A Sunday in Johannesburg. Fatherhood has conditioned me to wake up by 7, so lie-ins are something I will have to adapt to once again in later life. The compensation? Every year I get a nice card from the offspring to tell me I am, after all, loved, in spite of the ongoing battle of wills with the monster I created. I was given an envelope with his card before departure with instructions not to open it until Sunday 20th. Adam, having been out until 3am in Cape Town after the England game, slept very late, waking up in time for a lunchtime braai (South African barbeque) that Martin had laid on. Three guests game round - John (another Arsenal fan), his nephew Ross (a Man Utd supporter) and Gordon (with little interest in football). The first two were coming to the match at Soccer City with us (including Martin and wife Sue)

Ross, 16 years old, was an admirable youngster. Pre-conceptions on initally meeting him would be that he was a typical white South African youth. But this lad, during his holidays, had organised a township youth cricket team, which went on to beat his school side, as the raw talent of the township kids proved too much. His efforts had been recognised with grants and a visit to the UK where he was introduced to members of the Royal Family thanks to his efforts. If Ross symbolises the attitude of young white South Africans, there is real hope for the future here.

The food went down a treat, alongside a fair bit of alcohol, before we departed at about 4 for Soccer City in Martin's car. He had heard horror stories about the traffic getting to the stadium and wanted to get there early so we could relax. We had a smooth run. You need to pre-book the park and walk/ride facilities in Jo'burg and he's booked the nearest car park to the stadium. Although I thought we were very early (arriving by 5), in fairness there were many there before us. Apparently the N1 highway around Johannesburg does get very, very busy later on a Sunday, so perhaps we did the right thing. Plenty of time to kill though. As the crow flies, the stadium was about 400 metres away, but the walking route is around a kilometre.

As we were all sitting in different places, Adam and I left our hosts and strolled slowly to see if there were any distractions outside the stadium. Aside from people watching, and hawkers selling either food or souvenires, there were none. So at 6pm, we bit the bullet and entered Soccer City. Its design is supposed to resemble an African cooking pot, and it certainly does look unique from the exterior. The gaps in the external panelling come into their own once darkness falls as the light from the interior shines through. It's like a giant lampshade which has seen better days. It gives a real feeling of being the centre of the action when viewed from outside, fans drawn like moths to a light.

The security check we went through was as thorough as you'd get at an airport. As there were not great numbers at that time, it was bearable, but I wouldn't like to arrive in the last half hour before kick off. We may have been unlucky. Our hosts indicated they had a much easier experience. Obviously, such events are predictable targets for terrorist attacks, although the cosmopolitan nature of a World Cup stadium crowd would mean that, in terms of propoganda, they would be a huge own goal. However, that wouldn't stop some, so these checks have become part and parcel of life.

We wondered around the various sponsor provided entertainments for a while. I then took my seat with two hours before kick off. There is relative freedom of movement around the public areas of the stadium, so I was able to check out the lower and middle tiers before making my way up a long ramp, which doubled back on itself about four times, to the top tier. It is a huge stadium, and definitely fitting of a World Cup Final. That the seats are all orange is quite surreal. It is like the cooking pot theme is continued within, resembling the orange glow of burning coals. I looked at a picture of the stadium in Nelspruit after having seen the game there. It appears that, when it is empty, there are zebra skin style markings in the seating, a counter to the giraffe like supports propping up the stands. We arrived too late to appreciate that as many of the seats were occupied, but it's a nice touch.

I took in the ambience as the stadium slowly filled up, and read a Sunday supplement I'd brought from home. Fortunately, the weather in the Gauteng area has not been quite as cold since we returned from the north. The horrible cold snap meant that the previous time we'd seen Brazil, in Ellis Park last Tuesday, the temperature had dropped below zero. I bought some gloves from one of the sellers pitched up in the car park at Soccer City, but there proved no need for them.

The seats in the stadium rake back so that, in spite of there being no running track, you end up quite a distance from the pitch unless you are in the first 20 rows of the lower tier. However, the views all seem to be superb (possibly excepting those really low down who probably cannot see the goal-line due to the advertising hoardings). I was glad I remembered my binoculars though.

Eventually, game time came around. One thing I like about Brazil is that the manager gives the squad numbers of 1 to 11 to the players he intends to start the game. There is no point in my giving any details of the matches here, there are plenty of alternative sources for that, and many will have watched the game anyway. But my opinion, for what it's worth, hasn't changed since before the tournament. Brazil are the team most likely to win the World Cup in South Africa. They mix defensive organisation with flair. The job that Gilberto does for them is as key now as it was in 2002 when they were triumphant in Japan. Joined by Felipe Melo as his defensive midfield partner, they allow the full backs to attack without compromising on numbers at the back. They are very rarely susceptible to counter attacks.

Ivory Coast disappointed. I expected more from them, but they were not really at the races in this game. I can't comment on their goalless draw with Portugal as I didn't see any of it. However, they would surely have been hoping for more than a point from their first two games. I've never been totally convinced by Sven Goran-Eriksson as an international manager, and nothing's changed after this game. Kaka's sending off had us wondering what went on, although it does seem he was a victim of play-acting and subsequent reaction from the Ivory Coast players. It's a shame they do not seem to be able to cancel suspensions for red cards after matches when video evidence proves the referee got it wrong.

It is interesting to sometimes hear the positive crowd reaction to Premier League players in the stadiums, especially when the teams are shown on the scoreboard and there is a short film of each player striding up to the camera and facing it sideways on. Maybe you get this footage back in the UK, I have no idea. However, when the likes of Kolo Toure, Eboue and Drogba are read out, there is an increase in the volume of appreciation. The Premier League is very popular in this part of the world. They get every single match played, either live or delayed. It's certainly a country I could live in on that score. It should also be mentioned that stars from the big teams in Spain also get a huge response. The loudest this evening was undoubtedly for Kaka.

Brazil won fairly convincingly. Strange how it took a consolation goal to spring the opposition into some kind of life. Overall, the African teams have disappointed in this tournament so far, with the exception of Ghana. I hope they get through, although their final group game v Germany is obviously a tough ask in that Germany probably have to win. As for the others, Cameroon and Nigeria are already out, South Africa and Ivory Coast are probably doomed, and I don't think Algeria are going to get out of England's group unless they learn how to score goals.

The getaway after the game was fairly easy. I swallowed rather more dirt dust in the car park than I'd have liked, waiting for Martin and the others to return, but once we were moving, the queue to get out wasn't too bad. Once on the road, it was plain sailing. We'll use this car park again when we come for Germany v Ghana at this venue on Wednesday.

I've now seen eight matches in eight different stadiums. Tomorrow, I do my first visit to a stadium for a second time, if you get my drift. Ellis Park for Honduras v Spain. However, the visit to Soccer City marked the halfway point in this trip. I am enjoying it all, but at the same time, it will be nice to get home and plonk myself in front of the TV for the quarter finals onwards. This is a hell of an experience, but there is a treadmill element to seeing so many matches in such a short space of time. Not that I regret it of course, but opening the father's day card is always going to be a moment when thoughts return to home. Thursday week I will get back. Once I do that and realise exactly how much I've got to do, I'll probably wish I was back here! It's been a great trip so far, but three weeks is definitely enough.