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Jun 28, 2010
Sentosa WCup fest cancelled
<!-- by line --> By Jonathan Wong
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While the 107,600 sq ft viewing site at Siloso Beach could hold an estimated 15,000 people, organisers did not anticipate the low turnout. -- ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN
<!-- story content : start --> BARELY 48 hours after its much-hyped launch on Saturday, organisers of the Singapore World Cup Festival 2010 have decided to cancel the event.
Live music acts, a gaming zone, cheerleaders and a beach soccer tournament with a top prize of $25,000 had been planned for the 17-outdoor party at Sentosa's Siloso Beach. But the festival, which was the first-ever Fifa-sanctioned public viewing in Singapore, was closed down on Monday.
Events company Wharf House had secured exclusive rights from football's governing body last month to organise commercial public screenings of World Cup matches in Singapore. It had also threatened to produce injunctions against other unauthorised mass screenings that had planned to charge entry fees or attract sponsors to their event.
Citing poor attendance over the opening weekend as a major factor, Wharf House's chief executive Tom Houseman said: 'It's a big disappointment for us. Our challenge, however, has been to generate sufficient visitor numbers to justify the continued operating expenses.' While the 107,600 sq ft viewing site at Siloso Beach could hold an estimated 15,000 people, organisers did not anticipate the low turnout, particularly on Sunday when only about 500 showed up to watch the mouth-watering tie between England and Germany.