According to the author of the quarterly Nation Brand Index, Simon Anholt, "if traditional diplomacy is government-to-government (G2G) and public diplomacy is government-to-people (G2P), then effective nation branding also includes an element of P2P.

Put another way, nobody loves England that much unless it comes charming with the soft power of the Commonwealth, the British Council, the Church of England, the BBC, the English soccer premier league and the royal wedding.

South Africa has been awarded the title of most valuable nation brand on the continent, with its recent inclusion in the BRICS grouping and successful hosting of the 2010 Fifa World Cup contributing to strong positive perceptions both locally and abroad.

The English outcry at FIFA's decision to award the World Cup to Russia and Qatar has obscured what might be a brilliant gesture of goodwill.

ASEAN foreign ministers have discussed the possibility of hosting the FIFA World Cup. This initiative underlines the need for both academics and practitioners to include sports issues in international relations.

South Africans who seek to participate in influential global decision-making organisations, whether political, sporting or economic, must be encouraged and supported by the government to ensure they achieve those objectives, which in turn will benefit the country.

Money is a wonderful thing. Qatar has plenty of it and is putting it to use in its expanded public diplomacy. With wealth rather than weaponry, Qatar is becoming a new kind of superpower. The tiny state’s latest triumph is being named the site of the 2022 World Cup.

Any defining moment of a year is usually an analysis in past tense. Rarely ever is it a judgment in future tense. But that’s exactly how it is in the case of Qatar successfully bidding in 2010 to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. While winning the bid is victory enough to become a defining moment for the present, the real impact lies in what this success could do for the Gulf in general and for Qatar in particular over the next decade and beyond.