FIFA does not expect the global television audience for next year's World Cup in South Africa to increase, football's world governing body said. Niclas Ericson, FIFA's television chief, said that the cumulative global audience for the 2006 event was 26.3 billion, a figure which should also be achieved for the South Africa tournament.

"It should be more or less similar for 2010. We do expect record figures in Africa, where there will be much more free TV coverage in general," Ericson said.

"But the problem with these figures is that many countries do not have audited numbers and it is therefore difficult to predict any significant increase or decrease. We do hope the audiences will grow a little bit in every country."

He added that the only way an increased audience could be achieved was if countries with large populations such as China, India and Indonesia, qualified.