By David Owen
March 17 – FIFA has backed down over the inclusion of the Amazonian city of Manaus on the list of venues for the Rio 2016 Olympic football tournaments.
The FIFA Organising Committee for the men’s and women’s competitions announced on Monday that the 58 matches would be played in six cities, including Manaus, and seven stadia between August 3 and 20.
The move comes just a month after FIFA had reacted to Rio 2016’s announcement that Manaus had been added to its list by saying it did not consider the city a “suitable first option for a hosting venue”.
Given that the FIFA Presidential election campaign is in full sway, the governing body’s decision to back down on this matter may be interpreted as improving incumbent President Sepp Blatter’s already very good prospects of securing Brazil’s vote.
While Blatter could face a fight for votes in certain regions, notably Europe, the South American confederation of CONMEBOL is widely viewed as a staunch supporter. It is the smallest confederation in terms of voting power, with just 10 votes at the election on May 29.
The full list of venues unveiled on Monday is: Belo Horizonte (Mineirão Stadium), Brasilia (Mané Garrincha Stadium), Manaus (Amazônia Arena), Rio de Janeiro (Maracanã Stadium and Olympic Stadium), Salvador (Fonte Nova Arena) and São Paulo (Corinthians Arena).
Said Marco Polo Del Nero, chairman of the FIFA organising committee for the Olympic football tournaments: “The Olympic Football Tournaments will be a fantastic opportunity to revive the great atmosphere seen during the 2014 FIFA World Cup, not only in Rio de Janeiro but also in the other five cities. They did an excellent job in 2014, and now they can use the World Cup stadiums and infrastructure already in place to unite the country for a major event once more. I am confident that the participating teams will have an unforgettable Olympic experience.”
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