Chabad at Soccer World Cup

As South African residents have been waiting in anticipation for the Fifa 2010 Soccer World Cup, Chabad of South Africa has begun its operations and preparations way in advance, with an expected influx of Jewish tourists from all over the globe.

Directors of Chabad House Rabbi Dovid Masinter and Rabbi Michael Katz are being assisted by bochurim Aharon Mendel Adelist, Dovid Rendler and Shuie Gestetner, in providing services for Jewish visitors.

With a base in Village Walk Sandton – the local hub for all tourists, hotels, soccer teams and various fifa officials – the bochurim have set up a World Cup Chabad headquarters in the heart of all the hustle and excitement surrounding the world cup.

The site will serve as an information kiosk for all things Jewish, a place to grab a kosher bite, and a welcoming hub amid the tumult that will continue through the end of the month. Chabad is hosting daily Torah classes, Friday night dinners, and everything else a Chabad house offers.

In the meantime, the concierge at every hotel in the Sandton area, as well as the greater Johannesburg area, are prepared with relevant information provided by Chabad for Jewish guests.

The headquarters have been fielding calls and emails from hundreds of incoming tourists; people wanting to know where to buy kosher food (Chabad is catering meals), Shabbat and weekday prayer schedules, and even accommodations.

Outreach activities include a tefilin stand at Melrose Arch, Mandela Sqaure Sandton where people have come to put on tefilin, some for the very first time. Another campaign is the distribution of 50,000 inflatable soccer balls throughout the country, as well as in fan parks throughout the cities. Each ball carries with it a flyer encrypted with seven universal laws for all kinds of people.

Tourist Andie Mendez hailing from Argentina expressed his gratitude to Chabad in broken English. “Coming to South Africa, I wasn’t sure of what access I would have to all my Jewish needs. Chabad has been amazing in their efforts to help me,” he says.

He explains that he bumped into the bochurim by chance while they were hosting a barbeque for Jewish tourists who had come to South Africa. “With them, you felt at home!” he exclaimed.