World Cup 2010

In the long run-up to South Africa hosting the world's biggest tournament this summer, one of the main worries was if the country had the proper football facilities to stage the event in front of the hundreds of thousands of fans who will turn up from all over the globe. Though there was concern at one point that the lack of construction progress on many of the new stadiums could possibly hinder South Africa from hosting the event, it all somehow came together and all the stadiums are up and running. And while the money used to build these beauties could've been spent in many, many better ways to help the people of South Africa, they're here now, so they might as well make the most of them.

Many of these football cathedrals have yet to host a big international match, not a bad time for a grand opening. Here are the coolest of the cool.

Name: Green Point Stadium

City: Cape Town

Capacity: 70,000

Why it's awesome: Right near the ocean with the mountains of Cape Town serving as an amazing backdrop. It has a 4,500-ton retractable glass roof. Yes, not just any retractable roof — a glass retractrable roof. The exterior of the stadium is outfitted with noise-reducing cladding, probably so the blaring of the vuvuzelas doesn't cause pedestrian's heads to explode when walking around the concourse.

Name: Mbombela Stadium

Location: Nelspruit

Capacity: 46,000

Why it's awesome: "Mbombela" is siSwati for "many people together in a small space." In very close proximity to the areas famous nearby game parks, which the stadium draws its visual inspiration from in the form of the zebra-striped seats and the giraffe-shaped roof structures that surround the stadium. It's like being on a safari at a football match! Just without the danger of being eaten by a lion.