Who's hiding in the leopard suit?

Fears have dogged South Africa’s hosting of the 2010 World Cup ever since it was announced in 2004.

Questions persist about the country's crime rate – only Colombia has more murders per head of population, and whether the stadia and infrastructure will be ready in two years' time. But surely the most worrying thing yet is the official mascot Zakumi, unveiled yesterday, which looked like it had come out of a Mexican children's TV show or a surreal drag act.

Zakumi the leopard is the third big cat to be named mascot, after England's World Cup Willie and Germany's Goleo VI forty years later. Most of the 12 since 1966 have had something of the night about them, let's be honest– think of the dead-eyed Gauchito in '78, the zombie twins Tip & Tap in '74 or the 'three witches' Ato, Nik & Kaz in 2002 for instance.

Mexico's chili-man Pique in 1986 was also the stuff of nightmares, while their version in 1970, Juanito, looked more a health warning against childhood obesity.

Only Spain’s Naranjito in 1982, the States’ Striker in ’94 and Kansas Jayhawk-lookalike Footix in France ’98 allowed kids worldwide to sleep soundly. The less said about Italia ‘90’s abstract Ciao the better. Like London’s grim 2012 Olympics logo, for Zakumi things can only get better.

Sepp Blatter can certainly do without another headache, having staked his name on 2010 passing off smoothly. If it all goes belly-up in a couple of years, perhaps Sepp can climb inside a Zakumi costume and hide from the backlash. Or was that him in Johannesburg?

Woe betide we confuse the sleek leopard & his rotund owner, but the official literature on Zakumi is a little ambiguous:

“He loves to perform…yet sometimes has the tendency to exaggerate a bit….Over the last years he has travelled the whole of Africa…and wants to make as many friends as possible…He may suddenly fall asleep on the spot at the most random times!”

-Sean O'Conor