South Africa - Football fans are gearing up for Africa's first World Cup South Africa has deported 10 suspected Argentine football hooligans who police say were planning to disrupt the World Cup.

The men, part of a larger group of about 80 fans, were arrested at Johannesburg airport and found to be on an entry blacklist.

South African police have said the move shows security preparations ahead of the games are paying off.

The World Cup - the first held on the African continent - begins on Friday.

The men were said to belong to the country's "barras bravas", organised groups renowned for football-related violence.

The Argentine barras bravas, ultra-violent football supporter groups, have played a disruptive role at many World Cups.

In Mexico in 1986, fighting between Argentine and English supporters left several fans hospitalised. In Italy in 1990 two factions fought for prized places behind the goal mouth during Argentina matches.

In the 1998 World Cup in France, police classified the Argentine barras bravas as the most violent and dangerous fans in Latin America.

This year, among those deported from South Africa is the leader of the San Martin barra brava, Sergio Roldan. He is out on bail and is under judicial process for the murder of a 13-year-old boy. There were delays in obtaining his criminal record and he got as far as South Africa.

Within Argentine football the barras bravas have been linked to club management and even national politicians in a Mafia-like relationship.

Argentine sports journalists say clubs give them privileges and they act as a kind of "rent-a-crowd" during protests and elections for politicians. Players have also complained of threats from barras bravas and extortion rackets.

They were detained on Sunday after travelling from Argentina via the Angolan city of Luanda, and deported on Monday.

At least two of them were group leaders, and another was out on bail for murder, according  to police.