South Africa lost out to Germany by a single vote in the controversial vote for the 2006 finals and is determined it will win the glittering prize this time when 24 of world football body FIFA's most powerful officials make their choice in Zurich on Saturday.

The stakes are enormous - hosting football's showpiece event is worth five billion dollars at a rough estimate and billions more in prestige.

Five nations are bidding, but it has become largely a two-horse race, with Egypt as outsiders and Tunisia and Libya making up the numbers.

South Africa were favourites to host the 2006 World Cup before football's murky politics and power games took over.

The Oceania representative, Charles Dempsey, abstained in the last round of voting in the knowledge that Germany were leading 12-11 and that in the event of a draw the casting vote goes to FIFA President Sepp Blatter, who was likely to have chosen South Africa.

With Morocco apparently closing fast on South Africa, Blatter fears this vote may be so close that he will have to make that casting vote this time.

"I hope I will not be in that position," Blatter said.

Ever since Blatter decided the 2010 tournament would be in Africa, South Africa have been the front-runners, trumpeting their success in hosting the 1993 Rugby World Cup and the Cricket World Cup last year.

South Africa is also hoping that it will be awarded the finals as a reward for ten years of democracy following the end of apartheid.

Former president Nelson Mandela has agreed to attend the vote to give the bid a last-minute push in what is expected to be his last major function before withdrawing from public life.

Morocco however has attracted heavyweight support, including from France and Spain, raising fears in South Africa that the Rainbow Nation's hopes could be dashed again.

FIFA's inspectors rated South Africa's bid excellent, but bid chief Danny Jordaan said the favourite's tag was meaningless.

"The lesson we learned from last time is that it's not over until the final whistle," Jordaan said in Kuala Lumpur last weekend, where he was lobbying the four Asian members of the FIFA Executive Committee which makes the final decision.

"A lot of officials from different countries and confederations have said they support us, which is always welcome," Jordaan said.

"But it won't win us the World Cup. What matters is persuading 13 members of the FIFA executive committee that we have the best bid."

Morocco has played up its proximity to Europe as a factor in its favour, allowing European fans and corporate guests to fly in on the day of matches.

Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade will accompany the Moroccan delegation to Zurich, lending the North Africans valuable support from the west of the continent.

"A World Cup in Morocco will be a World Cup for the whole of Africa," said bid chief Saad Kettani.

Morocco also have the experienced guidance of US lawyer Alan Rothenberg, who organised the 1994 World Cup in the United States, the tournament that Morocco missed out on staging by a single vote.

"Everyone had sympathy for South Africa after its failure, but don't forget that Morocco had the same experience in 1994," he said.

Egypt is bidding for the first time and it would be a huge surprise if it got the nod, but as the bid's coordinator Hicham Azmi said: "There are always last-minute surprises in these type of decisions. I hope that this time, Egypt can spring the surprise."