COMPANIES will now be able to buy bulk tickets for the Fifa World Cup for staffers, Match Hospitality says.

"There is a surplus of tickets that have come on to the market and Fifa asked us to assist with distribution to corporations registered in South Africa," Mark Zeeman, the company's marketing and sales director, said yesterday.

There will be selected games to choose from. Tickets can be given to staff, used for incentive programmes or to entertain clients.

But they cannot be sold to or bought by people outside the company.

Companies can buy about 40 tickets each, spread over the games, through www.fifa.com/hospitality or phone 086-155-2010.

Last week Visa announced that it would be giving away 5000 tickets to bring ordinary South Africans closer to the game.

The allocation of the tickets is closely aligned with Fifa's Ticket Fund initiative, which is aimed at reaching those South African's who do not have the means to get to a match.

Visa will distribute the tickets to South Africans working in the hospitality and tourism sector through its financial literacy road show , which is currently rolling out across the nation.

"People in line to receive these tickets are those who have played a pivotal role in ensuring that South Africa is ready to host the world. These recipients are the face of South Africa when welcoming tourists to our beautiful country for the world cup," Charles Niehaus, general manager for Visa, sub-Saharan Africa, said.

"We are enthusiastic about the initiative because it helps bring the game of football closer to worthy recipients who wouldn't normally have access to the matches due to the fact that they fall into a lower income bracket. We at Visa are particularly pleased that these individuals will receive the tickets so they too can say 'I was there'," Niehaus said.