Zuma is due to meet International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge later this week when he travels to Johannesburg to attend the World Cup final at Soccer City next Sunday (July 11) and an potential bid for the Games is expected to be top of the agenda.

Zuma told FIFA's website: "This has proved to the world that we are capable of hosting any international event, we have the resources and infrastructure.

"People are already talking about a possibility of bidding for major events and we are supporting this.

"The Olympics are an example, I don’t see why we can’t bid to host the Olympics in the future.

"It’s important for Africa."

The Olympics have never been held in Africa but Zuma believes that now the continent has put on such a memorable World Cup there should be no obstacles for a bid from either Cape Town, Durban or Johannesburg.

He said: "I think it was very important for us to succeed.

"But you must remember that, as South Africans, we pride ourselves on the fact that we always rise up to any challenge.

"As a matter of fact, nobody believed that we would have a smooth transition from apartheid and we did it.

"As you know, a FIFA World Cup has never been hosted in Africa.

"When South Africa first declared its intentions to host the World Cup, some people said, ‘What is this country from Africa thinking'.
 
"Yes, we lost the first time [to Germany], but we knew that we would do it next time.

"That is what defines us as a country - our attitude and the belief that nothing is impossible.

"We knew we deserved it, but some continued to say, ‘Impossible, they won’t be able to organise it’ and they talked about a 'Plan B'.

"When we completed the stadiums, people started to talk about security and other issues, but we have had a great tournament.

"And today, a lot of people who are honest enough have come out and said, 'We confess, we were wrong about your country'.

 "Everybody has seen that we are equal to the task."

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