South African World Cup April Fools' joke picked up around world

The hoax story from online news service News24 said that officials from Fifa and local organisers were considering banning the French and Portuguese national anthems, as well as the German, Italian and Dutch.
It pointed to lyrics in the French anthem: "Grab your weapons, citizens! Form your battalions!Let us march! Let us march! May impure blood water our fields", while organisers reportedly suggested using so-called praise singers who traditionally have sung or chanted songs or recited poetry in exaltation of a leader.But the story was picked up by websites and agencies around the world with organisations until organisers of the tournament confirmed it was a joke.

The story followed an ongoing row in South Africa over the singing of the so-called 'kill the Boer, kill the farmer' song by the firebrand leader of the African National Congress Youth League leader Julius Malema. The controversial Mr Malema, 29, sang the song at a university campus last month prompting complaints by the Freedom Front Plus political party and Afrikaner lobby group AfriForum.