As the FIFA World Cup 2010 looms and the world prepares for the biggest sporting spectacular, it is good to reflect on the origins of the
beautiful game and take a look at where it all began.
DStv audiences are invited to tune into BBC Knowledge on DStv channel 251 this month to find out just what makes soccer or football, the global
phenomenon that it is when HISTORY OF FOOTBALL: THE BEAUTIFUL GAME, a 13 part series is screened starting June 7 at 19:05 CAT.
No other sport on the face of the earth conjures up as much emotion in the great numbers as football does! It is a worldwide event that is celebrated in all countries, and boasts a viewership of almost the entire population of the world.
The biggest spectacular of this game that started with a group of men chasing a ball made of pig skin, is the World Cup.
The tournament has held every four years since the first tournament was held in 1930. The only two occasions it was not held were during the
period of the Second World War in 1942 and 1946.
Since its inception, 18 tournaments have been held and a total of seven nations have won the World Cup title. Brazil leads, and is the most
successful team with five tournaments under their belts. Italy, who are the current World Champions have won four times, Germany hold three World
Cup titles while Uruguay and Argentina have two. England and France have each won the title of World Champions once.
The tournament itself consists of two parts, the qualification and the finals. The World Cup qualifiers take place in the three years preceding
the finals; this stage is used to determine which teams will take part in the finals. The current set-up of the finals involves 32 teams challenging
for the World Cup at various venues within a host nation. The World Cup is said to be the most watched sporting event in the world with an estimated 700 million plus, people watching the 2006 World Cup final.
HISTORY OF FOOTBALL: THE BEAUTIFUL GAME is a 13 part groundbreaking series that tells the definitive story of the game which generates more
excitement, passion and wealth across the world than any other sport.
It features interviews with superstars from the past and present including Pelé and Maradona to Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane.
The series takes an in-depth look at topics ranging from the origins of football and how the modern game developed, to the superstars that have
graced the playing field and turned football into the most popular sport on earth.
Narrated by Terence Stamp, History Of Football: The Beautiful Game analyses dominant club sides such as Liverpool, Real Madrid and AC Milan,
looks at the evolution of the Brazilian team. It also investigates issues such as football as an agent of control in Victorian England and the
revolution in French football that created the 1998 World Champions.
With the World Cup being hosted on African soil for the first time this year, the series also looks at the development of football in Africa,
explores the saturated media interest in the sport, and examines the dark side of the game, from football hooliganism to tragedies.
The series continues every weekday at 19:05 CAT.
AFRICAN CONSERVATION TAKES CENTRE STAGE ON ANIMAL PLANET AS 'GORILLA SCHOOL' MAKES ITS AFRICAN DEBUT ON DSTV
Where's the best place for gorillas to learn about being gorillas - at GORILLA SCHOOL of course. Tune in this month as the brand new Animal
Planet series follows the journey of three orphaned gorillas; Oudiki, Kouki and Tiya, as they are transported from Howletts Wild Animal Park in Kent to Africa where they must learn the ways of the wild before being reintroduced in a protected forest in Gabon.
Audiences can tune in on Tuesday May 4 (20:00 CAT) as the 12 part series makes its World Premiere on Animal Planet, channel 264, on DStv.
The series charts the journey of three young orphaned gorillas, born into captivity: food loving Oudiki the future silverback, playful female Kouki and little Tiya who was just seven months old when she travelled to Gabon.
The program follows the gorillas as they are transported from Howletts to The Aspinall Foundation's reserve in the Gabon, and the enormous challenges they face as they learn how to survive in a million acres of protected wilderness.
This unique project was the vision of the late millionaire and conservationist John Aspinall, who founded The Aspinall Foundation, the
charity behind his Kent wild animal parks and other conservation projects around the world. The ambitious and long term program of gorilla
reintroduction in Congo and Gabon is now run by his son, Damian.
In each episode DStv viewers across Africa get to meet the scientists and park rangers who are completely devoted to the protection and welfare of this endangered species. Also, witness the preparation under way in Gabon which will ensure the transition is as stress-free as possible. It also looks at the re-building of the gorilla population plus their protection from poachers.
The program also introduces DStv viewers to two other groups of previously released gorillas and lets them witness an emotional reunion between
Damian and Kwibi, a ten year-old gorilla who he has not seen for five years. Narrated by Kevin Spacey, GORILLA SCHOOL shows fear and drama,
friendship and rivalry, bullying and community, hardship and triumph, and big leaps forward and a few steps back.
The premiere of GORILLA SCHOOL comes on the backend of some wonderful news - the program has just celebrated its 11th successful wild birth to a reintroduced gorilla. The birth is to a female named Zora, who is a member of the first group to be reintroduced to Gabon through The Aspinall
Foundation's scheme in 1998.
Don't miss heart-warming and gripping documentary on Animal Planet this June.