Soccer World Cup draw: Live coverage

FIFA President Sepp Blatter holds the trophy watched by show host Carol Manana. Photo / AP

The Soccer World Cup draw has thrown the All Whites an interesting group in their first appearance at the finals since 1982. Keep hitting refresh for the latest news.

7.34am:
The All Whites' fixtures:
Tuesday, June 15, 11.30pm NZT, NZ v Slovakia, at Rustenburg
Monday, June 21, 2am NZT, NZ v Italy, at Nelspruit
Friday, June 25, 2am NZT, NZ v Paraguay, at Johannesburg

7.26am:
The draw is complete.

New Zealand will play Italy, current World Cup holders, Paraguay and Slovakia.

England have a potentially easy looking route with the USA, Algeria and Slovenia in their group.

Australia have a tough task against Germany, Serbia and Ghana. Is that the 'group of death', or is it Brazil, Portugal and Cote d'Ivoire, along with North Korea?

Group A: South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France
Group B: Argentina, Nigeria, South Korea, Greece
Group C: England, USA, Algeria, Slovenia
Group D: Germany, Australia, Serbia, Ghana
Group E: Netherlands, Denmark, Japan, Cameroon
Group F: Italy, Paraguay, New Zealand, Slovakia
Group G: Brazil, North Korea, Ivory Coast, Portugal
Group H: Spain, Honduras, Chile, Switzerland

The opening match on June 11 will be between South Africa and Mexico.

7.03am:
Springbok captain John Smit and South African bowler Makhaya Ntini are among the local sporting celebrities announced by Charlize Theron to help with the draw. And then some guy called David Beckham.

6.55am:
The draw itself is about to start. Stay with us as we find out who the All Whites and the other 31 teams will play in the first round of the finals next year.

A total of 32 teams are in the finals, which are played from June 11 to July 11 2010 in South Africa. In the first round, the teams are split into eight groups of 4. The top two sides in each group go through to the knockout stages which are played over four rounds culminating in the final.

The seeded sides, who will not meet in the first round are: Brazil, Argentina, Spain, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, England and South Africa.

The All Whites, who qualified with a playoff win over Bahrain, are rank outsiders along with North Korea and Algeria.

6.39am:
The tournament mascot Zakumi is introduced in a slightly cheesy slot. Time to get on with the draw itself. Apparently not: an African wildlife video is followed by more about the history of the World Cup. The All Whites representatives will be shifting in their seats by now, desperate to know who they're going to be playing in June.

6.34am:
Holywood actress Charlize Theron, one of South Africa's most famous exports, tells the crowd at the draw that she is delighted to be home and claims to be a football fan though she admits she doesn't know "all the ins and outs".

6.22am:
A reminder of the teams and which pot they're in - The All Whites will face one team from each of the other three pots:
Pot 1 - seeds: South Africa, Brazil, Spain, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Argentina, England

Pot 2 - Asia, Oceania and North/Central America: Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Australia, New Zealand, United States, Mexico, Honduras

Pot 3 - Africa and South America: Ivory Coast, Ghana, Cameroon, Nigeria, Algeria, Paraguay, Chile, Uruguay

Pot 4 - Europe: France, Portugal, Slovenia, Switzerland, Greece, Serbia, Denmark, Slovakia

6.12am:
South Africa's president Jacob Zuma and FIFA president Sepp Blatter get things underway. Both say Africa is ready to host the tournament for the first time.

6.05am:
Nelson Mandela has addressed the draw by video link saying the country feels privileged and humbled to be hosts.

6.00am
The All Whites representatives are in place in Cape Town waiting to hear if they are going to get a glamour tie against the likes of Brazil or Italy, or a winnable one against an unfancied side like hosts South Africa.

- NZHERALD STAFF