FIFA president Sepp Blatter will be giving his thoughts on football in slightly shorter bursts than usual after opening up a Twitter account just in time for the World Cup in South Africa.

Blatter's account, @seppblatter, went live on Thursday on the eve of the tournament's opening game and the 74-year-old Swiss had already amassed almost 3,000 followers by the early evening.

Blatter is more fortunate than many of the players at the tournament in being able to use the micro-blogging service.

Netherlands players have been banned from using Twitter during the World Cup after Eljero Elia sparked a racism row with comments on a live streaming video.

(Editing by Michael Holden)

South Africa Football Twitter