It has been years in the making and finally the teams have started arriving in the South.
The first teams for the Fifa under-20 World Cup matches flew into a chilly Dunedin last night ready to get down to some training as the games are just days away.
The first team to land on Southern soil was the heavyweight Uruguay team.
The group of 33, made up of players and officials, arrived to a greeting from the King's and Queen's High School kapa haka group.
The City of Dunedin pipe band also showed the Scottish side of the city.
The Uruguayans were followed by the Mexican side, which arrived about four hours later.
Uruguay, which finished second in the previous tournament in 2013, will be one of the favourites for the competition and is due to play its first game on Sunday, taking on Serbia.
There were a handful of Uruguayan fans at the airport to meet the team and wish it well.
Uruguay federation vice-president Rafael Fernandez said it was wonderful to be in Dunedin and the team was excited to be in the south.
''It feels really great to be here and we are delighted to have come to Dunedin. I look forward to a good next few days,'' he said.
''Not only do we want to win but we want to see your schools, be your friends and be part of your community. We have some good players and they are also good people.''
The Uruguayans will get on the training field shortly, as will the Mexicans.
The Serbian squad and the squad from Mali arrive in Dunedin tomorrow, with the Mali side coming in at 9.20am and the team from Serbia arriving at 5.25pm.
The Serbian team had arranged a school visit and will also open the final 15 minutes of a training session to the public.
Mali will take on Mexico in the first game on Sunday at 1pm, to be followed at 4pm by the match between Uruguay and Serbia.
The other two teams to play a pool match in Dunedin, Portugal and Colombia, will arrive in the city on June 4.
Their match is on June 6, starting at 1pm. Other pool games will be played on June 3, with a round of 16 knockout game to be played on June 10.
