DURBAN (South Africa) (AFP) Thousands of fans poured onto the Durban beachfront Wednesday to watch Spain beat Germany for a place in the World Cup final, as hosts South Africa contemplated a bid for the Olympics. Fans for both sides filled the 70,000-seater Moses Mabhida Stadium, with its dramatic arch spanning the pitch, for a nail-biting match that saw euphoric Spain book its first-ever World Cup final. Queen Sophia of Spain sat between South African President Jacob Zuma and FIFA boss Sepp Blatter to watch her country rise to a 1-0 win over Germany and a chance to challenge the Netherlands for the title on Sunday. Spanish fans were overjoyed, dancing and waving flags in a sea of red and yellow. Its incredible, said Alcier San Martin from Pamplona, in a Spain jersey. Weve always hoped for this but never managed to get there ... Its amazing to have travelled from Spain to be here for this. Its very emotional. Coastal Durban has hosted seven of the World Cup games and aggressively marketed itself as the tournaments warmest venue, enjoying balmy weather as the rest of the country shivered through winter. Signals from the countrys leaders suggest it could be part of a South African bid to host the Olympic Games. Having won praise for staging a footballing party that dispelled pre-tournament worries about its high crime rate and lack of public transport, South Africa is already looking ahead. Zuma hailed the social impact of the tournament, with black and white fans packing stadiums together, 16 years after the first all-race elections ended white-minority rule. The social benefits are priceless. We have seen remarkable unity, patriotism and solidarity being displayed by South Africans, which has never been witnessed before, Zuma said. He has mooted a bid to host the Olympics and Durban quickly offered itself as a potential candidate. Having the wonderful games in Durban confirms that we are capable, said mayor Obed Mlaba. If you give us the Olympics, we can handle them. The fans gathered for Wednesday nights match certainly seemed to enjoy themselves. Durban is pretty cool beaches, surfing. Its winter and you can be dressed like this, said German university student Frederic Kasten, playing foot-volley in a swimsuit on the sand. We started yesterday with a casino. We got some money there. And then today surfing and beach and a semi-final. What a day. For some, the enthusiasm for Durbans highest-profile match yet was tinged with sadness at seeing the citys World Cup party draw to an end. Its the first time in my life that Ive seen a festival like this here, said Emmanuel Mkhize on the beachfront. I dont care how long it takes, I want to see another World Cup here, he said. Attention is already shifting to the final at the calabash-shaped Soccer City stadium on Sunday in Johannesburg. A dozen foreign leaders are expected at the game, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, whose nation will host the next World Cup in 2014. Zimbabwes President Robert Mugabe is also expected along with the kings of Lesotho and Swaziland and leaders of Togo, Malawi, the Comoros and Mozambique, according to the foreign ministry. The final will be preceded by a closing ceremony headlined by Shakira and South Africas Grammy-winning Ladysmith Black Mambazo. But all eyes will be searching for Nelson Mandela, the ageing Nobel laureate who helped bring the World Cup to South Africa. He has yet to appear at the tournament after cancelling his attendance at the opener to mourn for his great-granddaughter, killed in a car accident the night before. His foundation says South Africas first black president, who turns 92 this month, will only decide on the day of the final if he will attend.