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German Football League (DFL) president Reinhard Rauball has called on World Cup organisers to “get a grip on security issues” following the attack on the Togo team bus at the Africa Cup of Nations which killed three people.

South African officials have reacted angrily to claims that the incident raises questions about the security situation in Africa ahead of this summer’s tournament, saying Angola (which is hosting the Africa Cup of Nations) and South Africa are two very different countries.

But DFL boss Rauball said: “We must think about how we get a grip on security issues. We can’t simply say that South Africa is something else than Angola.”

And German Football Federation (DFB) president Theo Zwanziger agreed, adding:
“The incident is unbelievable. It is painful and regrettable. We as the DFB must tell our players and coaches that we are doing our best for their safety.”

Zwanziger admitted that World Cup security is different to that of the African event in Angola but warned World Cup organisers not to “play down the issue”.

He continued: “You have to take it very, very seriously. We are still in the planning stages. We are working on our [security] models and against the backdrop of the attack in Angola.”