One Year to World Cup - Sports Minister Defends Stadia Legacy, Admits Ticket Prices Worry

(ATR) Brazilian sports minister Aldo Rebelo denies that the stadia built at huge expense for the World Cup will become white elephants beyond the 2014 FIFA finals.

Concerns have been raised that some of the stadiums in host cities such as the the 70,000-capacity Mané Garrincha stadium in Brasilia, venue for the Confederations Cup opener on Saturday, and the 43,000-seaters in Manaus and Cuiabá will struggle to attract large crowds for their minor football teams and fail to deliver on multisports legacy pledges to FIFA.

In a conference call with reporters, Rebelo dismissed the suggestion that some of the 12 stadia for Brazil 2014 would be under-used and unsustainable in legacy mode.

Claiming many of the stadium projects were conceived as multipurpose venues with football and non-sporting events part of the business plan, the sports minister insisted they were already being successfully marketed to draw tourists and events such as concerts and exhibitions post-World Cup. Several have also inked naming rights deals, he noted.

"There is no chance that these stadiums will become white elephants," he responded to a question.

"They will be much more than football fields. They will be multi-purposes spaces that the cities have lacked before and now will have to use for several different purposes."

Despite a legion of problems in building stadia and infrastructure for the World Cup dress rehearsal, he rated Brazil's Confederations Cup preparations a staggering 9/10. However, he admitted the six host stadia could have been delivered earlier to allow for test events and iron out glitches in venue operations.

Rebelo promised that the six other stadiums hosting the World Cup would be ready by December as planned.

Asked if Brazilian football fans would likely be priced out of buying World Cup tickets, Rebelo conceded: "The price of tickets is expensive and way beyond the means of most people."

He has raised the issuewith FIFA, which will unveil ticket prices on July 1 with sales starting on Aug. 20. Tickets are set to cost similar to those sold for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa where prices ranged from $20-$160 for first-round matches.

Brazil’s per capita income is estimated at just $12,000.

Rebelo confirmed that world football’s governing body had pledged to give 50,000 free tickets to poor communities and Indigenous communities. Half-price tickets will also be available for students and pensioners.

"Of course, this may help solve the World Cup issue, but we do worry that the elitisation of soccer in Brazil may happen due to the price of the tickets that will be charged after the events are over in the new arenas being built," he added.

Asked by Around the Rings if there was a danger Rio 2016 Olympic preparations would slip behind over the next year as Brazil focuses on the Confederations Cup and World Cup, Rebelo dismissed the notion.

He said assurances had been given to the IOC about preparations for the Games and Brazil was fulfilling all commitments.

Rebelo said his ministry of sports had a special team coordinating Games preparations with other ministries "working in perfect synchrony with the city, state and Rio 2016 organizing committee."

Amid concerns over delays in modernising Brazil’s airport infrastructure, road and rail networks ahead of the World Cup, Rebelo claimed the Brazilian government was "monitoring this on a daily basis".

He emphasised that the airports, security, telecommunications and urban mobility at the Confederations Cup and World Cup would be "compatible with expectations of the country and the world."

For complete coverage on the road to Brazil 2014, follow World Football INSIDER.

Reported by Mark Bisson

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