By Rick Horrow and Karla Swatek
July 5, 2013
Just under a year away from the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, cost overruns, construction delays, and violent protests have seemingly put the country’s ability to host the international spectacle into serious jeopardy. According to Brazil’s Ministry of Sports, the country will invest more than $16.6 billion in infrastructure for the 2014 World Cup.
But the cost overruns, strikes by construction workers, and quality and safety issues have meant that only half of the dozen World Cup stadiums have now been completed, as the rest struggle mightily to meet a FIFA-imposed December 2013 completion deadline. Meanwhile, protests threaten the very existence of the global sporting event.
At present, FIFA is dismissing as “nonsense” that any large scale changes to the World Cup master plan are being contemplated. FIFA President Sepp Blatter emphasized that Brazil "will benefit" from the financial investment being made and the benefits it will bring. Regardless, the international soccer community can’t be happy that there’s so much uncertainty so close to the event’s kickoff.
