The World Cup is here again, and Zakumi, your sporty mascot, was on the ground to give some good cheer to followers of the game and lovers of its legend.
Zukumi, an anthropomorphized leopard with green hair, was the official mascot of the 2010 FIFA World Cup held in South Africa. It also made it to the 2022 World Cup opening ceremony, but not as the official mascot for the ceremony.
There was a parade of old mascots, which included Zakumi, paving the way for the official mascot of the World Cup, La’eeb.
The mascot looked more like a ghost, but according to observers (per the Guardian), it looked like the risen spirit of the migrant workers who had died putting the tournament on. You can check it out below:
For some Twitter users, though, the focus was on Zakumi, and they poured out their thoughts about the mascot in many tweets. That Zakumi should still be alive in the memories of many might indicate what impact it had when it made its debut.
One South African used it to mock his country’s team, Bafana Bafana, noting that the mascot made it to the World Cup but the team didn’t. You can check out some of the reactions below.
Zakumi made it to the world cup and you didn't. Are you not embarrassed https://t.co/t5PAkxuB72
— Mpho⁷👩🏾🚀☄ (@Giftedmoonchild) November 20, 2022
