But the live costume is not so cute...

I like Zakumi's look, it's quite anime-like ;-)

I love anime and I also like the fact that he looks very anime, but the problem is that he doesnt look very African. I'm sure this is so that he will appeal to an inernational audience, but surely we could find a more African style of portraying him?

he looks like something out of Pokemon...

It's an afro :) And besides, he's a fictional mascot character, so doesn't have to be anatomically correct.

I understand the need to appeal to an international audience, but we could've created a more African portrayal - even the Lion King does this better.


The cartoon is super ... it does incorporate the green & gold of our sports heroes and the lion is a recognised
African symbol ... so I think it does have merit.

It's not a LION!!!! IT'S A BLOODY LEOPARD!!! What kinds of South African are you if you can't even tell the difference between a lion and a leopard???

to start with....A LION does NOT have spots....only when it's a cub...

so yes it does look like a cross between a lion and a leopard...

I believe its got potential but the LOC 2010's lack of communications drive and vision will render it useless and 2010 tourists will be suprised to find out when they get here that there is one.

Does not look too like a leopard? I don't know if this will work. What does Zakumi means?

Don't wanna be too critical, but the design guys could have done better.

Love his name but agree that he doesn't seem very "african"

It looks like a lion with spots! and a green mane!

He certainly is 14 -- look at those pimples. Cringingly amateurish.

The ZA stands for South Africa, and "Kumi" is a Swahili word meaning "10".

I like the idea of his name meaning SA Ten, but Zwahili ?!? Come on!

I dont mind the cartoon too much, but the costume is embarrassing!

Every bit of the costume is handmade by unskilled people

we're more creative than this surely?

...I saw the pictures in the paper and thought 'Ew, awful' -
although the cartoon here is vastly better. My advice - never have him appear 'live' in person, rather play a VT.
The costume looks cheap and tacky!

Compared to the illustration, the costume is horrible.

I love the cartoon better.

Lion cubs do have spot-like patterns and I think the mascot is 'nice', but was most put out by the costume designed from the drawing which I believe could have been done a lot better.

The green mane?! And which leopard has a mane? Oh well it could have been worse,but he's not too bad. Guess we'll get used to him....

The illustration is nca, the costume from Boksburg...not so nca.

great work, andries and the team - proud of you!

We have eleven official languages, and these rocket scientists pick a swahili word- WTF???

The mascot would have looked funkier with an afro, not green dragonball-z hair

Simba woulda been a cooler mascot- he is proudly South African!

He looks like a reject poisoned puke-yellow mutant leopard-monkey retard THING. I agree with the majority sentiment here - we could have done _much_ better.

I hate to say this, but even the vodacom meerkat had more style ... eish :(

I love it if you compare it to the crap mascotts from the previous World Cups he looks even better!

Not sure if I like hiim?

everyone hats mo.

what is it? it says nothing about what the SA 2010 is about.
it looks like a last minute idea, like someone at HQ said,"oh,shit we need a mascot, but dont worry coz my little brother did a 3 week couse on animation. let'a ask him!"
it so typical and boring, SA is about more than dancing animals!

Why don't use a voodoo doll.This will best express the black culture

Well done to the team who designed Zakumi!
I think it turned out bloody well considering the amount of cooks that must have been in the kitchen. All (I was going to say most) mascots for massive events, like the WC, seem to emerge from some kind of Mascot Committee. And no matter who conceptualised the idea, the mascots always turn out shite. They either have too many layers of meaning (Zakumi), or are just stock standard as though someone said "Let's just try not embarrass ourselves here" (Goaleo). Always shite. Can anyone name a great World Cup or Olympic mascot? No. And yet everyone is surprised when the next mascot emerges. Also shite. And you know what? I don't care. Nor do other football supporters (don't say that you're a football supporter and it matters to you what the mascot is. Go buy yourself a teddy bear). Lovers of football will be coming here to see the Messis, Ronaldos and Kakas of this world perform their magic. Anyone going to be coming to ZA to see the mascot or because of it? No. Will anyone see the mascot on TV during the World Cup? No.

Screw the mascot. It's all about the football. Well, at least I wish it was. Bloody puppets.

... Cobi the mascot of the 1988 Barcelona Olympic games, with a Cubist twist was designed by Spain's most successful designer, Javier Mariscal and went onto to have his own TV show. The Beijing FUWA mascots were the vehicle by which the Chinese offered their deep cultural symbolism and goodwill to the world. We go on about our culture and yet do not appoint the right designers or do not give the right mandate to express the wonderful human, cultural and natural resources of our region via this opportunity.
China offered us 5 mascots - we own the BIG 5 and manage to eek out one. Even Sydney 2000 Olympics offered 3 mascots - a wombat, a playtypus and and sort of duck. On the bright side the Cobi mascot was tweaked and adapted, even after it had been publicly launched, so perhaps there's still hope for the ZAK, otherwise he can always join the list of the world's 10 worst mascots, up there with IZZY [as in what the ... is he] from the 1996 Atlanta games.

Zuma and Zakumi don't sound the same. Really people!

This absolutely ludicrous and ill-thought through mascot (colour/look/design) is the end result of the absolute mediocrity that exists in the planning of the 2010 event. Maybe this is why Danny Jordaan tried to fire that overpaid mediocridite Tim Modise. God help us when the event actually arrives.

A giraffe would have been a much more appropriate mascot, as it is the most distinctive (and probably best selling) African curio item that tourists buy to take home.

really for such an event this looks childish

To the 40% who have voted that they hate him and have whined on this discussion thread like cynical and pathetic wet blankets about how we could have produced something better, let's see what you can do with all that character design knowledge and experience that you so confidently flaunt.

Embrace 2010, support our local design talent and enjoy it as the opportunity of a lifetime that it is. It's not going away anytime soon.

C'mon people, put a little thought into this thing and realise, as some have already mentioned here, that things go deeper than they look. It must be hellishly difficult to get a design approved when there's a committee involved. Just take a look at all the previous mascots [http://www.planetworldcup.com/MASCOTS/mascots.html] (note that two lions have already been created in the past) and realise that this is the best design that has yet managed to get through the approval process.

Also, to those who've declared their hate for the costume, here's a quote from the producer of the costume, Cora Simpson, "Zakumi created work for 6 extra Grannies who inherited grandchildren when the mothers passed away. People were taught skills how to use templates & applique textiles. Ready made textiles to difficult designs are not available. It is easy to draw a soccerball spot, but it needs skills to manufacture it. Every bit on all 10 mascots are handmade by a staff of 30. All were unskilled & taught by Cora's Costumes"

[Link and quote sourced from Coda's blog]

We really could have used a bit more creativity... he is very mundane... can't say that I am a proud South African when I see him!

We should have created the NEW BIG 5 based on our own soccer supporters as characters, wearing makarabas, wearing big glasses and blowing vuvuzelas! LOC - Germany had a lion and we can't even illustrate a leopard! Stop this jobs for pals!

zakumi or whateva the name might be, he doesnt relate to the culture of our soccer, what is so wow about it? at times we tend to accept things cause we will be accused of criticism an been unpatriotic. South Africa knows that it could have done better, in my opinion i yhink it was a spur of the moment thing really.

i say it sux, hate or love it oh well we forced to accept it

bearing in mind the vast amount of people that the new 2010 mascot had to be approved by, I think that wev'e done our best.there will obv always be people who like and dislike the character, not everyone is going to sing it's praises.Lets be realistic here.If you say we can do better , show us submit your work, and then you will see how easy it is.Mabey then you will have an appreciation for the efoort that goes into creating these things.

The whole idea was not creative Qhake!!!