The world pays tribute to Mandela (slideshow)
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Mandela: SA's greatest son laid to rest (slideshow)
The world watched as Nelson Mandela was finally laid to rest in his hometown of Qunu following a dignified and moving funeral ceremony on Sunday.
Football legends past and present gathered on Wednesday at the former South African prison colony that housed Nelson Mandela for 18 years to honour the statesman on his 89th birthday. Current players, along with former maestros, joined administrators and some of Mandela's fellow former political prisoners on Robben Island off the Cape coast to kick a symbolic 89 goals into a football net.Football legends past and present gathered on Wednesday at the former South African prison colony that housed Nelson Mandela for 18 years to honour the statesman on his 89th birthday.
Current players such as Cameroon's Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o, along with former maestros Dutchman Ruud Gullit and Liberian George Weah, joined administrators and some of Mandela's fellow former political prisoners on Robben Island off the Cape coast to kick a symbolic 89 goals into a football net.
"I am a son of Mandela. He has inspired me and fought for our continent. He inspired millions all over the world," said Weah, a former World Player of the Year also known for his failed bid to become the president of Liberia.
He said he found his visit to the island inspirational, having seen what Mandela went through, including forced labour in the prison limestone quarry that permanently damaged his eyesight.
"He [Mandela] has inspired me to do more," Weah said.
Gullit, a former European Player of the Year and manager of Chelsea, said the lesson from Mandela's life was that "there is always hope".
"If you believe in yourself and fight hard for the right thing, you will succeed," he said.
Retired Brazilian football star Pele was to have taken part in the proceedings, but could not make the 45-minute ferry trip from the mainland because he suffers from seasickness.
The weather did not allow him to travel by helicopter, but Pele is to make an appearance at Cape Town's Newlands Stadium on Wednesday evening for a star-studded Africa XI versus World XI match in Mandela's
honour.
Former Robben Island political prisoner Afrika Hlapo (47) said the day was very special.
"We must remember that the old man [Mandela] has worked for this country for the whole of his life. He sacrificed a lot of things, his wife, his family, his opportunities."
Mandela, known fondly in South Africa by his clan name Madiba, spent 27 years behind bars for his contribution to the struggle against white-only apartheid rule.
Wednesday morning's ceremony also saw a football club created by Robben Island inmates during their incarceration in the 1960s, Makana FA, receive honorary membership of world football body Fifa. -- Sapa-AFP