Mangaung / Bloemfontein's open spaces reflect the openness of its people - friendly, warm and quietly dignified. The city's citizens are a unique blend of rural tranquillity and vibrant city life.

Located in the central interior of South Africa, Mangaung/Bloemfontein is the judicial capital of South Africa and the provincial capital of the Free State Province.

The Appeal Court is the highest court in South Africa and is seated in the city. The regal stinkwood paneled courtroom was completed in 1929. The city hall is a magnificent sandstone building built by Sir Gordon Leith and the city has an inner game reserve.

The Free State is bordered by four of South Africa's nine provinces and the country of Lesotho.

The city has a wealth of culture and history, reflected by its rich architectural heritage, numerous museums and monuments.

Mangaung/Bloemfontein is an excellent place to start discovering the Free State Province. The Golden Gate National Park in the eastern Free State has sandstone cliffs, which illuminate in gold hues when the sun strikes the exposed cliffs. The Vredefort Dome is the oldest impact crater in the world, dating back 2,023 million years and the expansive Gariep Dam is a local favourite among the landlocked people of the Free State and Gauteng.

History
 Chief Yoruka and the Barolong tribe settled in the area around Thaba Nchu in the early 1830s. In the late 1800s the Free State became home to Chief Moshoeshoe and the Basotho tribe. The area became a safe haven for tribes fleeing Shaka Zulu.

The Mangaung Local Municipality was formed at the end of 2000 by amalgamating the transitional local councils of Bloemfontein, Botshabelo, Thaba Nchu with two rural councils. It is the sixth largest city in South Africa and is also the Provincial capital of the Free State Province. Mangaung literally means "Place of the Cheetahs" in SeSotho, which is one of South Africa's 11 official languages.

Although amalgamated under one city authority in 2000, Bloemfontein was initially founded by Dutch and English settlers in mid-1800s. Bloemfontein is rumoured to have been named after an abundance of roses which grew around a fountain on a farm owned by a Dutch settler (Voortrekker), Johannes Nicolaas Brit. Bloemfontein literally means 'fountain of flowers' in Dutch

Football
 Football in Bloemfontein, was first played in 1891, when the territory was an independent Boer republic, known as the 'Oranje Vrij Staat'. Famous clubs like Aberdeen, Dundee United (both Scotland), Newcastle United (England), Ajax Amsterdam (Netherlands) and Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany) played tour matches in the territory. Bloemfontein City played briefly as the first professional club of the city.

Bloemfontein Celtic are the city's best known footballing product. The fans of Bloemfontien Celtic are renowned for their enthusiasm. The team's kit is very similar to the Scottish team Celtic, with green and white horizontal stripes.

The Free State Stars finished at the top of the First Division in 2007, consequently earning a place in the top flight for the 2007/2008 season.

The Free State Stadium was the setting for most of Group B's games during the 1996 CAF Africa Cup of Nations, which was hosted by South Africa.