tour was a complete success, according to Organising Committee President Franz Beckenbauer. Between now and mid-February next year, Beckenbauer and his OC colleagues will be visiting all 31 countries that qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup to welcome them to Germany next summer. The inaugural six-day trip by the OC President and his colleagues took in Iran, Saudi Arabia and South Korea, culminating in a visit to Japan on 6 and 7 October. The journey was characterised by the warmest of hospitality and mounting excitement about the FIFA World Cup. Beckenbauer, who conceived the Welcome Tour, was overwhelmingly positive about the response to the initiative so far. "It is a cause for great satisfaction that doors have been thrown open to us this week in Asia," said the OC chief. "Over the past few days in Tehran, Riyadh, Seoul and Tokyo we have become conscious of how much people around the world are looking forward to the World Cup in Germany. This global World Cup fever really is huge."
As was the case during his worldwide travel as the standard-bearer of Germanys World Cup bid, Beckenbauer has been the focus of interest during the Welcome tour. "We have had a very pleasant surprise during this trip," said OC vice-president Wolfgang Niersbach, noting that the success of the Welcome Tour was above all down to the personality and presence of the committee president. "Its absolutely phenomenal to see how Franz Beckenbauer is welcomed everywhere with such appreciation and esteem. Its in large part down to him that the coverage in the countries we have visited has almost rivalled that of an actual World Cup game."
In Tokyo, the last stop on the trip, even the Japanese Imperial family paid tribute to the "Kaiser" of German football. Crown Princess Takamado headed around 200 distinguished guests from the worlds of politics, business, culture and sport invited by the OC to the Welcome Japan event at the "Deutschland-Haus" of the German Embassy. The event saw a four-foot-high figure of GOLEO VI presented to her imperial highness, after Crown Princess Takamado had personally requested the FIFA World Cup mascot as a goodbye present from Franz Beckenbauer.
Source: http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com
The trip to Asia that constituted the first stage of the FIFA World Cup Welcome Tour was a complete success, according to Organising Committee President Franz Beckenbauer. Between now and mid-February next year, Beckenbauer and his OC colleagues will be visiting all 31 countries that qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup to welcome them to Germany next summer. The inaugural six-day trip by the OC President and his colleagues took in Iran, Saudi Arabia and South Korea, culminating in a visit to Japan on 6 and 7 October. The journey was characterised by the warmest of hospitality and mounting excitement about the FIFA World Cup. Beckenbauer, who conceived the Welcome Tour, was overwhelmingly positive about the response to the initiative so far. "It is a cause for great satisfaction that doors have been thrown open to us this week in Asia," said the OC chief. "Over the past few days in Tehran, Riyadh, Seoul and Tokyo we have become conscious of how much people around the world are looking forward to the World Cup in Germany. This global World Cup fever really is huge."
As was the case during his worldwide travel as the standard-bearer of Germanys World Cup bid, Beckenbauer has been the focus of interest during the Welcome tour. "We have had a very pleasant surprise during this trip," said OC vice-president Wolfgang Niersbach, noting that the success of the Welcome Tour was above all down to the personality and presence of the committee president. "Its absolutely phenomenal to see how Franz Beckenbauer is welcomed everywhere with such appreciation and esteem. Its in large part down to him that the coverage in the countries we have visited has almost rivalled that of an actual World Cup game."
In Tokyo, the last stop on the trip, even the Japanese Imperial family paid tribute to the "Kaiser" of German football. Crown Princess Takamado headed around 200 distinguished guests from the worlds of politics, business, culture and sport invited by the OC to the Welcome Japan event at the "Deutschland-Haus" of the German Embassy. The event saw a four-foot-high figure of GOLEO VI presented to her imperial highness, after Crown Princess Takamado had personally requested the FIFA World Cup mascot as a goodbye present from Franz Beckenbauer.
Source: http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com
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