Brazil will be ready for World Cup, claims Sports Minister

By Andrew Warshaw

July 21 – Brazil’s Sports Minister Orlando Silva has attempted to dismiss fears surrounding the country’s preparations for the 2014 World Cup by insisting that all 12 stadia will be completed by the end of 2013.

FIFA has persistently expressed concerns about Brazil’s readiness for the tournament, citing stadia and airports as particular worries.

But just over a week before the qualifying draw for the tournament, Silva pledged delays surrounding the host cities would be resolved and that everything would be ready with six months to spare.

“Brazil will be ready as agreed with FIFA in terms of infrastructure,” Silva said.

“Eight stadia will be ready by the end of 2012; 10 by the start of the Confederations Cup in 2013; and all 12 by the end of 2013.”

Last month, at the inaugural Inside World Football conference in Moscow, FIFA general secretary Jérôme Valcke warned: “We don’t have stadia, we don’t have airports, we don’t have a national transportation system in place and we are one month away from the preliminary draw.

“In São Paulo they will not even be able to play the Confederations Cup in 2013 because the stadium will not be ready.”

But Silva is confident that FIFA will see for themselves next week just what progress is being made in the country’s $13 billion (£8 billion/€9 billion) investment.

“FIFA will be here next week and they will see personally the progress Brazil has made recently and I believe they will be pleased with the information they will be getting,” he said.

“They will probably be surprised by the data and information they will receive and the things they will see because they are following the progress from far away.

“It is certain that Brazil is much more attentive to the preparations for the World Cup than FIFA, and this attention will persist until the very last day of the World Cup, because we want to have a very successful event.”

The World Cup draw on July 30 is seen as the first organisational test case and Silva dismissed concerns over how crime could threaten the safety of the 600,000 visitors expected to visit Brazil during the tournament itself.

“We are working very hard to make sure visitors will be safe – because we want them to come back many times,” he said.

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