By David Gold
April 30 – Brazil’s Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo has sought to allay fears about the 2014 World Cup they are hosting, insisting that they are working hard and that the country “has done more important and more difficult things”.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 27 – Brazilian World Cup icon Ronaldo has attempted to play down the mountain of problems being faced by the 2014 hosts by insisting the country is on course to ensure a successful tournament in two years’ time.
By David Gold
April 23 – The 2010 World Cup Legacy Trust has been put into operation following its inaugural board meeting at South Africa Football Association (SAFA) House in Johannesburg.
By David Gold
April 23 – Brazil’s national telecommunications agency, ANATEL, has approved a bidding process to provide 4G signals to cities hosting games during the 2014 World Cup.
By David Gold
April 21 – Supporters travelling to Brazil for the 2014 World Cup without tickets will still be able to watch matches courtesy of a giant screen on iconic Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, following confirmation of the 12 Fan Fest venues.
By David Gold
April 17 – Jürgen Müller, FIFA’s head of the 2014, 2018 and 2022 World Cups, has expressed his satisfaction at what he described as “full commitment from all candidate host cities visited so far” during an inspection tour of Russia.
By David Gold
April 16 – The doors of the revamped Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro, which will host the final of the 2014 World Cup as well as the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 2016 Rio Olympic and Paralympics, have been opened to the public.
By Duncan Mackay in Moscow
April 13 – A trip to inspect the stadium being built for the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Sochi to see whether it should be one of the venues for the 2018 FIFA World Cup had to be abandoned when FIFA delegates were unable to land because of thick fog in the city.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 12 – A Swiss aid organisation has launched a campaign targeting FIFA for holding World Cups in countries with poor human rights records.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 11 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter (pictured left) wants to make a personal visit to Brazil to address those involved in the controversial World Cup bill that has caused so much consternation.
By David Gold
April 11 – FIFA has handed a budget of almost $700 million (£440 million/€534 million) to Russia 2018, it was announced at a meeting of the World Cup Organising Committee’s Management Board.
By David Gold
April 10 – Russia 2018 has begun a tour with FIFA delegates of potential host cities for the World Cup being staged in the country in six years’ time.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 9 – Former England caretaker manager Peter Taylor has vigorously defended his Bahrain team (pictured in red) in the wake of a FIFA investigation into their astonishing 10-0 win over Indonesia (pictured in white) in a World Cup qualifier.
By David Gold
April 7 – With less than 800 days to go until the World Cup kicks off in Brazil, more than half of the stadiums being used are less than half way through construction or renovation, but should be completed by the close of 2013.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 4 – FIFA general secretary Jérôme Valcke’s (pictured) fraught relationship with Brazil 2014 is again taking centre stage amid reports that he has been snubbed by the Brazilian Government in the continuing fallout over his infamous “kick up the backside” remarks.